The Sun Rises Everyday
A Photo-Journey
The last stop on the tram, is Airport West. From there, to my son’s house, one can either take an Uber, or walk. As veteran walkers, my husband and I prefer to walk.
We wait to cross, for the pedestrian light to turn green. According to our natures, I weave from side to side, smiling at everything, because it is a beautiful day, the sun is smiling, and there is a song and a dance in my heart. The man I live with stands stolidly staring at nothing, doing his best to pretend he doesn’t know me.
The light turns green, and I waltz across, smiling. Pedestrians, motorists with grim faces seated behind steering wheels, a bicyclist, all look at me and smile back. The man I live with stares grimly ahead, keeping an eagle eye out for me, ready to step in and pull me out of harm’s way, if I dance into traffic. He does love me. Sometimes.
It is a 15 minute walk. We cover it in 12 and a half minutes. I am skipping along and he tries to catch up.
The path is over a highway, with a tree-lined service road running parallel to it. Birds chirp and tweet, chuckle and cheep. They are tame and many of them fly down and stare at us, this unlikely pair, with one half grinning madly, and the other, stone-faced. They chatter to each other, looking curiously at us, and then fly back the way they come.
And the trees, flowering shrubs and happy grass on the way!
The last time we were here, EVERY tree and bush sported yellow flowers of every shade. Lemon, cadmium, chrome, golden, ochre, sunshine.
This time, they are red and peach, pink and purple.
There are little groves on either side, where trees and just allowed to live, and be themselves. They house brilliant parrots, budgies, cockatoos and parakeets of all kinds, that scream at, or serenade, each other in an endless cycle of joyous celebration.
And I am thinking to myself, if, in their brief lives, they can find so much to cheer about, what on earth do we have to whine and groan about? So much to bicker and battle about?
And because they heard me think that thought, the trees tittered, flowers fluttered, the wind waved, and the birds, wasps and bees brimmed over with joy.
Life’s good, no?
ⓒ 2022 Suma Narayan. All Rights Reserved.
This piece is a response to this prompt, by Sahil Patel and Reciprocal:
Shoutout to one of my favourite writers, Ilis Trudie Palmer and a glorious poem written by her:
Shout out, too, to my inveterate champion of all things nature, and natural, Jane Frost (Jane Grows Garden Rooms), and one of her pieces of writing:
