2007-01-28
watching the watchers
I rode my bike through Coconut Grove, down tree-shaded roads with lyrical names: Hibiscus Street and Avocado Avenue. I passed the stone walls of Plymouth Congregational Church (which always reminds me of Spain, not that I've ever been there).
Behind the palms I noticed a pair of beady eyes...so I kicked off my flip-flops and walked barefoot in the grass.
A flock of peacocks (and speckled peahens) were scratching and pecking the lawn like overgrown chickens. As I stepped closer, they skittered away, bobbing their glossy heads in a lizardy rhythm.
I cornered them against a chain-link fence. With a whoosh, they took off into the air, straight up like a helicopter. From their perches, they watched me watching them. Their eyes followed me back to my bike. They never even blinked. Not even when I waved goodbye.
f-i-n at 5:08 p.m.