Following the winding path

it doesn't surprise me that gray matter is wrinkled. With all the twists and turns my thoughts make, I'm surprised that it's not knotted. Today, I found myself thinking about Thanksgiving turkey, and I just had to wonder where that thought came from. Like I do when I look for my keys or my glasses, I retraced my steps.

1) Thoughts of turkey came from thinking about the flower arrangement of marigolds, dried pods and leaves I had on my dining room table for most of November.

2) Marigolds came into my mind when I remembered the blossoming flower scene from ET which came from thinking about

3) The scene where Elliot sets all the frogs free in a cinematic display of telepathic empathy, which came from remembering

4) Being decidedly un-squeamish and un-girly when it came to dissection when my middle school biology class had its first acquaintance with formaldehyde and reptiles. That thought came from

5) Noticing that I do have a rather unfeminine taste for action movies when I'm in the right mood. Though I don't like slasher flicks, I can handle gore and psychological suspense pretty well.

6) That thought came from realizing just how much I've been enjoying reading Hannibal Rising from Thomas Harris. This sequel to Red Dragon and Silence of the Lambs follows the childhood of Hannibal Lecter. I'd wondered for a long time what had happened to everybody's favorite cannibal, and the latest murder described includes both a disemboweling and a beheading. It was more interesting than disgusting. That thought was prompted by

7) A Tom Petty song playing in the convenience store where I purchased gas and bumped into an acquaintance I hadn't seen in years.

8) My friend complimented me on my weight loss.

9) In the movie, Silence of the Lambs, a Tom Petty song, American Girl, was playing in the scene that introduced the kidnap victim of the serial killer. She was a Memphis girl, from my old hometown, and was chosen by the killer because of her more than ample size.

This is just a few minutes in my brain on an otherwise orderly, logical, organized day. Imagine what it's like when I'm truly associative and holistic. Did you notice the dieter's dilemma in there as well? Everything is related to food and weight. If my waking thoughts are this convoluted, is it any wonder that my dreams seem to really make no sense?

I think I need to hire someone to clean house inside my head. J.M. Barrie in Peter Pan said that's what moms do when their children go to sleep at night, pick up all the messy thoughts and tuck them away neatly. I think my mom didn't pass this skill on to me, and I seem to have missed out on ...

Wait a minute. I think the twists and turns are starting again. It's not easy being me.

thought process