Owl Light
Where Inspiration & Inquiry Converge
  • Home
  • Literary Journal
  • Owl Light Sponsorship
  • Digital Owl
  • Contact Us
  • Login
  • Home
  • Literary Journal
  • Owl Light Sponsorship
  • Digital Owl
  • Contact Us
  • Login
  • Home
  • /
  • Literary Arts

Sally Jane / Mustang Sal by Sally Valentine

Linocut by Cynthia Cratsley, Corning, NY

Ah, April, month of transitions. Snowmen melt into daffodils, clouds evaporate into sun, scarves and wool hats are shelved for umbrellas and baseball caps. And at the first sign of dry pavement on Canandaigua Road, Sally Jane shifts into Mustang Sal.

Sally Jane drives a gray SUV with a third seat in back and Disney princesses singsonging from the CD player. At least she thinks the SUV is gray; it hasn’t been washed in years. The license plate (there must be one) is buried under alternating layers of salt and mud.

Mustang Sal, on the other hand, tools around town in a yellow Mustang GT convertible with a black vinyl top. It sparkles as brightly as the gleam in her eye when she gets onboard. It has vanity plates that read MSTGSAL. There is no third seat (barely a back seat) and is off-limits to Anna and Elsa and Olaf. Tina Turner blasts from the side door speakers.

Sally Jane is a math teacher with directions written down on paper and a road map conveniently at hand. She always has a destination, although her most frequent trips are back and forth to the school, the grocery store, and the playground. Mustang Sal can’t be bothered with a road map or even a GPS. She never knows where she will turn up next. Definitely not at a kid’s playground.

Sally Jane drives carefully, obeying all the traffic signs and speed limits, being especially cautious in school zones. Mustang Sal puts the pedal to the metal and doesn’t look at the speedometer. She has a radar detector on the dashboard where Sally Jane keeps the wipes.

Sally Jane dresses for the weather and stores boots, blankets, and rock salt in the cargo area, just in case. Mustang Sal flies out of the house in whatever she happens to be wearing and barely remembers to bring her purse.

Sally Jane keeps the car windows rolled up year around. The only time she takes her eyes off the road is when she is checking on the grandkids in the back seat. Mustang Sal cruises around town with the top down, waving at all the teenage boys who want to race.

Sally Jane is heavy with the weight of responsibility. She carries the burdens of her job, the errands of her husband, and the schedules of her kids and grandkids around as extra passengers. Mustang Sal is light. In fact, she gets lighter with every passing mile, tossing out worries like pieces of banged up, mismatched luggage. By the end of the trip, she is completely weightless.

Look outside. The pavement is almost dry. Good-bye, Sally Jane. Hello, Mustang Sal.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Posted on July 1, 2019 by owllightnews.com. This entry was posted in Literary Arts and tagged #FlightsofFancy, #Literary Arts. Bookmark the permalink.
The Demon Yields ~ Duologue by Merton Bartels
Comfort on the Wing ~ Essay by Jessica Villar Rosati

    Recent Posts

    • Visual Studies Workshop Announces Project Space Residency Open Application Period
    • West End Gallery showcasing Brian S. Keeler, Treacy Ziegler
    • Hard
    • Eye-Magine – Future Youth Art Exhibit
    • “These Wilds” Announcement

    Recent Comments

    • Darlene on Let’s Talk About Beep!
    • Darlene Bentley on Hello! from a new Guest Editor, and Finding Joy in Hardship.
    • owllightnews.com on The Farm
    • Douglas Morgan on The Farm
    • owllightnews.com on Energizing and Engaging Fun at GEVA

    Archives

    • May 2025
    • April 2025
    • March 2025
    • February 2025
    • January 2025
    • December 2024
    • November 2024
    • October 2024
    • September 2024
    • June 2024
    • May 2024
    • April 2024
    • March 2024
    • February 2024
    • January 2024
    • December 2023
    • November 2023
    • October 2023
    • September 2023
    • August 2023
    • July 2023
    • June 2023
    • May 2023
    • April 2023
    • March 2023
    • February 2023
    • January 2023
    • December 2022
    • November 2022
    • October 2022
    • September 2022
    • August 2022
    • July 2022
    • June 2022
    • May 2022
    • April 2022
    • March 2022
    • February 2022
    • January 2022
    • December 2021
    • November 2021
    • October 2021
    • September 2021
    • August 2021
    • July 2021
    • June 2021
    • May 2021
    • April 2021
    • March 2021
    • February 2021
    • January 2021
    • December 2020
    • November 2020
    • October 2020
    • September 2020
    • August 2020
    • July 2020
    • June 2020
    • May 2020
    • April 2020
    • March 2020
    • February 2020
    • January 2020
    • December 2019
    • November 2019
    • October 2019
    • September 2019
    • August 2019
    • July 2019
    • June 2019
    • May 2019
    • April 2019
    • March 2019
    • February 2019
    • January 2019
    • December 2018
    • November 2018
    • October 2018
    • September 2018
    • August 2018
    • July 2018
    • June 2018
    • May 2018
    • April 2018
    • March 2018
    • February 2018
    • January 2018
    • December 2017
    • November 2017
    • October 2017
    • September 2017
    • August 2017
    • July 2017
    • June 2017
    • May 2017
    • April 2017

    Categories

    • #2021
    • Agriculture
    • Animals
    • Antiques
    • Art
    • Astronomy
    • automobiles
    • Beekeeping
    • Birthday
    • Boating
    • books
    • Botany
    • Broome County
    • Buffalo
    • Canadice
    • Canandaigua
    • Cartoon
    • Children
    • Civics
    • Collecting
    • Comic Strip
    • Community Information
    • concert
    • Covid-19
    • Creative non-fiction
    • Dansville
    • Death
    • Democracy
    • Dogs
    • Editorial
    • Education
    • Environmental
    • Essay
    • Family Fun
    • Fantasy
    • Fiction
    • film
    • Finger Lakes
    • Food and Beverage
    • gallery
    • Gardening
    • Gender Rights
    • Great Lakes
    • Health
    • History
    • Holiday
    • Honeoye
    • Human Interest
    • Human Rights
    • In Memoriam
    • Innovation
    • Interview
    • Leisurely Pursuits
    • Literary Arts
    • Little Lakes
    • Live Theatre
    • Livingston County
    • media
    • Monroe County
    • Movies
    • Museums
    • Music
    • Naples, NY
    • Nature
    • Night Sky
    • No. 1
    • NYS
    • Obituary
    • online
    • Ontario County
    • Opinion
    • Outdoor Sports
    • OWL Light
    • Owl Light News
    • Owl Light Newsstand locations
    • Owl Light Sponsor
    • Owl Sponsor
    • OwlLight Blogpost
    • OwlLightNewsArchive
    • Performing Arts
    • Photography
    • Poetry
    • Politics
    • Press Release
    • Recipe
    • Reviews
    • Richmond, NY
    • Rochester
    • Satire
    • Science
    • Scifi
    • Seniors
    • Shop Local
    • Social Justice
    • sports
    • STEM
    • Steuben County
    • Sustainability
    • Theatre
    • Tioga County
    • Tompkins County
    • Travel
    • Uncategorized
    • Veterans
    • Weather
    • Women's Rights
    • Wood working
    • writing
    • Wyoming County
    • Yates County
    • Young Adult
    • youth
    • Zoom

    Meta

    • Log in
    • Entries feed
    • Comments feed
    • WordPress.org
Powered by