This is my weekly habit. |
The Sunday morning paper was lying on the lawn. Our paperboy begins his run right at the crack of dawn. I tiptoed out to get it. The grass was wet with dew. I’ll bet the neighbors watched this act and had a laugh or two. That paper was quite hefty with all the news that’s fit. It takes a smarter man than I to make much sense of it. The headlines are in bold type, the rest in smaller print. Without my glasses on my nose sometimes I have to squint. I scanned most of the paper; just gave it a quick look. To read it all would take more time than if you read a book. I finally found my target, the page I like the best. That crossword puzzle was the prize; I jettisoned the rest. I grabbed my cup of coffee and found a ballpoint pen, then closed the door of the small room that we still call our den. The family was still sleeping. This was my time alone. No hurry to get dressed for work, no ringing telephone. This is my weekly habit that I look forward to. Right then there is no other task that I would rather do. My wife will ask me later how everything turned out. I always grin and tell her, “Great!” She looks at me with doubt. In fact, I’ve never finished. I never have done well. But I just lie and say, “It’s done.” … I know – I’ll go to hell. |