My mother returned with a gift. Somewhere in San Francisco she found something for me. Somehow between visits with doctors and hospitals with my baby sister, she bought me a kite. For me. An octopus kite.
This kite broke all the kite rules I knew. Kites were diamond shaped. Not this one. Kites need a single tail with at two or three knots, not this one. Kites have two cross bars made of light wood, forming a cross and giving solid structure to each corner. Not this kite.
Round with eight tails and no cross members, the Octopus completely challenged my grasp on kites. How would the light, thin tails do anything to prevent the wind from spinning this kite into a death spiral? No cross-members surely meant an early death for this kite. How could such a weird thing rise up into the sky? I had to know.
Curious to find out, the Octopus and I went out into the field. I tied on a new spool of fishing line and looked up to the dark spring clouds that moved briskly overhead—a perfect day to fly a kite. “You want to try and fly, Octopus? You ready?” I asked while sliding a small stick through the center of the spool of line. I was ready. The octopus laid there on the ground looking at me with its weirdly shaped eyes and flimsy tails spread out. “You ready?” I asked again as I paid out line and prepared for takeoff.
I walked away until the line became taut. Looking over my shoulder, I could see Octopus starting to move. I picked up my pace, gave a little tug, and held my guide hand as high as I could in hope to lift Octopus up out of the sea of alfalfa and into the sky. My heart leaped. It worked! This kite can fly.
The Wind picked up Octopus into the air gracefully. I was astonished. The Wind and the Octopus somehow magically connected. I gave out more line, the Wind took Octopus higher. More line. Higher and higher the Wind begged me. The more line I gave out, the higher went Octopus into the sky.
At some point I moved both hands to the stick holding the spool of line. Now free to take as much line as Octopus and Wind wanted, I watched my kite become a small dot against the massive sky. Holding the stick and carefully letting the line spool out at will, I watched Octopus rise higher and farther from me than I had ever seen or imagined.
The line screamed out faster and faster. Soon I’d feel the tug when I reached the end of the spool. Lost in the wonder of experience I never thought about this spool of line and how the end were or were not secured. It wasn’t. The line flew off the spool with no stopping knot. Octopus, now untethered, drifted high in the currents near the clouds. Unattached. Alone. Drifting.
I raced after Octopus. The Wind laughed at my efforts. Octopus, my wonderful new kite, was flying without me. I chased. I hoped that I would see Octopus returning back to the ground. I watched carefully as the small dot in the sky became smaller and farther from me. Across fields I pursued Octopus.
The Wind cared not for Little Jeff, taking Octopus far out of sight. I followed. I searched. I hoped. I crossed fields looking for Octopus. Nowhere. I went for hours following the course of the Wind. Nothing. Over miles I pursued Octopus. No answer. Gone. Forever.
Whether the weather is hot
Whether the weather is cold
We’ll weather the weather whatever the weather
Whether we like it or not.
What would you say to Little Jeff to help him grow?
What would you say to help your younger self grow?
Challenge: Write a short story about your younger self.
Grow, Jeff, Grow! 