2000-09-04 - 23:02 MDT

September 4, 2000

Tribute

Today, Heather and I decided to go pause at the Columbine Crosses. Out South University Boulevard to Arapahoe Road, east to Colorado Boulevard, a turn north and we were at Chapel Hill Cemetery where the crosses are.

I expected them to present a stark picture against the sky on top of the hill. Not so, they are nestled in the grassy hollow where two cemetery streets meet. The site is well planned and laid out. The crosses are in an arc and back a bit are polished, black, stone benches, there is a bronze plaque. There are many small mementos at the crosses, the site is quite well taken care of. I knelt at the site to pay tribute to those whose lives were cut short and to the coach - teacher who gave his life trying to save others. As I was there the words, why, how could this be ? formed in my mind and I sadly arose and went to our car. Heather wanted to find the graves of some of her relatives buried there, so we were going to be there for awhile.

As we drove away, on a rather bare spot to the east were several teenagers, sitting, facing the Columbine site, obviously not wanting to be obtrusive but yet mourn. I almost lost it there.

A peaceful drive home with a stop at the Colonel's where I sampled the new "Twister," ha ha ha resembles a Kentuckyfried, chicken fajita burrito, hot spiced just enough to make it tasty. Well if you can't lick 'em, join 'em -- but I can imagine driving in Mexico and dropping in somewhere and getting Kentucky Fried Goat.

All the way home I was thinking of ways to find something funny to counteract the mood I was in. When we got home I sat at the keyboard and did a doggy doggrel in an e-mail to a friend:

Fish don't swim in the air,

Nor get in your hair,

They do have a place that's not in your face,

And have their own source of air.

And seeing that it is Labor Day the Rocky Mountain News had a cartoon from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, with a cop, pad in hand speaking to a frowsy man, man I think, and he says, "Speeding, tailgating, reckless lane switching. I'm going to ask you to step out of the vehicle and take an intelligence test."

Cartoonist Etta Hulme must have been in Denver once and in her mind envisioned a Fort Worth cop working TDY in Denver at any time of day and/or any day of the week.

In the Joke Line it gives Colorado driving rules, I think only the two new ones are slanted toward typical Denver drivers. A - The faster you drive through a red light, the smaller the chance you have of getting hit. (Geez - the Denver drivers are sure tempting fate) B - Never take a green light at face value. Always look right and left before proceeding. In Aurora it is common to stop and then decide which direction to turn.

I would personally like to add a C - Like a dead mans switch on electric trains - a small automatic alarm should go off if a driver's head should begin to proceed toward his butt and sound loudly enough to wake him in time to move on his green light.

Columbine not forgotten, just set aside a bit to be returned to at a later date, But to the two, the student who said she believed in God and the heroic teacher, I again pay tribute.

Blog