Forever KAP
She mustn't make a sound nor a move; she mustn't get the bull started.
—Katherine Anne Porter
She mustn't make a sound nor a move; she mustn't get the bull started. But it was her curse time of month and the bull could tell. “Shit,” she thought, “I am so fucked.” And she was.
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She mustn't make a sound nor a move; she mustn't get the bull started. “Strong like bull,” were the first English words he'd taught her. The only words he taught her for the first three weeks. She spoke five languages. English was not one of them. He speaks English and Pig Latin. She still says “snort” when she means “snore.” “Donald snort all night,” she says. He grins. He likes inside jokes.
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She mustn't make a sound nor a move; she mustn't get the bull started. Delores was sure Peebee would die if the mechanical bull bucked again. He might already be dead. He looked cross-eyed. Maybe from pain? Electric shock and liquor? She wasn't sure. The bull had bucked like it meant to fly. Peebee threw up and fell off in the puddle. “Alive! He's alive!” Delores cried.
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She mustn't make a sound nor a move; she mustn't get the bull started. No wrong sounds, no wrong moves. Change the subject, change the subject. Talk about the weather, the game, the turkey. Maybe not the turkey. Blather away. Talk about car trouble. That's good. Make it specific, but not Japanese. Don't go there. Talk about clutches. How cars don't have clutches anymore. Where are the clutches? Talk about Larry David. No don't. Bernie? Probably not. Don't bring up pandemics, climate change. For God sakes don't bring up Greta Thunberg. Just don't.
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Author's Note
A riff on a story-laden sentence. Thanks DeWitt Henry (and "Improvisational") for the suggestion. So fun.
This is delightful Dianne !! Love it. :-))
Clever and entertaining!
Great fun.
Enjoyed these *
To avoid bull start, never walk between a cow and a bull. Haven't heard the word curse used for a woman's period for fifty years. Don't walk between a bull and a cow. *
Levity for goodness sake. let's have it!
(Here it is) *
Keep going!
*
[I see this as a prose poem.]
Fun piece(s).
Without having read KAP in extenso, though, this/these turned my mind to Cousin Flannery's "Greenleaf" (I don't recall that Mrs. May herself was said to've read KAP, she might've wished she had).
Amantine, Matt, Gary, and Foster thanks for reading and commenting!
Daniel, thanks for the great advice. Kind of like between a rock and a hard place. Well, not exactly….
Psssst Tim, your stage presence is showing!
Bill, thanks for the encouragement. Means a lot.
Thank you Mr. Strannikov, I just read/reread “Greenleaf.” I hadn’t read Flannery in years but I am, once again, sufficiently humbled. Maybe I’ll start baking or something.
Stay well everyone!