Every few months, I visit an old friend, Julia, who has a small townhouse that overlooks the second tee of a golf course outside Las Vegas. A large pond sits next to the tee. I enjoy watching the year-round flock of Canadian geese who grace the pond and graze on the lush grass in front of Julia’s patio. I gush over the awkward goslings that emerge each spring.
A couple of years ago, I felt astounded to see a large swan in the pond, a sight I’d never seen in Nevada before. Apparently, the giant white bird frightened the geese, who completely abandoned the area. I walked around the water’s edge and determined that the stationary bird, floating in the middle, was made of plastic. The geese remained aloof, seemingly convinced the “swan” posed a threat.
Three months later, at Julia’s home again, I saw that a few brave geese entered the pond, but stayed at the periphery, as far as possible from the unmoving pseudo-swan. And so it remained for the next year and one-half.
Recently, when I stayed with Julia, I was shocked to see geese all over the pond, except in the very middle, where a heap of white plastic huddled. I laughed out loud. The plastic swan had deflated. The geese stayed fifteen feet away, possibly suspecting the swan slept, head tucked beneath its wing, and it could awaken and stretch its threatening head aloft at any moment. The geese enjoyed their pond once more, while still leery.
I could afford to be amused, knowing the swan was harmless. However, I began to wonder, how often have I been a goose around a swan? Many times. In the past, I tended to place certain people on a pedestal, starting with my parents, later bosses, a romantic partner or two and some friends. Over the years, as I gained self-confidence, I learned, like the geese, to get closer to fearsome, superior people. When I gained enough strength to look at my relationships objectively, many of these folks came down off their pedestals, not as scary as I thought. Instead of laughing at the geese, I realized I could relate to them.
Real Life – Real Laughs:
Humor When You Need It Most
Cate Burns’ thirty-eight non-fiction stories of heartfelt humor explore society’s foibles and personal snafus with insightful zingers that will delight readers. Burns casts an unstinting, cock-eyed look at personal change, friendship, sanity and courage.
“Absolutely LOVE the descriptions in this work. Very, very, very clever and, dare I say it? -unique. This is refreshing, funny, inventive and delightful.” -Sharon Whitehill, Ph. D.
