A Cup of Coffee and Moment of Silence

©September 2011 Robert S. Ynacay

It is time to take a coffee break and with a cup of that black thick brew, with a dash of milk, and sweetener, I settle down in my lawn chair at the small table with the big umbrella, shielding me from the direct rays of the sun. I take a big swig of the hot liquid and close my eyes, enjoying the drink as it goes through my body.

The rays of the sun feel good on my aching back and legs and the slight cool breeze blowing in my direction, down from the mountains, makes a pleasant morning. Joyce's white cat is creeping on my walled fence, looking for an active gopher hole or a small bird. A flock of birds are flushed out of the big tree on the corner when she got near them. There they go, circling the neighborhood in wide flight pattern and taking refuge on the power lines. My dogs have spotted the cat and now with their barking the area is becoming alive. The puppies next door are yapping up a storm, awaken from the sounds of my dogs.

Soft, low sounds of classical music can be heard coming from my CD player, through the open widows of my house and it seems to relax me. The kids are out playing in their yards and now and then, you can hear, “stop hitting me” or mom yelling at them and their puppies are still yapping away. I hear the sounds of a big jet airplane, circling overhead and he must be preparing to land at the nearby airport. In the distant, a siren is shrilling away, going to an emergency or chasing the bad guys.

I knock my book off the table and as I reach down to pick it up, a lot things are happening on the ground. A string of ants are crawling on one of the dog's missing treats, a green three inch lizard crawling up the wall, several moths landing on the tomato plant and there is movement under those big squash leaves, probably snails since it is cool and damp there.

The aroma of someone's cooking is filtering into my breathing space and I am feeling a small hunger pang, and those birds are now back in their tree, chirping away. My wristwatch alarm is notifying me that the coffee break is over and it is now time for me to go in the house to take my daily nap.