Author: kimhaynesjohnson

 

Silver Linings 

 

The New Yorker

January 29, 2018 

Price $8.99 

cover “Cruellest Month”

by Roz Chast 

 

flashback two years ago

before the pandemic 

a calendar 

counting down 

to the last day of January

starred, colorful, yellow

like sunshine 

clearly the finish line 

of a marathon month 

of hurdles 

all listed 

day by day

 

1- HANGOVER

2- LOSE KEYS IN SNOW

3- STILL JANUARY

4- BOMBO-GENESIS ?!?!?

5- SLIP ON ICE

6- KNIT SELF SCARF

7- SUNSET AT 11 A.M.

8- COLD

9- GRAY

10- WET

11- COLD, GRAY, AND WET

12- FROSTBITE

13- LEAVE SCARF ON TRAIN

14- HEAT WAVE

15- QUARTERLY TAXES DUE

16- ARCTIC BLAST

17- ICE STORM

18- UGH

19- FLU

20- FLU

21- FLU

22- STILL JANUARY

23- SLIP ON ICE

24- WHY ME, LORD?

25- CABIN FEVER

26- CROSS-TOWN BUS NEVER COMES

27- SLEET

28- WEIRD FROZEN PELLETS

29- SLIP ON ICE

30- DENTIST

31- *LAST* DAY OF JANUARY! 

 

a lone woman stands

surrounded by snow piles

shivering at a bus stop

green coat, lilac pants 

matching lilac pompom hat

black shoulder purse, black boots

 

framed by a solitary street pigeon

a snowman

a cityscape of skyscrapers shadowed by cold clouds

a hand-knitted scarf draping down the left edge, 

intermittent bands of springtime yellow and lilac

 

is this her calendar?

which day is she living?

maybe the cover date – January 29, 2018

 

but maybe not, since she isn’t lying on the pavement

after slipping on ice

 

no, she seems somewhere in between slipping

and looking relieved at the finish line

but clearly over having lost her scarf

 

she’s waiting on the bus to the dentist

 

did the prophetic artist

of “Cruellest Month” 

Roz Chast

know that the cruellest year 

ever – 2020 –

was on its way?

that we would be rewriting this calendar 

in daily

weekly

monthly 

at-a-glance cross-sections

of COVID-19 cruelty?

 

I envision a moment 

somewhere in this murky haze 

a teary smile of gratitude

on the face of the passenger

who discovered

the warmth of

a hand-knitted scarf

on the seat of the train

 

there are some silver linings

 

-Kim Johnson

Backbone

i take literary license

           and claim the freedom! 

       y’all,

                            after so many years 

                                                   of teaching 

     the technicalities 

                           of grammar

                                        i’m more drawn 

          to writers 

                                     with errant styles

      quirky personalities 

                                                  ways with words  

               than the world’s libraries 

                          of gray flannel suit writers   

   o            

   r             s

   d            p

   e     b      i 

   r      o     n

   e      o     e

   d      k     s

without a backbone

                              give me the rule breakers!

           and      

                  more critically

                                                       let me be one! 

When the Towers Fell

Shortly before the towers fell, my colleague Genevieve Gresham and I were seated at a table in her classroom having our picture made for the Hilton Head Elementary School website. 

We both smiled as Colleen Skibo took our picture and uploaded it. The full picture did not print, but if you could see the whole frame, you’d see Genevieve seated to my left and the American Flag hanging proudly over both of us, allegiance soon to be pledged by a classroom of yet unknowing students and their teachers. What can be seen is the clock on the wall, the date on the board, and what one typical second grade classroom looked like, frozen in time, before the world was forever changed. 

Today I remember the many heroes who gave their own lives to save others. I pray that their family members feel the arms of these heroes wrapped lovingly around them as they relive the day we will never forget. 

Where were you when the towers fell? 

 

The New Yorker 

          December 15, 2014 

                            Price $6.99 

I study each weekly cover 

of the New Yorker

carefully 

when it comes in the mail.

the most fascinating cover (to me) in the past six years was December 15, 2014 – a glimpse into two studio apartments at Christmas 

“High and Low” by Ivan Brunetti 

upstairs, closed door, sparsely furnished room – room to think, to breathe, to focus without distractionswalls painted cool grey – a young woman in a green sweater and a red plaid skirt seated at a computer table, staring at the screen

downstairs, open door – eclectic clutter! walls painted warm yellow – everything everywhere, scattered, a young man in a green overcoat, jeans, a red knit pom-pom cap. and a gray scarf entering the flat balancing three gift boxes and a gift bag 

upstairs and downstairs, the same doormat

the same hardwood floors 

the same layout 

upstairs, a floor vase holds a stripped branch adorned with a string of round Christmas lights 

downstairs, a potted balsam Christmas tree topped with a white dove, full of ornaments, minus the lights, sits on a table 

one gift underneath 

upstairs, a wall shelf lined with three Christmas cards on display sits above an electrical outlet where nothing is plugged in – three empty hooks by the door positioned over the light switch – modern and sleek gray light fixture hangs 

downstairs, two bookcases, a snowman decoration, a globe, an antique clock, a gold framed painting, a December calendar with Santa, a framed photograph of a lone subject, an antique radio, and a Mickey Mouse phone on a table, sit underneath a garland lining the fissured ceiling, where a traditional chandelier-style fixture hangs

upstairs, no pets – not even a computer mouse

downstairs, a white cat watches – he spilled a few bites of his food from the dish nearby 

upstairs, a modem and laptop sit on the single gray computer table occupying the room, accompanied by a to-go cup of coffee, green and white like Starbucks, complete with plastic lid 

and 

notably 

a place to sit – one black chair! 

downstairs, a wooden coffee table piled high with two stacks of work flyers or brochures sitting atop an unopened envelope, white porcelain saucer and cup of tea with a spoon nearby – also, an antique phonograph with a 45 under the needle, an open cardboard box of outgoing cards, a marked book on the floor, a laptop desk near the table, and an unstarted crossword puzzle, with a stray pencil near the fringed area rug

and I can’t help wondering how the ceiling got cracked

 

The Wardrobe

…some say Aslan 

is an allegorical 

Christ-like figure 

and the four Pevensies 

disciples 

that may be true 

my brother 

says Narnia 

is about 

venturing 

beyond the realm 

of possessions 

into the world 

of possibilities 

known only 

to untethered souls

“…it was never about the wardrobe,” he reasons

“…it was always about the world on the other side of that drab mansion of antiques….”

….and on this we can agree:

the real value of Narnia 

is in the discovery 

of new worlds 

with broader horizons 

we never could have imagined

we never would have known 

if we hadn’t 

stepped out 

of the old one…..

 Survivor

Labor Day weeding

we found Templeton 

hiding in the 

tiered

cinderblock 

herb garden 

between the onion chives 

and the rosemary 

black and gray 

going his way 

until Mr. Johnson spied him and became 

a maniacal Mr. McGregor smacking wildly at the ground

with a large red shovel

we demolished 

the herb garden 

such a cute Pinterest idea 

never envisioned it 

the multi-story 

rodent mansion maze 

it became 

Templeton-

a menace to 

Mr. Johnson McGregor 

but to 

Mrs. Beatrix Potter/

EB White/

Johnson 

now a homeless survivor 

of the farmer’s 

cruel garden tools 

and a champion 

among rats

tri-color pygmy goat, 1’ tall 

#420 at the Buggy Days Auction

sold! for $175 to # 2178 (me!)

420? a marijuana goat? MaryJane?

#420 at auction

you ate animal crackers in my 

      lap on the porch swing 

420? Maryjane? Janey! perfect name

but you got sick- pneumonia,  

       weakened quickly 

you ate animal crackers in my lap on the porch swing 

not just a goat! you were my kid 

but you got sick – couldn’t stand, still bleating sweetly mercy and tears: sleeping pills crushed in a baby bottle,     

       mixed with one single    

             hollow point 

not just a goat- you were my 

      favorite kid

bought! loved by # 2178 (me!)

mercy and tears – sleeping pills    

    and a single hollow point 

tricolor pygmy goat, 1′ tall

 A Quick Truck Trip

A quick truck trip 

Chevy Silverado 2500 

white work truck

22K miles 

in Dawsonville, Georgia 

but wait! another offer – 

a gentleman from Raleigh

just saw it and left 

but changed his mind halfway home 

and wants it now 

“it’s our policy,” 

the salesman said,

“that if someone else 

is already on the way,

we still show it.”

so we looked 

you drove 

I rode 

we talked 

we offered 

they rejected 

we walked 

an hour later 

you got a slew of pictures 

of this truck

with a promise:

“if the gentleman from Raleigh changes his mind,

 we’ll call you on Monday.”

Amicalola Falls State Park Lodge 

August 23, 2020

Room 405 Amicalola Falls State Park Lodge 

a spellbinding window wall of a view- 

not your typical 

tacky woodland painting

 

instead, a live view 

birds gliding 

hikers climbing 

like ants on a hill 

focused 

on their tasks 

two queen beds 

farm-style sliding doors privatizing the bathroom

stark white shower light awakening the senses  

invigorating the body 

and coffee –

thankfully, coffee 

pour a cup 

to take to the lobby 

to capture in words this glorious place 

three-story stone fireplace spanning lobby to ceiling geometric 

clear glass 

window wall 

an A-frame view 

of the mountain valley below 

breathtaking 

from this summit 

repurposed log 

split lengthwise, 

now a mantle 

holding two tall pottery vases

verandas 

for breathing 

the clean mountain air 

start of the Appalachian Trail just a few steps from

these doors, 

its map spanning

two stories 

on the wall 

opposite the fireplace

 

lamp shade chandeliers, 

(multi-tiered) 

couch, three chairs, 

tables and lamps, 

clean wood floors –

echoing space 

free of any form of clutter

space to breathe

space to think

space to write 

restorative soul space

occasional muffled voices, otherwise 

the early morning quiet 

of this hour 

blended aromas of breakfast- 

bacon, coffee, toast- 

waft through the lobby 

invisible clouds 

on the move,

part two of this

Bed and Breakfast Bundle

soon to come 

mountainous autumn 

color schemes –

rusts, beiges,

greens and browns 

bring in the earthy beauty of these outdoors 

leaving the sky 

the monopoly 

on the blues and whites 

canoe-shaped bookshelf offering flyers -what to do 

what to do?! 

what to do!?

take a walk off the grid 

visit the butterfly farm 

hold tight 

      for a zip line adventure 

take a hike 

be enamored 

      by the 

         rushing waters 

             of the 

               Amicalola 

                  Falls 

go fishing 

have a picnic 

practice archery 

take flight 

      to the birds of prey show 

sit in an Adirondack chair 

sip wine at a vineyard

go kayaking 

go shopping 

normally, we might do these things 

 

but not today –

today, 

we pan for different gold 

today,  

we retreat to the peace offered here 

today, we take it easy!

 

 

Picture Perfect

 

back to FDR State Park

log cabin #7 on Lake Delanor

evening shade of Slash pines

big around as burn barrels

 

hum of trucks puttering

around the lake loop

pulling campers

sound carrying across the water

 

country music from site 21

lighter fluid and charcoal wafting

smoke crossing borders

embers perfect, ready to grill

 

TORRENTIAL DOWNPOUR!

umbrella up, covering the flames

grilling steaks in the rain

together, all that matters

 

two yellow kayaks, one red canoe

paddling to shore

peace interrupted

steaks done, so is the rain

 

eerily quiet and still

air-conditioned cabin

too cool on damp skin

urges dinner on the screened stone porch

in the rockers

 

chirping of birds and crickets

tree frogs trilling

tender steak, coleslaw, dilled red potatoes

juicy seedless watermelon

two bottled Blue Moons

 

steam rising off the lake

in a misty picture

perfect