Jack Frost

The Moon reached out, to wake Jack Frost,

And his coat of white appeared.

Ah haaaa he said, with the turned leaves red,

When he whispered through his beard.

The flowers of the summer past,

Have vanished over night.

Jack and the Moon have come too soon,

While the Sun was out of sight.

There is honking of the wild geese,

As they head to warmer climes.

Followed only by the wind blown clouds,

And days of harder times.

The Sun, now low, cannot support,

The life that lingers still.

The things that Jack has breathed upon,

Now fall against their will.

Jack pressed in vain against the pane,

To let himself inside.

But the glass stood tall and would not fall,

No matter how hard he tried.

By morning all that could be seen,

Were clues that he was here.

Droplets left on the windows,

As the Sun of the day reappeared.

Now you might consider Jack to be,

A Pro, who paints in white.

His canvas is the landscape,

That he works on every night.

The gallery where he shows his stuff,

Can be seen night and day.

On trees, on rocks, and windshields,

And on fields of non cut hay.

So go on Jack Frost, and color the world,

As you've done for many a year.

You, and the Moon, and I, well know,

Ol' Man Winter will soon be here.

With a brush that's a little wider,

He too is a Pro of White.

Then you both can work in unison,

On the canvas, every night.

Geo W. Donovan........... October 9^th, 2006

A Waklin’ Miracle

  Some time during the 60s, a group called The Essex had a song titled “A Walking Miracle”. The only relevance between this song and this story is the title. The paragraphs below describe what I believe was a true miracle, one that did actually happen to me.

  I was in Alberta at the time working as a property manager for a rather large firm which managed properties for different groups of investors. I was in Red Deer managing three units (buildings) having a total of eighty-eight apartments. This job required much care and attention and could sometimes get very demanding. There was much to do, and a lot of walking to do every day. Way too much for one person to look after if you consider the amount of yard work which must be done every day, summer and winter. After some discussion with my boss I was told to hire a grounds keeper. There are programs available through Canada Employment that will subsidize the employee's wages if they are currently on unemployment. I selected and interviewed several people before finally choosing what seemed to be the most likely candidate for the job. His name was David G and during the interview I found out that he had a young son and wife that he was trying desperately to support. At this time David was living in another apartment not under our care. I approached him about this and it was agreed that he would move into one of our vacant apartments. This would be a good move for him as he would not have to travel and would be available in an emergency, not to mention a better rate than he was currently paying.

  Prior to hiring David, as I've mentioned above, a lot of walking was involved and sometime in the months before, I was blessed with a troublesome Planter's Wart on my left foot. It was not only painful, but unwelcome discomfort which led me to walk on the side of my foot. Each night I would bathe and cut nearly an eighth of an inch of this off this wart. I suffered nearly two months and repeated the same procedure every night.

  It was nearing the first of November and David was packed and ready to move. There was a wet slushy snow on the ground on moving day but that wouldn't interfere or prevent him from moving. Now, I've told you something of David and how he was struggling trying to stay above water and provide for his family. Like most of us, at one time or another, we have all had to make sacrifices. In saying that I noticed that something was bothering him terribly and so I questioned him about it. He just said ah nothing much, my feet are cold, wet, and my running shoes are just about beat. I could see by the expression on his face, he was in pain but that he would rather just keep going and get it done as soon as possible. As it turns out, I had bought a new pair of running shoes just a week or two before that, thinking it might help my situation with the Planters Wart, but they didn't help and I only had them on once. I told David, when we get back to our complex, I'll give you a brand new pair and explained to him why I had them and that if they fit that they were his, no questions, no charge. I even threw in a pair of fresh clean socks to boot. They did fit him and for the rest of the day he felt much better. Normally this would be the end of the story but, let me tell you about that little miracle.

  Time went on as usual and each new day would be pretty much the same as it was the day before. Up to now I walked with a limp, cut away portions of my problem every night and would wake up to do it all over again the next day. Then one day about two weeks after David moved to our complex, he and I were outside talking about the ground maintenance and how well he had been doing with his job. I left him with a bit of praise and was actually walking on another property when I suddenly realized I wasn't limping around anymore. I stopped, pondered this for a moment and headed directly to my own apartment. Once inside I removed my footwear and my stocking. 

If I never live to write another word, I swear there was no visual sign, nor was there any pain where the Planters Wart had been. Truly, you could not tell it was even there at all. I marveled at this, and you can appreciate my happiness and overall joy. Then, I remembered, miracles do happen. I solemnly swear and truly believe this was a miracle. Because I helped someone overcome their misery, I was relieved of my own. To this day I have never had it reappear and I don't think it ever will.

So, let's go back to the title of this story. I really think you could call this, “A Walking Miracle”   

It kind of makes you wonder, doesn't it?      Thanks for listening.  Geo Donovan