It Was the Wrong Road but the Right Potato

She drove down the highway looking for the sign Rudy said was the landmark for the road. She was beginning to regret driving all this way to find an office picnic that may not even be here. She started grumbling out loud now, “Rudy’s always been a prankster. Why did I believe him this time. Look for a potato! That’s what Rudy said!”  

And suddenly there it was! A brightly colored small billboard with a picture of a potato. Thats all, no words. She turned onto the road happily now looking forward to the picnic. She’d made her special raspberry jam just for this event.

She noticed up ahead an old man walking slowly. He looks tired, she thought. She pulled up next to him, “Would you like a ride,” she said. The man looked relieved and got in the car with a sigh.

As she pulled away she glanced at him noticing that he was younger than she had thought. “If you’re thirsty there’s an extra bottle of water there,” she pointed to a bag on the floor. He reached for it and drank it all. He sighed again and leaned back for a moment.

“You’re very kind,” he said. “I’ve made this walk once a week for many years to check on the billboard and you are the first person ever who has stopped and helped.”

She asked, “Are you going to the picnic?” He looked puzzled for a moment and then said, “Oh, I heard about that but that is a few miles up the highway, I think.” 

“I heard,” he continued, “that they were going to use a sign like mine to mark their place but I asked them not to because it took my grandparents years to create this particular purple potato we raise. We distribute it to only a few places since it is so special.”

Fascinated by what he was saying and forgetting the picnic for the moment, she had pulled over and stopped as they continued to talk. She asked, “Does it have a special taste?” “Yes,” he answered, “but that’s not all. It has a unique quality. If you like, I have a small sample here in the form of a cookie. Would you like to share it with me?” He hurried on to say, “I assure you, it is completely safe.”

A comfortable feeling came over her. She felt she could trust him. “Okay, I’ll try it,” she said. He pulled out the cookie and she noticed that it seemed to have a purple glow. He broke it neatly in half and with a whimsical tap of cookie halves they ate it at the same time.

Almost immediately she felt the change. All of her old aches and pains were suddenly gone and she felt like she was 20 years old again.She smiled and looked over at him. He now looked about the same age as she felt. She glanced at her reflection in the rear view mirror and she looked 20! “Is it real?” she asked.

“Yes,” he simply said. “How long does it last?” she asked quietly. “As long as you want,” he answered. He tentatively reached out and gently touched the back of her hand. She felt wonderful with his gentle touch. Almost whispering she said, “Are you my other half?” “Yes,” he said quietly, “It’s our time now.”

——————————————————

Halloween can be happy. May yours be so.

Goodlife

——————————————————————

Detail of photo: Photo is ©️B. Kim Barnes, used with permission and can be found at

https://www.flickr.com/photos/kimbar/21330395353/in/album-72157653171573963/

Zeus and the Cat Doctor

 It had been a lonely life lately for Zeus. He’d been walking around on the streets - it seemed like forever but he knew it wasn’t that long. He looked in all the old familiar places but he couldn’t find what he was looking for. He knew that what he was looking for wasn’t here anymore but he had hope. He wanted to find some of the smells to remind him of the old days with the old man. It was a good trip to make every day. 

 Some people wondered why he kept doing that. Others thought it was love or loneliness or that he was just old. It was all those things but it was more then that. After almost his whole life of living with the old man who was also old when they got together, it was normal for him. It was what he did with his life now. 

 He continued on his walk down the path to the old wood shop where the old man had worked. He walked up to the front door and stared at it. It was locked. He so very much wanted to go inside but there wasn’t anybody to let him in so he walked around the outside. 

 There were still a few lingering smells from those old days. The old man used to like to sit out in back sometimes on an old wood box behind the wood shop and smoke his pipe. Zeus walked over there and sat down next to it. 

 He could still sniff some of those old tobacco smells and they were a comfort to him. Doing that always made him feel better. He would sit there for an hour or so and then he’d walk on home. 

 The old man’s daughter, Susie, still lived there and she took care of him and that was a comfort too but she had a busy life. She often went off with her friends - he didn’t know where - so he’d be a bit lonely and he would go on his walk every day to remember the good times with the old man.  

 Everybody in the neighborhood knew him. Sometimes the children would call to him and if he really liked them he would stop for a short visit but this didn’t happen every day, just some days. 

 He was almost home when Jeremy came running out from the alley and bumped right into him. Jeremy was getting a little older now and he fell over. Zeus stopped and stayed with him. 

 Jeremy was a cat and was almost completely blind, he was born that way, and they had become friends. Zeus remained with his friend while Jeremy figured out how to get up. 

 Jeremy had only 3 legs so getting up was sometimes awkward for him. He was born that way, almost blind and with 3 legs but the people he lived with next door loved him just the way he was. 

 Jeremy got up and the 2 of them leaned together which is a way that dogs, cats and some others will hug each other sometimes. They walked together and since they were almost home they got back within a minute or two. 

 Susie and her friends were there. They saw Zeus and Jeremy coming up the sidewalk and they stopped what they were doing. Susie looked at the pair and she thought, “What an odd mixed match they are but they are very precious.” 

 Many of her friends were taking pictures of them and it always made her uncomfortable when that happened because she felt somehow it was invading Zeus’s and Jeremy’s friendship but she noticed the dog and cat didn’t seem to mind at all. 

 The two came up to where everybody was and her friends all sat or crouched down to visit with them. They knew that Zeus and Jeremy were not young so they were gentle and petted them and said sweet and friendly things to them. Zeus and Jeremy sat down and enjoyed their friendliness.  

 After a few minutes Jeremy got up and walked over to Richard who was sitting by himself and feeling kind of grumpy because he had broken his toe and it was really hurting. He was wearing a walking cast and since he loved nothing better then to go skateboarding he was a bit grumpy.

 Jeremy jumped up into Richard’s lap. Richard didn’t know what to do because he didn’t have a cat but Jeremy settled down and Richard just started gently petting him. 

 He noticed as he was petting Jeremy that he felt better and his toe had stopped hurting so much. He didn’t know why but he appreciated it and pretty soon he was smiling and laughing with the rest of his friends. 

 Susie and her best friend and neighbor Joni looked at each other and smiled. Joni quietly said  that Jeremy was working his special magic again. They agreed that Jeremy was a cat doctor. He could cheer anybody up and he could help them to feel better no matter what. He just had that special way about him.

 Zeus smiled to himself. He walked up on the porch and got up on the old man’s wooden deck chair that Susie kept there for him. He looked around sleepily as he started to relax. It’s not a bad life even though the old man was gone - it’s a good life in a lot of ways. Maybe I’ll stop making that walk and hang out more with my friend Jeremy. I might pick up some pointers and someday perhaps I can be a dog doctor. On that note he settled in for his afternoon snooze.

-------------------------------

Photo is ©️B. Kim Barnes, used with permission and can be found at:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/kimbar/5887795802/in/album-72157627291278455/