Q is for Quirky
“It was only then that
Mark realized he himself was the subject of intense scrutiny from the other
side of the bus.
‘Evening.’
The woman lifted her
hands high above her head and began to chant something about seven sons and six
fathers, and the various blessing s they were seeking to bestow on the favoured
ones.
‘I am one of those
upon whom the masters shine. I am favoured,’ she said.
‘I’m Mark. How are
ya?’
She lowered her hands,
and brought them into her chest with the palms facing the roof of the bus. Then
she pushed them out simultaneously towards Mark.
‘More will come. Many
will come. Many are here already.’
‘Good thing there are
plenty of seats,’ said Mark.
The woman allowed her
right hand to drop by her side and rest upon her dirty denim handbag. With her
left hand she made elaborate stroking gestures across her thick matted hair.
Mark watched as the static charges in her hair caused individual hairs to be
liberated from the thicket on her head and rise to freedom.
‘The boat people,’ she
breathed. ‘The boat people.’
Mark was torn. The
conversation was ludicrous but mildly entertaining, and he needed a
distraction. Thus far, the crazy old bat had not made a skerrick of sense, but
how could he fail to engage, or at least attempt to engage her on the topic of
boat people. Unless, of course, she wasn’t talking about illegal arrivals to
Australia aboard smugglers’ boats.
He decided to step out
on a limb and test the strength of the branch of her sanity. ‘I used to work on
a patrol boat.’
‘Then you know the
truth.’
Mark’s heart stopped.
‘What truth?’
‘Ashmore Grief.’
‘It’s reef, not
grief.’” From Ashmore Grief, chapter
9
Do you have an eccentric friend? Are you a little
idiosyncratic? Call it quirky or call it weird, there is something of the
‘slightly off kilter’ within all of us. Something quidditative. ( Thanks Roshni
http://www.indianamericanmom.com/2014/04/weird-words-beginning-with-q.html#comment-7802 )
We are all individuals and the mixing of
our personalities with our experiences results in a unique and slightly fruity
cocktail. Sure some of us are nuttier than others, and some people are much
more overtly ‘on another planet’ but we are all different, and it is worth our
while to try to be as accommodating of these dissimilarities as possible: to even develop an appreciation for them.
The woman on the bus in Ashmore Grief clearly had a mental
problem of some kind, and I don’t want to be insensitive towards or dismissive
of those who suffer mental disorders. However, whether we have been diagnosed
with something or not, we are all a bit batty sometimes in some of our habits
and behaviours. We’re all a bit looney, aren’t we? Or I am out of mind?
Photograph source
Nope, I'm nearly insane most of the time. Not certifiably, but near enough that people think I'm weird.
ReplyDeleteLiz A. from Laws of Gravity
Ha ha. Good on you , Liz.
ReplyDeleteDefinitely Vicki. It would be very boring. Thanks for visiting and taking time to comment.
ReplyDeleteYes, there's a bit of quirky in all of us. Ashmore Grief sounds like an interesting read. Maria from Delight Directed Living
ReplyDelete