The familiar routine of morning coffee, followed by bedlam, is comforting even though it’s annoying. A touch of the two coffee icon on the touchscreen brings the coffee machine to life. The first sip quells the jackhammer-on-concrete noise in my head from caffeine withdrawal. The second sip is accompanied by the Westminster chime of the doorbell and the simultaneous baying of Twiggy and Tempeste, obviously auditioning for guardians of the gates of hell. Two new toys tossed into the soundproof room, followed by the door’s slam, brings the kind of peace Leon Bridges describes in the song Peaceful Place.
A glance at the security monitor shows Horton the Elephant on a nest on the porch. He has an envelope and clipboard. Obviously, the security shutdown process needs to begin.
The B-2 bomber squadron and the F-35 escort must be called off. One call does it. The tank corps and gunboats are told to stand by. The Apache helicopters are rerouted. The electric shock fence is turned off. The drawbridge over the quicksand is lowered. The robot attack dogs returned to their charging station. The laser-guided machine guns on the roof are set to caution. The nest filled with rattlesnakes put away. The bucket filled with 1000 marbles is locked down. The tear gas canisters shut off. The electrified welcome mat set to off. The fall-away sidewalk into the pit filled with spikes is locked. The hornet’s nest closed. The water cannons are set to safety. Bear traps are set to off. Peregrine Falcons perched on the roof above front door fed. The vat of boiling oil set to warm. Monty Python’s Harmless Little Rabbit’s cage is closed. The front door is opened.
Horton passes me the envelope and clipboard. The signed document, with a fiver clipped to the board, is returned. The question, “How long are you going to sit on Mayzie’s egg?” goes unasked, and the front door closes.
The envelope is from Linda Hill. The letter inside reads:
Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “familiar.” Use it the way you’d like. Enjoy!
To see what others have done with the prompt, visit Linda’s post. Here is the link: https://lindaghill.com/2026/10/09/the-friday-reminder-and-prompt-for-socs-october-10-2026/
Familiar by John W. Howell © 2026
“I’m not familiar with Horton.”
“He’s a character out of a book titled Horton Hatches the Egg.”
“Odd thing, an elephant sitting on an egg.”
“From the mind of Dr. Seuss.”
“What made you think of that character?”
“I was looking at the Warner Brothers characters when Horton popped up. I remember seeing the cartoon and reading the story to my kids.”
“A bit of nostalgia, huh?”
“I suppose. The story is great, with lessons of greed and commitment.”
“Does it end well?”
“It does. Like most of our Uber rides. Speaking of which.”
“Right over there.”
Photo by Dan Antion
“What is that?”
“It’s a VW pickup truck.”
“I didn’t know they made pickups.”
“They did between 1980 and 1983.”
“Okay, so what’s the hitch?”
“A small thing.”
“Never small.”
“One of us has to ride in the back.”
“The person who hired the VW, raise your hand.”
“Okay, I’ll ride in the back.”
“Great. Let’s go.”
