On A Day Like This
Walking through a sun-filled day, enjoying the shade given by the large old trees, I came up a small hill to the town cemetery. Large crows making a racket descended toward one grave.
They are such intelligent birds, I wondered what had their attention and stopped to watch.
Falling silent, the crows went into the ground.
Gawking, I stopped and waited for the crows to reappear. A wind gently stirred the trees. There must be a hole in the ground which I couldn’t see, I decided.
Looking for traffic, I started across the street but couldn’t lift my feet. My shoes felt anchored to the pavement. Run, my mind shouted. Go the other way.
Then the crows emerged from the earth.
My breath caught.
I swallowed hard. They carried something.
A large body.
The crows carried a limp, black-clothed body with their claws.
Loudly cawing, the birds flew up past the trees, lifting their burden into the blue sky. A black cloud rapidly grew above them. Cawing all the way, the crows took the body into the black cloud.
Then the cloud and birds disappeared, leaving me wreathed in a quiet, late summer day.
I stayed almost frozen, attention shifting between where the black cloud was before and the grave. After some seconds I blinked, refusing to grasp what I saw.
The grave was gone. Unmarked green grass grew where the crows had entered.
Suspecting I probably wouldn’t remember any of this, I strode on, picking up speed. Glancing back over my shoulder, I struggled to recall, what did I see back there?
Laughing at my failing memory, I went down the street, soaking up the late summer day, saying hello to a person on a bike going the other way.
Lifting my face, I deeply inhaled. The weather felt wonderful. Anything is possible on a day like this, I thought.
I looked forward to what it would be.
Sunday’s Theme Music — Promises
Ashland, southern Oregon. It’s the next to last day of August – Sunday, August 30, 2026.
Autumn has definitely inserted itself around her. Chilly last night, dropping into the forties. Trees are turning gold and red against a blue velvet sky. Sunshine is expected to lift us from our current temp of 53 degrees F to 86 degrees F.
Mom texted me several times yesterday but I couldn’t understand most of it. She didn’t respond to requests for clarification.
We seem to be on flat loop for political news. That’s not to dismiss or make light of all the news about murders, gun violence, fires, and death going on. I’m just keeping the focus narrow right now.
Trump keeps sending out texts, of course, and does some AI-generated photos of himself with truly famous and important people, trying to revitalize his tired image and poor record by leeching off of others.
Ironically, Trump once leeched off of Epstein’s popularity to boost himself. Trump called Epstein a “terrific guy”. Now he’s trying to hide his relationship with Epstein.
An expert said that Trump’s recent round of texting himself with famous people in AI generated images did real work to displace actual news.
Like, no kidding. We the People call them ‘distractions’. I refer to the entire body of distractions as Operation Epic LOOK — SQUIRREL!
Besides the texts and AI generated images, Trump torn down part of the White House to build a ballroom. Now it’s a mess.
Trump started a war with Iran. That was also to project how tough he was and how powerful the United States is. But Trump has the anti-Midas touch: all which he touches, organizes, or touts quickly diminishes in value. So the US military is now mired in another new Middle East war.
Way to go, Trump.
Besides starting that war, Trump did the Venezuela oil deal. Which…we won’t know what it means until all details are released and time has passed. Trump is talking about how great it is, but that’s what he always does.
Like this economy. Trump says it’s great. But the numbers aren’t great. Beyond rising prices, which are mostly fueled by Trump’s tariffs, his lingering war with Iran, and rising costs associated with climate change and extreme weather, personal bankruptcies are up. So are home foreclosures. Trump is killing the American dream. He’s not worried, though, because he’s enriched himself.
Overall, Trump’s second term legacy can be summed up as lies, delusions, and failures.
And now, a quote about Trump:
Today’s music comes out after thinking — again — about Trump’s many promises and delusions. I think too much about it, to be honest. I do so because he says these things, breaks his promises, and yet MAGAts and the GOP are all, it’s all gone.
Some of the MAGAts support Trump because he’s tearing everything down. That’s what they want: tear it down so we can rebuild. Unfortunately for us, ‘tearing it all down’ in this age will cause huge damage to the world. I guess they have Mad Max fantasies about leaving in a dystopian land…
Anyway, The Neurons ended up inserting a Simple Minds song in my morning mental music stream. “Promised You A Miracle” came out in 1982 and has that 80s techno rock vibe. The lyrics fit now:
Sample Lyrics:
I promised you a miracle
Belief is a beauty thing
Promises, promises
As golden days break wondering
Seems to fit with Trump and the MAGAts, doesn’t it. ‘Belief is a beauty thing’.
May love, peace, and abundance be with you on this and every day.
I’m off for coffee, writing, being. Cheers
Michael Seidel, writer 