About JB by Julianna Rowe

About JB.

Recently, I was sitting in my kitchen thinking. Mainly because I forgot my phone in the other room and didn’t want to go get it. I live alone, so the door was open to the porch, and I could see clearly through my apartment to the outside world and parking lot. The foggy scene brought to mind another time.  The day JB brought me a stalk or three of dried corn stalks. He was eighty or more years "old." It was some twenty years ago when I looked out that same kind of window I was looking out today that brought back the memory. There was a small incline off the main sidewalk, and JB decided to take the grassy incline versus the cement sidewalk with four steps down. I suspect because the base of the stalks were uneven and might have caused him to fall.  He once told me he never broke any bones when he fell because he learned how to roll when he went down.  Then he would snicker, and his dimples would become deeper and sweeter.  Falling on cement didn’t give much room for rolling so he opted for the shortcut of the three-foot grassy slanted incline. I recall it as though it were yesterday.  I held my breath when I realized he was too dang old to be doing what I had asked.  Which was, “Dad, would you bring me some corn stalks and a couple of bales of hay for my porch decorations.”  It was October and every year he brought me the stalks, hay, and pumpkins.  But this year he was struggling.  I felt bad watching him attempt to be the man he used to be.  And I wonder if I appreciated him in the manner, he was due.  Now that I am headed toward that age and trying to remain able to do the things I did last year I am reminded.  Maybe my children will appreciate me more after I am gone.  Am I laughing?  Yes, just a little because one never knows. All one can do is their best, like JB did staggering down that incline carrying three large corn stalks, turning around, and going back to his little Chevy Love truck and making the trip again and again with heavy bales of hay for his only daughter.

So, there I sat staring out the window that brought back to life a beautiful story from days gone by.  I think leaving my cell phone out of the room more often might be a good idea.  I could never find a memory like this on my phone.  Below are the original stalks and bales. 

A Piece of My Life by Julianna Rowe

                                                         A PIECE OF MY LIFE

I’ve been with a multitude of men in my life,

In retrospect they’ve brought me nothing but strife.

I tried more than once to make that dance last,

But in the end they were part of my past.

I didn’t learn much from any of them.

I already knew more than most of those men

And not one turned out to be a “Gem.”

A football player, an Army Vet, a finance banker I’ll never forget,

Some had money, some had fame,

Most simply wanted to play loves game.

Some were uneducated,

And some were hippie related.

I loved a couple of them and they loved me back,

But mostly just wanted to hop in the sack.

Men have an “Extension” if you get what I mean,

But most have no pension, that would make me glean.

They walk a good walk,

And they talk a good talk.

After the sack, they slither away in the grass,

Which pretty much makes them a total ass.

I had one or two I could sincerely call kind.

But those two didn’t have much of a mind!

There were no mansions in my life,

I never found one as funny as Matt Rife.

My sense of humor called in the same,

Yet none of them had it, and that was a shame.

Most straddled their women like they do a Harley,

They would finish the "job,” but only barely.

What can I say, I’ve lost my respect.

For most of them are nothing but a wreck.

They’ve given me children then ran away,

Not a damn one of them felt they should stay,

Like snakes in the grass, they slithered away.

That’s not to say that all were bad,

But it does leave little to yearn and that’s pretty sad.

I see fat ugly women with big diamond rings,

Where did I go wrong? I don’t have all that bling.

Most would agree this world ain’t easy.

Watch out for the sheep dressed in sleazy.

They are hiding in the bushes and in the cracks,

They are evil spirits who leave their tracks

They'll put a knife in your heart and tracks on your soul,

Keep your mind and eyes open and take no black coal.

They will destroy you, if you close your eyes,

Never allow them to cause your demise.

Walk taller, laugh harder, and make more money.

So, you won’t stray if’n they call you honey.

Needless to say, I have made my own way,

Not without troubles, but I’m happy anyway.

I love the song, “Is That All There Is,”

But I’ll keep dancing, even if it is.

As you can see, I make silly rhymes,

I’m happy writing novels and stories of life’s times.

I’m on TikTok, YouTube, and have lots of money.

I dare anymore strange men to call me honey!

If you come near me, I require BLING….

Bling of the heart and bling in your soul,

But more importantly, you must be whole!

So, as you can see by what I have written,

I’ve caused myself trouble when becoming smitten.

And if I’m meant to be alone,

Please write on my Tombstone.

“Here lay a woman who made it on her own.”

Julianna Rowe – 2024