Lessie, short for Alexandra, hadn’t belonged much to anything in her life. Her parents were the strictest of evangelists and their terms of belonging in the family included belonging in the church, which she found creepy. She faked the church thing and that in turn made the family belonging fake too. High school was the worst; she just didn’t know how to get started in the belonging business, and there was no one to help. There’s the rub; if you don’t already know how belong there’s just no one to help you to learn how to belong. All she knew was how to fake it.

Lessie started college and quickly dropped out; it was just more of the same old same old of not belonging. How did she end up here? Driving alone. Why here? Ran out of gas – figuratively. And why this merry band? She asked the bartender where to buy some pot. How does it end up? She’s different, and they kind of like her.

I want … oh, you know what I mean … the stuff of life!   Last words of Bayard Taylor

George's selection of 66 Phlogs is available in print from People's Press.

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