A Bad Omen

 

On my first walk I found a lot of coins scattered around on the street. A dollar and fifty-two cents.

Then I went to Dunkin Donuts to get food for mom and dad. It is across the street from the library. Walking past the library I saw three of the drunkards who sit on the benches by the library. One ugly old woman looked at me like I offended her but said nothing. Then I went to the store.

The woman at the store had a grey left eye. It looked like it was blind and cloudy and permanently facing down. I got a croissant and a boston kreme donut for mom and dad.

Walking back I passed the drunkards and looked in the garden of the library. There is a tree with white blossoms and in and around the tree were dozens of starlings. When I looked at them, the ones on the ground flew away but not the ones in the tree.

Then I walked home. And on the way, I crossed the path of a dead praying mantis. She looked like she was stepped on. A bad omen. Then I walked home.

Three Omens

Today there were three omens.

The first was as I was walking on my first walk. As I reached the end of our block I saw a swallowtail butterfly. It flew away down the avenue towards the Church without landing on any flowers and went away. I always think of this as the Mary butterfly. It was not the first I have seen this season.

The second was later on in the walk. As I reached the place where there was the body of a dead bird, and it has been there for several days, not yet decomposed, the cats must have better food to eat, I heard the falcon cry out and I looked up and saw him, we have falcons who like to sit at the top of our Church's steeple, and the falcon had a dead animal in his claws. I could not tell if it was a squirrel or a smaller bird, but he was carrying some form of prey. He flew up into a pine tree and all of the other birds were squawking. Crying out in fear or to warn other birds of the danger.

The third was as I was walking to Church later in the day. I saw a monarch butterfly flying away in the same direction as the earlier butterfly, going off towards Church. I always think of this as the Jesus butterfly and it was the first one I have seen this season. I guess they come around later in the summer though I do not know.

The Church bells are ringing as I write this. Three-thirty bells. What do these three omens mean? The falcon is a prince of the birds, and the butterflies are beautiful. I once saw one of the falcons in the woods, as my father and I were walking through the woods to go to the place where my brother died in the winter time in the woods, and the falcon had a dead squirrel in his claws and he walked away with the squirrel as we went near.

In this world of fire.