Farewell to May

Farewell to May

So here it is, the last day of May. And it’s a beauty. The kind of day just right for a get-together. The family’s contacted. We make a plan.

John’s mowing the lawn. I fill the bird feeders. We prepare all the picnic food and gather the fixings, ice down the drinks.

Wait, is that one fluffy white cloud on the horizon? No, nothing. We have just a gentle breeze. It’ll pass on by.

The family is all gathered for a fun time during the first real day of summer. Soon we have a nice picnic in the backyard.

John’s napping in the hammock as the rest of us talk and eat. And remember that gentle breeze from earlier? Well, it picks up speed and becomes a gale. Leftover picnic food, plates, cups, napkins and anything else blows off into the next yard.

The family runs into the house, completely forgetting about John in the hammock. Thunder and lightning precede hail the size of dimes. It pummels the ground before a torrential rainstorm floods the sidewalk and street.

“Hey, what about John?” someone asks from the family gathered in the kitchen.

I turn around and sure enough, John is missing.

We gather at the back door to see the hammock twisted up like a cocoon. It twists and turns in the wind but stays attached to the trees. As soon as the rain stops, we run out to John.

Bill and I untangle the hammock. John is still asleep. Amazing.

“John! Are you alright?” I shake my husband awake.

The family group hovers around John. He is lying in the unwound hammock with a peaceful look on his face.

“I’ve just had the most amazing nap. I dreamt of a trip down a lazy river. The boat was rocking back and forth as the water rushed by.”

“There was a huge storm. You’d didn’t hear the thunder? Feel the hail or rain?”

“Really? No, I was as snug as a bug in a rug. Best nap I’ve had in a long time. What’s to eat? When’s the picnic start”

W/C 353