The Power of Metaphor

 I wrote for myself tonight.

I wrote for myself tonight after having been struck by sudden inspiration while reading Elizabeth Gilbert's Eat Pray Love.

I wrote for myself tonight.

I find myself wanting to repeat that line over and over and over and marvel at the simple pleasure it brings me.

I wrote for myself tonight, not for a college professor, not for my job, not for any other purpose than just to write.

And this is what I wrote...an ode to my family, in metaphors.

The Power of a Metaphor

Perhaps the most powerful manner of description. To say that something actually is something else. A far cry from the minute comparison qualities of a simile, which merely claim that something has similarities to something else through employment of the words "like" or "as". To actually be something other than yourself, that is powerful.

Colleen, I begin with you as your name comes first to my mind. Colleen is a sunflower. Colleen is a butterfly. Colleen is an "anything that is strikingly and naturally beautiful yet surprisingly strong."

Van-man is a gremlin - cute, but don't get him wet or feed him after midnight...just kidding. :) Van is a lion cub. Van is a flying squirrel. Van is LOVE. Van is anything young, innocent, mischievous, energetic, and, most of all, endearingly sweet with an uncontrollable hunger for life and urge to run amok.

Brett is a spring rain. Brett is a salmon swimming upstream. Brett is an "anything that embodies the essence of nature." Brett is also "an anything that embodies a journey to reach your destination (In this case, the destination happens to be a loving wife, a brilliant, shining son, and a warm home rather than a stream bed in Alaska...though Brett would probably be happy there too.)".

Trevor, Trevor is an oak. Trevor is a pillar. Trevor is an "anything that exudes strength, conviction, and power while somehow simultaneously possessing a tenderness and softness that surprises most".

Mandy is a daisy. Mandy is a pastel - soft, delicate, fun, loving. Mandy is an "anything that possesses the quality of true and unwavering loyalty while also remaining quintessentially feminine and soft".

Mom is a wildflower in a kept garden. Mom is a dinner table (Allow me to explain that one. The dinner table is where the family gathers; it's the heart. So, Mom is a dinner table.). Mom is an "anything that continually surprises one with its previously unknown color, spark, vivacity". Mom is also an "anything that anchors a family".

Dad, Daddy, Daddy-O. Dad is a rock. Dad is a mama bear. Dad is a lighthouse. Dad is anything that is stubborn, solid, uncompromising. Dad is anything that is innately protective and would die for its own. Dad is anything that shines in the darkness and guides weary ships at sea to harbor.

Garrett is a petulant child. OK, only at the moment as I am noisily scribbling in my notebook, frantically trying to get my thoughts down on paper before they escape my brain forever, with the bedside lamp on while he's attempting to sleep. Really, Garrett is a mountain and Garrett is a kitten. Garrett, strong, immovable, yet soft, sensitive, and playful. Love of my life.

Me.
I am...
I am a...
.......

My pen rests here for the night due to the inability, or perhaps the desire, to define myself.