Mus'ing

Epiphany

                                                                    THE LION IN THE ROOM





    The old man was in his easy chair when the doorbell rang. As he was getting up he thought to himself, "The older this recliner and I get, the more creaks, pops and groans we make!





    When he opened the door he saw his grown son and his ever present guitar with his sons wife and small child. He remembered the time, a long time ago, when he had asked the son and his mother to leave, fearing the beast that waged war inside of him!





    "May we come in father?" the son asked, "I wrote a song I would like you to hear! Do you still have the stand where I can put my sheet music?"





    "I'll go get it." the old man said.





    As he turned to go he heard a gasp from the young daughter-in-law and saw the lion. "Don't worry!" the old man said, "He's here quit a bit and hasn't hurt me yet!"





      "I think we should go!" the young girl said. "I don't trust him!"





      The old man spoke up. "Go into the kitchen and we'll put the easel in the hallway. That way if he does something you will be able to run out the back door and escape!"





      As the old man set the easel up, the lion jumped on the dinning room table and sat down, putting his paws in front of him, while surveying his domain like a sphinx of old. Looking at the lion in apprehension, the lad put his music on the stand.The son started playing, filling the room with sweet melody and filling his soul with peaceful harmony.





      At this point the old man realized it was nothing more than a dream, because he felt he was the lion, but at the same time he was playing within his son. Looking up he asked the question, "What is the meaning of this?" And as he was asking the answer came to him. "The lion and I are the past, and my son and I are the present, with the mother and child being the future. If the lion can be controlled, I can hold onto the present and not lose the future!"





    The old man woke from his sleep and rolled over, looking at the digital clock at his bedside. It read 2:22. "It must be the beginning of a new day." the old man thought. He heard his second wife snoring beside him so he got up and went to the chair to put on his old shirt, vest and slippers. Making his way out to his old recliner and blanket, he heard the snoring stop. He heard the bed creak and his young wife leave the bed, going to the bathroom. He heard her potty and then go back to bed.





    Lying in the dark he thought, "Thank you lord for your answer to a question I didn't know I was asking! If You can help me control the beast I've got a chance for the future!"