Balls Capone

The Happy Place..........a pleasant journey.

It's morning time, I've just woken up from a nice night of fine sleep. I can smell sage here. The light comes through my stained glass window and makes a colorful pattern on my bed. I lie there for a moment and watch the colors, warm under my covers in the cool morning air. I get up and plop my feet on the wooden floor, damn, I left my sandals out by the fire pit last night. Oh well. I reach for my blue wizard robe and throw it around my naked body. The old wooden floor creaks under my bare feet as I walk to the kitchen sink and take a look out the window. The sunlight pours in, it feels so nice on my face. It's not too hot, the door is open and the cool morning breeze is blowing through the rusty screen door.

As my senses slowly wake up I can hear the birds chirping out in the trees and the buzz of a couple flies caught between the window and the screen in the bathroom. The wind chimes out on the porch musically dancing with the winds, making a peaceful chime on the cool morning air. I pick up a glass from the counter and fill it with fresh cold water from the well. The wonderful cold feeling runs all the way down my throat and slowly coats my entire stomach. I close my eyes and capture the moment, for it is a wonderful moment, so peaceful, and comfortable.

I make myself something to eat and enjoy coffee and my morning cigarette out on the patio by the fire pit. I have my old banjo with me that I'm lightly plunking on between sips of coffee, the cigarette stuck in the headstock of the banjo, held in by the strings, the smoke slowly rising up into the blue sky. I'm watching the shadow of the rising smoke dance on the rock below me as I plunk away. The rocks in front of me stand like an attentive silent audience, always listening, so well behaved. "Thank you, thank you guys, I'll be here all week", I joke in a silly tone. Look at me, talking to rocks. It makes me giggle a little. It's starting to get pretty warm out now, I can feel the warm sun beating down upon my head.

Then a feeling hits me, it nearly takes my breath away and makes me shed a little tear of joy. What is it? I don't know, it's life, a moment of real life passing through me like a speeding train. It's gone as quickly as it comes, but it's good to feel. It's a real feeling. Ugh, enough of this sappy shit, time to go down to the pond for a swim. I take off my glasses and rub the emotion from my face and eyes, some cold water will do me some good.

I slip on my sandals that are sitting over by the fire pit and slowly flop my way down the trail. There it is, the blue water of the pond lapping at the shore of white and brown gravel. I don't even bother to take off the robe, I just walk directly into the water. The cold rushes over my body as I sink completely underneath. Here I let go of all thought and just feel. Feel the cool of the water and the weightlessness.

I slowly float to surface and spread my arms and legs out so I float. The sunlight refracts off the water on my eyelashes making rainbows and colors flash before my nearly closed eyes, warm above but cool beneath. I just float and let the currents in the pond take me at will. They will eventually bring me to my place.

I know I have arrived as I float under the overhanging trees, blocking out the sunlight. I stand up, water pouring off me as I slowly walk out of the water. I wad up the soaked robe and discard it in the pile of robes on the shore, it's getting pretty big, I should probably do laundry. But not this very minute. Here is my little nature patio on the other side of the pond, it is made of rock that I have carried into place and crafted into a little table and chair like thing. In the middle stands a tall skinny blue vase with one white rose in it, on the other side of the table sits a cooler filled with ice cold beer. I lay upon the warm rock chair, crack open a cold one, and smile to myself as I think "My God........I love everything!", as I slide on my sunglasses and slowly slip into a peaceful nap, where even more pleasant dreams fill my mind.

From here I shall awaken upon the lunch hour where I will enjoy delicious sandwiches with jalapeno chips and more cold beer. Then with the arrival of the evening I will recreate at the pond with family and friends, here good times and good spirits will abound. We celebrate for no reason but for the sheer joy of celebration and do so well into the wee hours of the next day.

Finally exhausted and filled with joy, I fall upon my soft cool bed once again and drift off to sleep.

Then it just starts all over again.