Oct 27

Oct 27 WHEN ROWING DOWN THE NILE MAKE SURE TO TAKE YOUR GOOD FRIEND MARIE ALONG by Jenois Harris

Jenois Harris

Book Excerpt

I was rowing down the Nile one Sunday afternoon with my very good friend Marie.

As we lazily rowed along, we happened upon this crocodile who called himself Henri.

He said he liked fine wine, Chardonnay and Rhine, and made it clear he’d like to dine on me.

“Oh, my dear Henri,” I said, “I am highly complimented, but I am afraid that at this time I must decline.

“You see, I must go wash my hair, and my nails – they need repair. Would you consider instead my dear friend Marie?

“Although she looks a trifle thin, that’s just that outfit she is wearing. I’m sure she’s tastier than me at any rate. Besides, Marie just washed her hair and her nails are in a perfect state.”

Henri looked at Marie, then he looked again at me.

“Oui, oui,” he said. “I do agree. Marie is definitely the one for me.”

As Henri chomped down on Marie I thought I’d better flee, so I swam ashore and made it safely home.

So, my advice to you, my friends, if you don’t want to end up as crocodile din-din while rowing down the Nile, make sure to take your good friend Marie along.

Jenois Harris

Jenois (Gen-wa) Lois Harris, resides in Hemet, California with one of her two adult sons and his marmalade cat, Nanette. She says that she and her son tell everyone the cat is French because she has a French sounding name, however, the cat is actually Mexican, having been brought over the border at San Ysidro by a neighbor when he returned to California after visiting his family in Tijuana, Mexico.

An Army brat, Jenois spent the first years of her life in her home state of Louisiana, leaving at eight years of age to travel with her mother, step-father, and eight siblings to Germany, Texas, Massachusetts, and California. Jenois is the eldest of the eight siblings.

She credits her interest in writing to her second grade teacher who noticed early on that she has an ability to use words creatively.

One day, on the playground, I had a heated argument with a classmate. She called my mother a sheep. I called her mother a peach. Our teacher heard us and sent us to the principal’s office. As punishment for our so called deviant language we were both assigned days to sit in the principal’s office and cut out newspaper clippings. The principal’s office was warm and the principal let me eat my lunch, a tuna sandwich, early. Even though I liked the principal’s office, I was afraid of the principal so as long as I was enrolled in that school, I made sure that I never got into another argument with anyone or used language that would land me in his office again.

The teacher who turned us in was a kind and caring person. She told me I have a high mind and encouraged me to write my thoughts in a little composition notebook she gave me. Even though she whipped my scrawny little legs when I stayed past recess, stretched out, daydreaming under a sycamore tree, I forgave her because in my heart I know her only wish was for me to live a good life. I'll always remember her with gratitude.

After spending thirty-one years working Civil Service jobs in the Los Angeles County area and fourteen years as a Realtor in the Inland Empire, Jenois is no longer daydreaming. She is putting pen to paper and while she says she is not ready to write the great American novel, she does want to write stories that interest readers.

Jenois can be contacted at https://jenoisexpresses.me/contact