This Night Traveler

This Night Traveler
By Johnie W. Levell
March 24, 2009

This night traveler plods through misty shadows
Living fears and joys encased in the Mindworld
Where I’m the actor; I’m the audience -
Believing in something out of time and unpredictable.

Running through mud-thick air-
Pursued by dark enemies-

Shimmered skies with dragons’ wings
Forty feet from nose to tail,
Skullish faces with hollow eyes –
Sent to torture in an ancient plan.

Blank desolation and angel’s guidance -
Finding peace in the only house standing
Fearful for a sister trying to fight in vain
Crying bitter, bitter sobs,
Bound to my position.
Chopping air with an axe
Never hitting the target –

The brother speaking from the grave
Tombstone overturned,
Candle burning low
Tears stream for loss –
Sad to say goodbye,
I beg him not to leave.

Seeing Jesus beckon me from within the box,
Love filling my heart and nothing else matters –
And looking back to hear my father call my name
Ashamed of the choice I make;
But seeing floating on angels’ wings
A mansion for me!
A golden ark tall and long,
With windows on each side,
Blue sky beyond the wondrous sight!

The whirlwind strong over Iowa Park
Three miles from side to side
Twelve hundred miles per hour it spins
The lightning threads the perimeter
And cannot stretch out of it.

The ship fleet flying overhead
A half mile long
The undersides looking like the starry sky
Fearful when I learn they have been there
A long, long time.

The rolling ball chipped away
Christians making a difference
Until the ball wobbles, falters, slows, and stops.

Looking down at my body
I am floating up,
Watching the sun rise just over the treeline
Over the telephone poles
Away from the wreckage.

Meeting my dad and being glad
That we had more time to talk
Extra time to hang out
In a pickup that I sold
Going to the river that once was
Back in its glory.

Finding a box of gold rings in an unknown shed
Tossed and dusty with unfamiliar junk.

Following a trail of old rare coins through the grass
Outside the Rider gym
After a basketball game.

I am flying through the air
Arms outstretched and face to the wind
Defying gravity –
Vivid scenes of the country-scape fill my mind-eyes.

Where time meets eternity,
I experience and live and remember
History that never was.
For seconds they glimmer on the neural sands,
Then waves of dawn wash them out to sea,
And I wake.

Skit: The Church Office, #1

The Church Office, #1

Door squeaks open, man #1 enters with brief-case in hand

Receptionist: "Hello. Are you here to see Brother Bob?"

Man #1: "Yes. I have something very important to show him. It is very urgent."
Man #1 looks over his shoulder, and then side to side.

Man #1: "Tell him it's about" (he leans down and whispers) "fur-ball."

(Receptionist calls Brother Bob on phone)

Receptionist: "Hello, Brother Bob. There's a man here who says he needs to see you."

(Receptionist shakes her head while holding phone to ear)

Receptionist: " No, sir. It's not Rick Warren. I'm sure you were." (she grimaces a little) "It's not James Dobson either, sir. I'm sure you were. No, sir, he says it's urgent -something about fur-ball?"

(The door slams open. Brother Bob bursts forth! Brother Bob, a portly man with awesome hair, wearing gray pants, white shirt, blue tie, dark suspenders, thick black rimmed glasses, and shiny black shoes)

Brother Bob: "Who hast sent thee, naive!"

Man #1 holds brief-case close with both arms

Man #1: "I think we should talk alone."

Brother Bob: "What thou hast to say, Let him who hast ears hear!"

Man #1: "I'm not so sure you mean that. What I have here" (patting brief-case) "is for your eyes only."

Brother Bob sticks thumbs in suspenders and saunters over to Man #1.

Brother Bob: "What do I have to do with thee, Man? What have you come here with in your citified suit-case? "

(Brother Bob saunters around Man #1)

Brother Bob: "So you brought something with you, did you? Wanting to get money from me no doubt."

Man #1: "Actually...." (he pulls at collar uncomfortably) "I was hoping to leave more financially secure."

Brother Bob: "So! That's your little game! Extortion!" (Bob points at him like he's drawing a finger gun)

Man #1: "No! I'm no extortionist!"

Brother Bob: "What you got in there? What's in your bag of tricks?"

Man #1: "Maybe I should just try to catch you at home later." (Man #1 turns to go)

(Brother Bob's eyes widened)

Brother Bob: "You're not going anywhere!" (His portliness blocks the way to the door)

Brother Bob: "What's in the case?" (He tries to take the brief-case; they struggle)

Man #1: "Not here, Sir! Then everything would be ruined!"

(They struggle more. Finally it busts open and about thirty toupees and wigs fly out everywhere causing Brother Bob to lose his also on the floor. He bends down and grabs one at random - a very silly one. He puts it on sloppily. The receptionist gasps.)

(Man #1 begins putting them back in the brief-case.

Man #1: "Reverend McLean said I might be of service to you since church pictures were tonight."

(Brother Bob sweeps long blonde locks off his forehead.)

Brother Bob: "Yes, please, please come right on in to my office. I think we're going to be good friends."

(Receptionist shrugs and turns back to computer typing just as Brother Bob's office door shuts.)


--Johnie

Poem: Translated

Translated
Written By Johnie W. Levell
March 15, 2009

Energy emitted in puff of smoke
Flames shooting from sticks and grass
Translated matter into unseen reality

A final breathe, heartbeats fail
Released to rest
Beyond the veil

Spirit alive
Flesh decayed
Out of the body
Present with God

Hurt by Anger

The following events took place between 6 pm and 7 pm.

I had just chastised our oldest son for spying on my conversation with my wife. I thought it would be a good time to talk about why eaves-dropping is wrong. It backfired. He started crying because I had taken all the fun things away. I explained that if it's not fun for everyone, then it's not really fun. I also explained that if he wanted to hear our conversation, then he should ask. I might not let him, but then he would know how I felt about him hearing it. He sulked for the next half hour.

I didn't really feel that great to begin with, and probably made a mountain out of a mole hill. Anyhow, I had started cooking some rice and vegetables, but then I realized that I hadn't turned the cooker to cook, but left it on warm. So I flicked the switch and decided that a little music might make the moment more enjoyable. So I sat down to the computer and began picking out some songs to play. I heard the kids scooting chairs around in the kitchen and I told to stop it and to put the chairs back and for them to stay out of the kitchen. So they all left the kitchen.

Then I heard a loud crashing, breaking sound in the kitchen. I yelled out, "Who's in the kitchen!" But the kitchen was empty. I went to see what the sound was from, and I quickly found the source. There on the floor lay a busted plate with some sausage and brisket under it. I had gotten it out to go with the rice. Our youngest had scooted a chair over to the counter and pulled the plate over the edge of the counter just enough to where it took it a while to fall. He was probably going to put the plate on the table, but when I told them to get out of the kitchen, he just put the chair back and vamoosed. Andrew had already been in trouble for turning off the computer, and here he was going to the corner again.

Well, we weren't going to be eating any meat with our rice, but it wasn't exactly contaminated. I looked it over for pieces of broken ceramics and it was clean. So I thought I would feed the brisket to the pets. Now, I'm sure that there's someone reading this thinking bad idea feeding them table scraps, but that's what I did. I just opened the back door and called them and they came. First came my giddy dog who hardly couldn't contain herself. She wagged her little corgi rear so furiously, you would have thought she was going to bust. I could tell she really wanted to speak English to me right then: "Oh, yummy, yummy, yummy! Throw it now! I need it!"

I didn't want her to gobble it all up though, so I threw her a couple of pieces and then I threw a couple pieces to the stupid cat. I'm not trying to be mean, but it's just that I could put a piece of food right under the cat's nose and it wouldn't find it and the dog would gobble it up. So I told Sara (the dog) to sit when I threw the meat to the cat. She didn't. I got mad and swatted her hard on the rear, and told her to sit again. She sat this time and suffered while the cat slowly picked at a piece of brisket. Then I told her "okay" and she could move. I was quite proud of myself for teaching the dog a lesson.

Back in the house I noticed my thumb hurting. It was blue. I hurt it when I hit the dog. I couldn't believe it. I even wondered if I broke it. I don't think so, but it hurts all the same. I figure it will take a couple of weeks for it to get back to normal. Next time, Johnie, just throw the brisket in the trash, and don't hit the dog.


--Johnie

The Little Things So Far

This morning I got up grouchy because our oldest was wide awake and trying to wake up everyone else in a very cheerful way. I didn't set the alarm because I wanted to sleep in. We all stayed up late watching Disney's Pinocchio. The kids didn't remember seeing it, so it sounded like a fun thing to do. I fell asleep on the couch. Joyce woke me up I guess around 11 or 12 and I went on to bed.

I was only half awake when I heard our kids getting up. I was wide awake when I heard the cat fighting in the backyard. I think our cat's a boy, but it has always been a real sissy. Every night we leave it in the laundry room, and every morning I find it hiding in the front yard under the carport. This morning it was in the backyard and when it came to me it was covered in mud.

Our cat is white.

I picked it up the mud-ball by the scruff of the neck and carried it to the bathroom and ran some bathwater. The second I turned into the bathroom it started freaking out, clawing at me and hissing. Our cat is so pitiful when it comes to baths. Its long hair makes it look so big and fluffy when dry, but when it gets wet it just looks so funny I have to laugh. It looks like a muppet design that never made the final cut and got shelved.

The cat hated its bath and hated getting dried off even more. It clawed me once, but it was just a mere puncture wound. I couldn't get it fully dried off so I put it in its crate for a while to air dry, then later I used the blow drier. While the cat air-dried, I cooked bacon and cinnamon-sugar biscuits. While the bacon cooked I downloaded some old Geoff Moore and DC Talk songs. Since breakfast we've been dancing and playing and drawing.

Since then I've made one paper airplane and helped guide little hands at making pudding. I have a headache from staying up so late and throwing off my schedule. I just have to remember that this is a new day full of possibilities. If I keep my eyes open I might just see and recognize that all the little things that seem unimportant are some of the most enjoyable parts of life: The paper airplanes, dirty cats, and pudding.


--Johnie