Tag: surprise

I could have sworn the swan did a double take.

It had been basking in the summer sun.

It unfurled its elegant neck for a few seconds, seemed to glance at the pond, then tucked its head back to form a gold-kissed feathered mound.

One, two . . . . Whammo.

The swan’s head shot back up and it looked straight ahead to the pond before plopping back down.

It may be important to note that the swan’s initial peek at the pond took place as a giant swan boat glided about a yard away from the swan’s field of vision.

Life is filled with double takes.

” . . . .And we need to get Brady back to the vet to get his stitches taken out, and make sure you bring a sample for Rufus because I forgot that last time, and we’ll need to switch cars so I can go to work from there . . . . Oh, and I was thinking of selling Scooter to the circus now that he can do that left paw trick.  I’m taking bids on Craigslist.  It’s up to a dollar fifty.”

I pause.

“Wait . . . what?”

It’s a daily refrain in my household.  I’ll babble on to a child in a frequency apparently only moms tune in to, and then throw in a twist to catch my daughter’s attention.  If I’m lucky, she’ll do a little double take.

A double take, according to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, is “a delayed reaction to a surprising or significant situation after an initial failure to notice anything unusual —usually used in the phrase do a double take.” Continue reading “Double Take”