Friday, November 4, 2011

The Thing on the Beach

A sunny autumn day on an Oregon beach always amazes and delights me.

The other day as Hal and I ambled along on the sands, we saw something else that began to amaze us as we approached it. From a distance it appeared to be some kind of  huge driftwood configuration, but it only grew stranger in appearance as we drew near. We named it The Thing on the Beach. 
 We decided it must be a log with three people sitting on it, having a chat.  Yes.  “I’m sure they’re moving,” Hal said. The knobs on the log did seem to be slightly swaying in the breeze.  But the closer we came, the less they moved.
Finally we closed in.  No people, but rather an upside-down complex root system that further stimulated our imaginations. The Thing on the Beach became the Congress of Beasts.
The snooty llama was obviously trying to assert her leadership.
The giant bull frog grumpily complied.
The long-necked fox let his point of view be known.
The earless camel joined the debate….
…as did the sleepy walrus….
…and the pig.
No consensus was reached on any of the items discussed, but at least they were all facing the same direction. I suppose that in itself is amazing in any kind of congress.



2 comments:

  1. Perfectly delightful. I have lots of interesting friends but only you could come up with this display. You must publish this--please. It would be a great series for my congregational conflict class. Or I could give it my friends as a Christmas gift. Do let me know where I can purchase it. I'm serious.

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  2. I'm not sure how to go about publishing something like this, but you're certainly free to use it in whatever way. I wasn't intending on making a political statement. I was just admiring the handiwork of my favorite Artist, having a bit of fun, but at the end somehow my own sadness at the state of our government came out. Who can explain it?

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