A Walk in the Park

An elderly indian couple crosses paths with me.
We smile and greet each other.
I have spoken to them a few times before.

Soon I am at the turn.
I found this place about a year ago.
An abandoned park bench, with no path, overlooking the lake.

I sweep away the leaves and sit down.

Almost a year ago I fixed this bench.
I measured and cut the lumber.
I tied it into a bundle, and carried it to the bench.
The ranger asked why i was carrying it.
He told me he had never been to my bench.
The next day I took the bench apart.
The next day I put it together.
The last day I stained it.

As i open my lunch bag, I spot a moth stuck in the velcro.
I carefully remove her.
She flutters away.

As I bite into the cheese and sausage, and listen to the crunch of the crackers, I am reminded of home.
My father showed me this place long ago, above a different lake.

I drink my 2.1 ounce yoghurt drink.

There is something in the brush.
It is a small dog.
He barks at me.
I offer some cheese and sausage.
He quiets down and I pet him.

Soon we both hear his owners calling for him.
He looks at me, the runs back through the brush.
He will not betrsy my citadel.

A goose squawks as it lands in the lake.
Another goose squawks back.
The first goose leaves.

I toss the last of the sausage into the lake.
Ths same catfish comes and snaps it up before decending down again.
I finish the cheese.

I wonder if anyone was here before me, maintaining the bench.
Perhaps feeding the same catfish, with the remains of simple meals.

I wonder who built it, so many years ago.

And i wonder, who i am.