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Wednesday, March 7, 2012

A March Wind for Pigeon

There was an old saying, Mother said, that March would come in like a lion, roaring and tearing things up with its restless power. On the second day of March, Pigeon was napping when the lion opened his mouth in the sky overhead and announced his arrival. His breath bent the trees to the grass and raked the sides of Pigeon's house like a thousand magnificent claws.  

Hush, little baby. It is only the wind.

But the wind gave way to the lion's roar, a sound like the sky splitting in two. Out of the crack spilled beads of ice that pelted the roof like broken glass. Pigeon watched it bounce off the concrete and collect in the cracks of the patio.

Hush, sweet angel. It is nothing but hail.

Pigeon watched the hail dissolve into a curtain of water. For a moment its rushing was all they could hear. Light like the flash from Mother's camera burst in the air over the pond, where even the water was blown to one side to make way for the hard March storm.

Hush, little one, it is just the lightning and rain.

And then, as quickly as he'd come, the lion had passed. Pigeon could hear his rumbling trail off in the distance, could see his banner of flickering light retreating.

Later Mother and Father saw pictures of a darker path March had torn to the south. They sucked in their breath at the destruction and the sadness already sewn in the spring almost upon them.

But there was another half to the saying, Mother said, that March would go out like a lamb, with a warm breath on gentle breezes and a step too light to be noticed. March would skip without guile through their yard with crocuses draped around his neck like silk ribbons, give way to April with its gentler rain and tender budding branches. Lions and lambs, storms and sun, destruction and redemption, death and life and the promise of new beginnings.

Hold on, precious child. The Light is coming.

8 comments:

  1. I'm glad you made it through the storms safely!

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    1. We're thankful...really we just had a lot of bluster and noise (and water!)....Nothing compared to our southerly neighbors... So sad for them. Wishing them a kinder, gentler April, full of healing and recovery!

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  2. What a beautiful concluding paragraph!

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  3. Hold on, precious child. The Light is coming!

    Such hope in those words...not just for your little one, either.

    Beautiful, J!

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  4. So beautiful and moving... I got goosebumps. "Death and life and a promise of new beginnings"... indeed.

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  5. This was poetry... so beautifully composed. All I can say is that Pigeon is so very lucky to have a mother who lives life through this perspective.

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  6. very beautifully thought and written

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