THE LEAP

I would say it feels like some sort of necessary sprouting, but no, I think what's in store for us is a Darwinian leap, a mandatory letting go so that we may have the chance to somehow grab on to something else. Right now, we're simply crowding the rim at the misty edge of everything we've ever known. You look back and see nothing but more and more of your fellow man staggering blindly towards it as well. The great exodus. It's funny how everyone knows it but so few are willing to state it out loud. The toll booth attendant knows it, your kid's teacher knows it. The mayor of your town knows it. Obama knows it. The waitress knows it. We've become as lifeless and locked in our doings as those mechanical puppets at Chucky Cheese. Ah, the whole thing is just so goddamn embarrassing, yet more and more, just so wonderfully comical. The cop in his uniform makes me laugh. The checkout lady makes me laugh. Just to look over and see another person sitting behind the wheel in their car, makes me laugh. I remember sitting in the warm sun at the edge of our yard, playing with my army men beside my mother. She was picking weeds and she looked as beautiful as a person could ever be. Those long tan legs sticking out of her cutoffs, a red bandana tied around her head. The wind blew a bit and she looked over and smiled. I guess I had been watching her. "What is it, Philby?" she asked. I just smiled and went back to playing. I didn't know what to say. I still don't.