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talking with his daughter last evening she blew him up with two sentences she hadnt shared with him before because as much reading and writing he did she assumed he was familiar with them

they were trying to dig themselves out from under the new sorrow of a dear friend who had died the night prior

he had received an email 

                           Joe. I really wish I never had to say this but we lost Mom at 7:05 last night.

at lost Mom he was calling his daughter she had beenas her sister mothered and raised by Mom  their sitter for eight years

Moms family and theirs were indivisible 

                                          the pain of her death was immediate sharp he struggled to read the next two sentences then concluded She went peacefully and is now with Dad. his voice caught several times as he read to her

they were haggard from death 

the familys eighth death inside a year

those deaths atop the halfmillion by Trump virus 

                              beat  down

reaching to share memories 

                             acknowledging them  the stories Mom was taking with her helped subside their sudden sobs  sighs   tears

 

he recently had written a letter to her boyfriend thanking him for films he thought he might enjoy if he didnt have them

her boyfriend was struggling with his handwriting he could have been a tagger

I tried hard babe I really did to write legibly  I reread it twothree times and thought I had achieved plain

You’re never plain, Dad.

I tried

I helped him I took the Valentine’s note you wrote me and transcribed it, printing it plainly. 

                                                                                                You know me to be able to write plain.

the self-depreciating monkey Funny  he said

You know I am.

So you provided him a decoder ring as it were

A decoder ring she laughed  I suppose I did.

Thank you

You know what you could have done?

No Wha

Written him the sentence The quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog.

The quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog Why would I have written him thatI never heard of it  Whas that about

Dad? What’s that about?

Youre being rhetorical correct

You never heard that sentence before?

You mean Daughter beating her father senseless with a brown fox and a lazy dogNo

You’re kidding me?

Yareally gonna continue beating me while Im unconscious

I can’t believe it.

Believe Whas the import of the sentence

Jeez, Dad, it’s every letter of the alphabet in a sentence.

he ran it over and over in his head and conceded – she wouldnt lie to him – she was accurate 

                                                                                                 WOW Didnt know thatnever heard it Yes It likely would have helped had I known  How long have you known that clever little trick

I learned in grade school.

Well should have shared it with me edumacated me

Kids think their parents know everything.

Nah By the time I was seveneight I recognised serious discrepancies between the newspapers words and ideas I was delivering and what they knew a freakin void I couldnt see the canyon wall on the other side

Well, between Sis and I we never saw a canyon at all between us.

Thank you I suppose your Mom and I were a couple of sharp cookies despite not graduating college                                                                                                                               Yaseein a canyon now

Nah, maybe a teeny tiny fissure an ant can step over.

Wow yare certainly being magnanimous

Don’t mention it. 

                  Say, since you got me thinking . . . you ever hear of this sentence?

Did I open a can of worms

Maybe, maybe not.

he took a deep breath  Lemme hear it

You’ll like it.

Ill like it

Definitely. 

Awright  Im strapped in

Buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo buffalo buffalo Buffulo buffalo. The first, third and seventh buffalo are capitalized.

I really like the subject as you said  Nope Never

Never?

Never

Never?

This an echo chamber

Man, Dad, you’re blowing me away.

You have Mom to thank

Yes she choked Yes, yes, I suppose I do.

If I may Ill borrow your phrase  Good Times Good Times

Ah.

Lets not forget the good times

 

123 or 1323,  Thursday,  25  2. 21

Peggy Lee  Is That All There Is?  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3sWTnsemkIs