In this gripping tale, our hapless narrator tries to reconcile the competing demands of the cerebral and physical. Here’s the first part; the whole thing is slated for the next issue of the Black Scat Review.

THE MORNING WALK

It was a beautiful spring morning, so I decided to take a walk.

The decision was not an easy one, since a walk would prevent me from doing other things. I could not, for example, both swim and walk, because swimming is done in water, and walking on land. Nor could I wash dishes and walk, because dishwashing requires standing at a sink. I could walk around the kitchen between dishes, taking a little stroll between a pot and a plate, but would have to alternate the two activities. Swimming and washing dishes, however, could be combined, if necessary, by placing the dishes in a pool or other body of water.

Not all activities are incompatible with walking. I could, for example, play music and walk at the same time. Many people do, particularly in marching bands. Some instruments have even been redesigned to be easier to carry. The celebrated bandleader John Philip Sousa, for example, took time out from writing his famous marches to create the modified tuba we know as the Sousaphone. This ingenious invention wraps around the player, freeing his or her hands. I have always regretted that Sousa never redesigned other bulky instruments. The marimba, for example, cannot lend its bright and distinctive timbre to parades. As I considered this, I felt the creative spark kindling within me, and yearned to complete the work he had left unfinished. But just as he could not write marches and redesign instruments at the same time, I could not take a walk and solve the problem of the marching marimba. True, nothing prevented me from thinking about it, as I placed one foot after the other, but I would have to leave my workbench behind…