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    Grab Life by the Tale: Live a Longer Life, but Live a Quality Life
    Grab Life by the Tale: Live a Longer Life, but Live a Quality Life
    Grab Life by the Tale: Live a Longer Life, but Live a Quality Life
    Ebook95 pages1 hour

    Grab Life by the Tale: Live a Longer Life, but Live a Quality Life

    By George Simon

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    About this ebook

    This is a book of short stories for those who have little time to read and who wish to get the most enjoyment from the time available. The stories are written with the ingenuity and humor of a pixie and they run the gamut to make you think, laugh or cry. If you make the time, you are bound to experience all of them. Treat yourself. Take a few minutes and enjoy this most pleasant array of short stories.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherTrafford Publishing
    Release dateMay 17, 2012
    ISBN9781466935945
    Grab Life by the Tale: Live a Longer Life, but Live a Quality Life
    Author

    George Simon

    George Simon is a lecturer and writer of short stories and a few years back was the “cover boy” for the American Heart Association. He finds joy in life by poking fun at aging and its problems and has his own ideas of how to approach the so-called golden years. This book is about his personal experiences during the aging period: the good, the bad, the funny, and the sad. If we are fortunate enough to experience the aging period, then it is just a matter of how we view it. George is eighty-nine years old, enjoying life and relishing every precious minute of it.

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      Book preview

      Grab Life by the Tale - George Simon

      Copyright 2012 George Simon.

      All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the written prior permission of the author.

      Copyedited by Kimberly Joyce Veloso.

      ISBN: 978-1-4669-3593-8 (sc)

      ISBN: 978-1-4669-3595-2 (hc)

      ISBN: 978-1-4669-3594-5 (e)

      Library of Congress Control Number: 2012908701

      Trafford rev. 05/12/2012

      7-Copyright-Trafford_Logo.ai

      www.trafford.com

      North America & international

      toll-free: 1 888 232 4444 (USA & Canada)

      phone: 250 383 6864 ♦ fax: 812 355 4082

      Contents

      Dedication

      About the Author

      The Race against Time

      Let’s Do It

      There Comes a Time

      Preparation for Aging

      Topic of the Day

      My Favorite Boot

      My Court Case

      My Strange Relationship

      I Would Rather Die Laughing

      You May Get a Headache

      I Can Run Again

      Subject of Memory

      I Am in Love Again

      Perception Is Everything

      I Don’t Know Why, but I Have an Idea

      Whatever Was to Be, I Escaped

      I Can See It

      His Eminence, the Inner Sanctum of the Doctor’s Office

      Whose Turn Is It?

      Fifty Years Later—the Truth

      The Doorway into Whatever

      From Carefree to Careful

      The Drive

      The Silence Is Deafening

      You Do Have a Choice

      In the Eyes of the Beholder

      I Can’t

      My Trip to Hell and Back

      How Would You Like to Be Remembered?

      The Aging Athlete

      Blackie’s First Kiss

      Dedication

      I dedicate this book to my Life Story Writing class instructor, Jeanette Shelburne, and my classmates, who inspired me to write my life stories. They taught me that life stories are not just about family, but how you lived your personal life and reacted to life’s changes and problems as you aged.

      About the Author

      George Simon is a lecturer and writer of short stories and a few years back was the cover boy for the American Heart Association. He finds joy in life by poking fun at aging and its problems and has his own ideas of how to approach the so-called golden years.

      This book is about his personal experiences during the aging period: the good, the bad, the funny, and the sad. If we are fortunate enough to experience the aging period, then it is just a matter of how we view it. George is eighty-nine years old, enjoying life and relishing every precious minute of it.

      George’s stories about his adventures in aging have captivated his classmates in our Life Story Writing group for many years. He tells it like it is, infusing his stories with a big, tough-love dose of facing reality, mischievous humor, and heartfelt pathos. As George takes us on suspenseful journeys, we never know where we will land, only that we will be surprised, inspired, and delighted.

      Jeanette Shelburne

      Instructor, Life Story Writing class

      The Race against Time

      All my life I have been training my body and my mind to win, and now I find myself in the biggest race of my life, against Father Time: a race, I know, eventually I will not win. I have been sprinting and hurdling on the oval track for about twenty-five years, and I thought I knew most of the athletes, at least by sight. One day, about five years ago, a newcomer showed up at the starting line. I didn’t know him, and neither did any of my friends. He seemed to be about our age; otherwise, he wouldn’t be in our race. He was trim, muscular, and he looked great in his black running outfit.

      Something really bothered me about him, and I couldn’t figure it out; suddenly it hit me. I got the message, and it was meant only for me. As I looked at this newcomer, and I barely blinked, the figure changed into Father Time in full regalia: full-length black coat, long gray hair, and holding a scythe. He smiled at me, and as I blinked again, there was the fantastic-looking athlete, considering his age, whatever that may be.

      It has only been in the last five years that Father Time has shown up at the starting line during the track season. Up until now, I have been able to beat him by a couple of steps, and after each race, when I turn around to congratulate him on a great race, with my chest on fire trying to catch my breath, he just stands there smiling, with nary a deep breath in his body. He is always smiling, and it drives me nuts.

      In our last race, we were coming around the turn in the track and heading into the straightaway toward the finish line, and I could hear the steps pounding the surface of the track just behind me. It was Father Time, and at every step, he seemed to get closer and closer.

      As I crossed the finish line, one step ahead of him and my one lung about to burst, I turned around to congratulate Father Time. As usual, he was standing there, smiling and, as always, as calm as calm can be with nary a struggle to take a breath or even break a sweat. He knows there will come a time when he will win the race and as he turns around to congratulate me, I won’t be there—anymore.

      Let’s Do It

      Alice and I have known each other for quite a while now, and even though we have had breakfasts and lunches together, we have never spent any close time together, that is, until two weeks ago. I knew of a small farm I hadn’t been to for many years; my two sons loved the farm, and we used to go there and have picnics. I thought it would be a nice outing for both of us to have a picnic on the farm, away from our bustling life of the city.

      It was a beautiful, warm day, and the Thunderbird purred like a kitten on the open highway. No, I did not take the hard top off my convertible; I have never been a true convertible man, and I couldn’t stand to have the wind whipping wildly through my twenty-three hairs, but we did open the large windows, and that was enough to satisfy our craving for that convertible feel.

      When we arrived at the farm, we found we were not the only ones with a picnic on the farm idea, but no matter; there was enough space for everyone. The lunch we packed was magnificent, bountiful, and off the chart for both of us. We had large corn beef sandwiches, coleslaw, and lots of dill pickles. What the hell, you only live once.

      Most of the day was spent lying in the sun, soaking up the warm rays until it became evident that it would be wise to move into the shade;

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