For Mali, on the occasion of her 365 finale
Years later, we met for dinner. Would we even recognize each other? Sfuzzi (the restaurant) was still new and still hot, tucked into Union Station’s beautiful mezzanine. Maybe it was 1990.
Our chumminess quickly resurfaced as we caught up: work, marriages, this, that.
After, I suggested a walk—maybe to the Vietnam memorial, which I’d never seen at night. Had he been there? No. He wasn’t sure he wanted to. Let’s go, I said. We can leave anytime you want.
We walked the length of the wall and back. Black granite, black sky.
He pointed to a name.
“That guy was a real asshole,” he said. “But no one deserves to die that way.”
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9 comments:
Oh, my God. I want to ask did that really happen, but it's too perfectly written, beautiful, that I don't want to know.
B: I'm in Portland with my laptop, and it just can't seem to handle opening your blog without freaking out Firefox and freezing up. So I promise to catch up when I get home! I desperately want to read the ED&JFC post.
It's the seeqpod links. It happens here at home sometimes too. I know you always come visit. :^)
I was just reading about the memorial. It would be hard enough knowing someone who had died over there, but I wonder if you can ever lay to rest someone who is eternally missing in action?
I remember Sfuzzi. Terribly trendy for a time. I went once, felt dowdy and out of place. But then, that's hardly a new experience for me.
The Vietnam Memorial is powerful. I remember going there with my brother's stepson; he unexpectedly found an uncle's name on the wall, made a rubbing, and could barely speak a word the rest of the evening.
1) Thank you so much this.
2) I've been to the wall, at night, and found it very moving.
i love the randomness of your blog and your writing.
which also lead me to mali's blog and the x365 list. interesting stuff for one afternoon.
will keep up as you go through the alphabet
Oh indigo...are you ok? I haven't seen you around much...
This was a great post.
I've been to the Vietnam Memorial too many times to remember. It is always interesting to go with people who've never been. Even the most boisterous become very quiet.
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