Like a Ninja

Today I did something I never do, even usually hate.

I wore all one color.

I'm wearing black cargo pants, a black long sleeve tee, and I even had my black Reeboks on earlier though they do have white stripes.

There's just a sliver of red peeking above my collar from my Spanish Inquisition t-shirt and now my blue and black striped knee-high toe socks are showing since my shoes are off. And OK, I have a maroon hoodie on at the moment.

I think the only reason I don't mind wearing so much of one color today is because it's black and makes me feel like a ninja.
*****
One evening at twilight when I was around 11 or 12, I got to play ninjas with my brother and his friends. We all looked for dark jackets and sweatshirts to wear over our jeans. The darkest top I could find was a dark navy windbreaker that had an unbelievably bright white zipper on it. What can I say? It was the mid 80s.

We each had a long cardboard tube, the sort that holds wrapping paper, to use as a sword. The four of us set out in opposing directions in the dark around our house in order to sneak up on each other for sword fights.

It was dark enough to be spooky, moonlight shadows of trees covering much of the yard. I snuck around warily, not consciously thinking that 1 of them was 3 years older than me and the other two were 4 years older. Instead, I felt certain that they had established rules before I had joined them that I didn't know.

I asked my brother before we went outside but only got a breezy answer in reply (no doubt the actual extent of their rules). I felt completely unsure.

Then abruptly there was shouting coming from the side yard. Battle had commenced!

I ran over with my cardboard sword held out in front of me at the ready. My brother and his best friend were in an epic sword fight, their cardboard tubes starting to break, when a figure came out of the shadows and attacked me from the side.

We played until our tubes were flopping in half. Mine held up the longest because I wasn't quite so aggressive with it. I don't think I was very good at ninja sword fighting, but I remember the night fondly because I was happy to be included.*****
Here's to doing something different!


Two years ago on TTaT: Sketchbook, page 8