My former co-worker at Samaritan Health/Patient Financial Services, June Hall Allen, and I were texting each other on Facebook Messenger. I had just finished my Dolly Parton portraits but had not posted them yet, and I invited June to a sneak preview. When she saw them she was lavish with her praise, and then asked me if I could draw a manatee. I told her truthfully that I can draw anything…badly. (True. It only takes a split second to draw a Galaxy. Just use your pencil to make a dot, say it’s a DISTANT Galaxy, and that the dot is a perfect representation of its radio emissions.) But I decided to give it a try, and I did, and June lavished more praise on me and wanted to buy it for $80 (and WOW, that’s putting your money where your Lavish Praise is, June!) but I of course refused monetary payment for such a sweet praise-lavishing friend of more than twenty years, and asked instead to blog-post it, and here we are.

At the risk of making people see something they will not be able to unsee, I daresay that a Manatee would be perfect for a reincarnation of Bert Lahr.

manatee

making waves be habitat
makes a wavy life at that

and there is a give & take
and warm water sets you free

now you’re swimming and awake
nothing like a chance to Be