An old lady lives in a house up the street from Grandma’s. It is one of my favorite places to go in the whole world. It is like nothing else I have ever seen in my life.
There is an old screened-in building in the middle of the grassy lawn, right next to the large circle of red lilies that grows every year. I have to look up to see their flowers; they’re so tall.
The hummingbirds like the red flowers.
A large pond covered with a fishing net is my next stop. The lady says the net
keeps the big white birds out. The big white birds like to eat goldfish.
There are a lot of giant goldfish in the pond. All the fish are different. Some are solid black, white, or orange. Some are spotted or blotchy, some look like swimming kaleidoscopes.
Their tails and fins differ as well. Some are short and stubby, while others are long and flow when the fish swim through the water.
When I talk to the fish, they rise to the top, making it look like they’re gulping air above the water, but they want food.
They always want food.
The lady who lives there loves the fish. She makes tea in the morning and sits
outside, watching them. She named one of the fish Charlie. I don’t know why.
There is a big box where the water flows out, splashing down through the fishing net. The fish love the water splashing into the pond. They swim where it hits, frolicking in the sunshine.
After I look at the fish for a while, I walk along the brick path behind the pond,
through the flowers and bushes. The flowers are lovely and are different every time I visit.
The gardens have a lot of decorations: statues of animals, an old sewing machine, a millstone, bird houses, pyramids of rocks, and little gnomes
on bicycles.
No, they’re not real gnomes.
There are a lot of birds there: blue jays, sparrows, chickadees, woodpeckers, juncos, cardinals, and crows. The lady doesn’t like the sparrows.
There are also a lot of fat squirrels. The lady doesn’t like squirrels.
If I am very, very quiet and look closely,
sometimes I will see chipmunks or a bunny.
After I visit for a while, Grandma takes me home. I always thank the lady for letting me visit. She seems sad sometimes.
I think she is lonely.
If we time it right and the lady knows I’m visiting, she will give me warm chocolate chip cookies when I leave.
I could live there — It is even better than watching TV.