Tightrope
Most people she never tells about the tightrope because she doesn’t want to listen to their helpful comments from the ground.
Tight Perm
If you get a tight enough perm, she told me, it’s almost as good as a face lift. But she had worked around a lot of toxic chemicals in the 60’s, so I gave her the benefit of the doubt.
Tiger Rain
Her umbrella was filled with rain she had collected in her travels & on hot summer days she would open it up for the neighborhood kids & we would splash in the puddles & then it would smell like Nairobi or Tasmania & later on we would sit on the porch & eat ice cream & watch for tigers in the bushes.
Tidy Dinosaur
You have to admit even though I’m a dinosaur, I’m rather tidy.
Three Blind Mice
I tried for a whole summer to teach our cat to play the piano. We started with an easy song. It was 3 Blind Mice. My dad said it didn’t work because the cat had a tin ear, but I think it was because she kept looking around for the blind mice the whole time & never gave it her full attention.
Thousand Moments
I still remember the day the world took you back & there was never time to thank you for the thousand scattered moments you left behind to watch us while we slept.
Thin Skin
Only her skin between her life & a return to the great wide ocean
Theory
trying to remember when it stopped being theory & turned into real life, because theory was a whole lot easier
The World Itself
When she held out her arms, the world itself wrapped around me & held me tight.
The Wonder of It All
Sitting there in your pajamas & all the time in the world & if I could keep any moment it would be this: watching you & holding my breath with the wonder of it all.
The Wind What Blows
This is the wind what blows, he said, & it lives in a jar in my bed & his eyes were big with the knowing of all that.
The Whole World
My favorite thing is being your lap while we sit there together & love the whole world.
Ten Commandments
I asked her why she never told us about the Ten Commandments & she said she wasn’t ever that good with numbers so she loved everything as best she could & I remember thinking who needs all those rules anyway with a mother like her around.
Temptations
The plane shook so much I thought I was in a bowl of metal jello & I heard him say, If you & Mom die, can I go live with the Temptations?
Temp
I don’t mind being a temp, she told me. It reminds me of my priorities.
Tell The Truth
It would be easier if I just told the truth, he said, but I wasn’t there for a lot of it
Teeth in a Box
These are teeth in a box & it swallows up all the mean things in the world & holds them in its jaws until times start to change.
Teaching Right
She asked me if I had kids & when I said I did she said make sure you teach them what’s right. & I said how will I know? & she nodded & said, good point, just don’t teach them any obvious wrong then.
Tallest Man in the World
I’m the tallest man in the world, he said, so I’ll have to miss dinner & I said too bad about missing the ice cream then & suddenly he found he fit quite well at the table if he let his legs stretch down the hall.
Taller than Usual
Does everyone seem taller than usual? she said & I said that’s what happens when you stop pretending you don’t care.