Friday, August 25, 2006

Entry #30

The Old Man and the Moon
by Richard McDonough


In Need Of A Good Night Sleep had not slept for many years; his future looked as bleak as an endless prairie.

"I miss my dreams," he said to the moon. "You have stolen them from me, and for that I can not forgive you."

The moon paid little attention to the tirades of a tired old warrior. It looked upon the old man as the wind looks upon a feather - with a curious indifference to his helplessness.

"Tell me this," said the moon. "Was it I who spilled the blood of a thousand enemy warriors? Was it I who burned their homes while the children lay sleeping? Your dreams departed with the spirits of a thousand dead souls. Shame is the thief, old man."

The old one balked at the moon's insolence and decided he would paddle his canoe around the lake.

Not wishing to be seen by the old man, the moon shielded itself behind a wandering cloud.

"It is I who could use the sleep," said the moon. "He tires me."

The old man grew fearful of the sudden darkness and stopped paddling.

"You are a thief and a coward!" he shouted at the moon. "Now I have nothing."

Legend has it that the old man then flooded his canoe with a million tears of remorse and sank to the bottom of the lake.

"That would not surprise me," said the moon. "Not at all."


[Richard McDonough lives in Croton on the Hudson New York. He’s 52 years old and currently working on his first book.]

16 comments:

Anonymous said...

This is exceptional and reads with the charm of a fable. Outstanding!

anne frasier said...

wow. very nice, richard. what melody.

loved this:

"looked upon the old man as the wind looks upon a feather - with a curious indifference to his helplessness."

Anonymous said...

Rich,
Your writing is superb. I hope to see your book in print.
Jack

Anonymous said...

Richard, you are a weaver of words. Reminds me of the "magic stories for falling asleep" that my sisters would tell me.

Thank you.

Joni said...

Musical and magical. Very beautiful. Thank you for bringing this to the table.

anna said...

My favourite kind of writing -
good and gooder! exceptional
loved it

Robert Ball said...

The warrior is consumed by the war he waged. The Moon as a forced witness, yet innocent. Great writing. Great statement.

Anonymous said...

Another fairy tale-like myth! I loved it!

Anonymous said...

One word! Beautiful!

Roberta said...

Rich!!!

It is so good to see your writing here! This is a beautiful tale. I wish I could write like you....

How is Mr. Schmeckenpepper?

;)

Anonymous said...

If this is a taste of your writing, I think we can all look forward to a good read when your book is finished.

Bhaswati said...

I love this! Such an enchanting tale, told with such economy of words. And it even sneaks in a message. Wonderful.

I sign up as a future buyer of your published works too. Thanks for sharing.

Anonymous said...

This is a very interesting concept of writing. I am sure your book will be a good read.

Anonymous said...

Very nicely written. This one is my favourite so far. I enjoyed the tone as much as the tale.

Anonymous said...

Excellent! This is a beautiful piece.

Anonymous said...

The Native American feel was refreshing to me. I often read Lenni Lenape stories to my daughters. High marks for pacing.