As some Snap readers may remember,
I have been doing 'writing exercises' with my Mom,
Who is 89 years old. Actually a very active, productive
And many times successful politician (urban planning, parks,
Environmental issues, etc.), she ignores all of that these days,
And laments that she never got to become a writer - though
Even in this realm she published some stores and wrote many
An article on public affairs. So the good son has taken to being
Her catalyst & scribe. Here are a couple. I should add that she has
What some call "pleasant dementia" so her mind takes its own turns
And logics, often surprising both language and her son!
I give her a lemon off a tree in the backyard,
Then ask her to write a story called,
The Lemon
A lemon is lightened up inside itself.
I am more of an outgoing person.
I enjoy human association if it is good,
Decent - and I don't mean it's not
Naughty. I like it to be good conversation.
You want me to talk to the lemon? OK.
"Why are you so pale and hard?
How did you get the the spots on your skin?
Did somebody hit you? Will you be able to
Take our your stem without hurting? If you don't
Take it out right away, will it make it hard
To get ripened?"
Without having had advance clearance,
Before you meet one, what can one
anticipate from a lemon?
I anticipate a delightful taste in the
Hot water that many of our friends
Use with a little sugar. Not very creative
Many might say.
What is a lemon in the female sense
of the word? I have not seen a real lemon
In a long time. I think this lemon is real hard
To make you think it's not nourishing.
I have not seen a real lemon in a long time.
"I thought maybe you could tell me a story
That we can call, 'Sunday with Mom'."
"Well, Sunday with Mom can be pretty dull
Or it can be quite lively. It's very
Difficult to tell what a man is going to
Be like when he wakes up in the morning.
However, if his heart is in the right place
He can have his heart turning what the
Books could. Why is this so?
Because during a course of half of
His life, he has acquired many
Books, some of which are interesting,
Some are duds. How does one
Know what kind of books he's going
To pick up? That depends a lot
On how he passed the rest of
The day. And with whom he has
Decided to associate.
I have had so much difficulty with
Gentlemen who thought that had
Written good books by what they
Had written in their notebooks
But in reality they were pretty
Limited.
Stephen Vincent
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