I'll Call It Like I See It

by sheila morris

storytelling for truth lovers

  • leaving moon behind, but you’re still on my mind

    leaving moon behind, but you’re still on my mind


    Well, it’s Old Blue Monday my paternal grandmother Ma began her weekly letters to me while she sat on her little Singer sewing machine stool in front of the large window that gave her a view of her backyard. That phrase was my first thought when I began my walk in the early dawn before the sun rose today. It was old blue Monday, but my walk wasn’t.

    The moon looked almost full like a big circular white cloud against the sky above me when I stopped to watch a lone goose (possibly duck) that had broken ranks with four others to give me a personal “missing man” flyover today. I listened every day on my walks for the sounds of the birds migrating through my neighborhood on their way to wherever they called home. I tried to hear them before they came into view so I would know how many to look for. I guessed the group this morning was small; when the five birds came into sight, they were flying in a triangular formation similar to military aerial special jets like the Blue Angels or Thunderbirds. My goose today left his group, circled back directly over me, and then flew off to rejoin the others. How cool was that?

    I left the moon behind, though, and kept walking as my own jumbled thoughts were keeping pace with my steps: from the war in Ukraine that was always close to the surface, to the Gamecock women’s basketball team on their way to the Sweet 16 in Greensboro Friday, to Rafael Nadal’s loss in the Indian Wells tennis tournament championship yesterday. I also made space in my mind to worry about Pretty who was on a day trip to Georgia in our old Dodge Dakota pickup that would be loaded down when she stopped to deliver her treaures to her antique booths in Little Mountain this afternoon. I could always worry about Pretty and our granddaughters.

    Hm. Macro worry to micro worry. Yep, they call me the worrier for good reason.

    Our driveway was my final hill to climb. Carport Kitty welcomed me home in her usual soft meow. Out of nowhere on the kitchen steps came the memories of a K.T. Oslin song I’ve loved since I first heard her sing it many moons ago.

    You’re still on my mind, still on my mind. I’m still missin’ pieces from this broken heart of mine. Now don’t get me wrong here I don’t do this kind of thing every day. I was just doin’ a little walkin’, doin’ a little talkin’ to myself, and it brought you to my mind again. You’re still on my mind – now I feel like I need to talk to someone from those good ole times.

    All of you are still on my mind today – I’m asking for peace instead of conflict, safety instead of peril, comfort through despair, the power of grace over broken hearts, and the opportunity for every missing person to find the way home.

  • Ukrainian President Zelenskyy to America: I have a dream. I also have a need.

    Ukrainian President Zelenskyy to America: I have a dream. I also have a need.


    In listening to an emotional virtual appeal by Ukraine’s President Zelenskyy to the Congress of the United States this morning, I felt the despair of this leader who had watched his beautiful country together with many numbers of its men, women and children obliterated by an evil neighbor for reasons known only to that neighboring country’s president and his supporters.

    If President Zelenskyy could sing, and I don’t know whether he can, he could have closed with some of the words and music of “I Look to You,” singing along with the American gospel group Selah from their album Hope of the Broken World:

    As I lay me down
    Heaven hear me now

    Winter storms have come
    And darkened my sun
    After all that I’ve been through
    Who on earth can I turn to?

    I look to You, I look to You

    After all my strength is gone
    In You I can be strong I look to You, I look to You
    And when melodies are gone
    In You I hear a song
    I look to You

    I don’t know if I’m gonna make it
    Nothing to do but lift my head

    My levees are broken
    My walls have come crumbling down on me
    The rain is falling, defeat is calling
    I need You to set me free
    Take me far away from the battle
    I need You to shine on me

    The people of Ukraine are looking to us and our Allies around the globe for help to stop not only the physical crumbling walls but also the assault on our vision of freedom and our democratic way of life. Make no mistake, as President Zelenskyy has consistently reminded us, the destruction of Ukraine is but the beginning of a world war against securing the blessings of individual liberty for all people and for their posterity.

    I have a dream, Zelenskyy said to the Congress today, but I also have a need to reclaim the skies over Ukraine, to stop the senseless bombing of my citizens and our homes. He is looking to us.

    Yes. We see you, we hear you, we feel your pain.

    Message to President Biden, Vice President Harris, Secretary Blinken, Congressional members:

    We must help. Do what you think we can do – and then do more.

    Photo by Katie Godowski on Pexels.com

  • Tweety Bird said I Tawt I taw a Puddy Tat…

    Tweety Bird said I Tawt I taw a Puddy Tat…


    Pretty’s cryptic text read thank you for sharing this horror. She was referring to my photo of the victim in the tale, the deceased bright red cardinal lying in state at that very moment on the lid of our city of West Columbia green trash roll cart.

    Carport Kitty – the picture of innocence

    Bully Cat leaving the scene.

    Guilty until proven innocent!

    I caught a glimpse of Bully Cat and a black cat racing past the carport when I opened the kitchen door that afternoon. Not an unusual sight for me since I regularly guarded Carport Kitty’s food bowl from her scavenging enemies or conniving conspiratorial friends. I’ve never figured out which category they belonged to; but I knew BC and company looked bigger, younger, stronger, more well fed while CK remained frail regardless of her food intake.

    When I accidentally discovered the remains of the cardinal in the yard a few minutes later, I thought well what did you expect? This is the cycle of the animal kingdom which you have invited into your family. Sigh. I picked the little fellow up, gently placed him on the lid of the roll cart, took a photo for posterity and sent it to Pretty who was properly horrified. Misery loves company.

    Pretty and I both agreed Carport Kitty couldn’t have been the culprit. Surely she was much too old and slow with her weak back legs to catch anything. Which left us with You Know Who to accuse.

    …and then Tweety Bird said I did, I 100% did taw a puddy tat.

    The End.

  • INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY

    INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY


    Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

    International Women’s Day

    Dedicated this year to the women of Ukraine

    Photo by Karolina Grabowska on Pexels.com

  • call it like I see it? heck no! today I call it like we’d rather hear it

    call it like I see it? heck no! today I call it like we’d rather hear it


    Covid is over – no need to ever wear a mask again. Anywhere. All gone. If you see someone wearing a mask these days, like at the grocery store or ball game or again, anywhere, that person is a wild-eyed raving liberal who never voted for Donald Trump for president in America or Russia.

    Vladimir Putin has no evil intentions toward Ukraine or any other country really. Instead, he has strong leadership in Russia where he is adored by 71% of the Russian people and by Donald Trump who always knows a good deal when he sees it. Putin’s army of 200,000+ surrounding Ukraine should not be considered excessive forces, and their march toward taking over a third nuclear plant in that country is to protect the people in Ukraine from blowing up themselves along with NATO allies and the European Union. Besides, Americans don’t need to worry about what goes on over there.

    Joe Biden should have left well enough alone without trying to support his vision of democracy. The good tourists who walked through the US Capitol on January 6th. 2021 were simply tring to prevent a peaceful transfer of power since Biden had been elected in an unfair election. And now look where we are because of him. Back in bed with NATO supporting a small country with a president named Zelenskyy whose name we can’t even spell, much less pronounce, because he won’t do the right thing and surrender to Putin before his country is blown to smithereens. Putin just wants to get back what belongs to him and his oligarchs who insist their yachts were legitimately obtained.

    And don’t even get me started about the gasoline prices.

    ************

    Oh, wow. That was fun. Who knew misinformation or disinformation could be entertaining. To quote Pretty this morning, I’m depressed by having my news ruined by the truth – which inspired me to forget truthtelling for a day to write fiction we’d rather hear. Sigh.

    Please stay tuned – truth is stranger than fiction.