Women’s March 21 January 2017- Roanoke, VA
~kat – 21 January 2017
Magnetic Poetry Saturday – The Poet Kit
looks are deceiving
or so they say, but trusting
takes a second look
kat 19 January 2017
A haiku for Haiku Horizons weekly challenge based on the prompt word, “Look”.
“Tea Leaves” by William McGregor Paxton
“People are talking?” she thought, “What people? Who? And what is it exactly that they are seeing?” Her mind was dizzy with faces and places when Helen hawked at her from behind.
“Well it looks like it’s you and me for the day Hannah! Henry dashed off to work. So, I thought it would be nice to hear about your plans for the garden.” Helen plopped herself in a chair at the kitchen table.
“Coward!” Hannah grumbled to herself, though she couldn’t blame him for leaving. “Why don’t I brew us some tea, Helen. I have a lovely chamomile blend with mint and rose hips.” Hannah hoped its calming affects would keep Helen’s curiosity at bay.
“Oh that sounds wonderful. I’ve never had that particular tea combination. Where did you get it?”
Hannah filled a kettle with water, placed it on the stove and turned to join Helen. “It’s my mother’s special blend. She sent a canister with me. Speaking of the garden, I’m planning an herb garden and various flowering plants to make my own tea.”
“Oh, that is music to my ears!” Helen’s voice softened, “I remember bundles of herbs and flowers hanging from the rafters; the scent of lavender and roses in the air. My mother and grandmother always had fresh herbs and made their own teas. It warms my heart to think you will carry on that tradition. I must say, it’s a far cry from what I walked into before you came! Dust and cobwebs everywhere!”
The water in the kettle had started to boil sending puffs of moist steam over the stove. Hannah prepared the tea for steeping while Helen reminisced. “The house just needed a bit of tending. Do you like cream and sugar in your tea, Helen?”
“A bit of sugar is all,” Helen answered, “thank you. My, but it smells wonderful,” she sighed, as Hannah handed her a warm cup of brew. After taking a sip she smiled, “I hope you have the recipe, this is delicious.”
“I do indeed,” Hannah grinned, “I’ll make you a batch when the garden comes in.”
“Lovely. I look forward to that. So, I take it Henry didn’t scare you off then, and you plan on staying?”
“Here it comes,” Hannah thought before answering, “Well, I agree, those first few days were challenging, but I am determined to see it through…and…” Hannah stopped herself.
Helen, who was watching her intently, interjected, “And…?”
Hannah blushed, “And…what I was was going to say was…just as you had said he would, Henry came around…”
“I see…”
“…and, well, after the fire…” Hannah was stumbling over her words. “Stop now before you say too much,” she told herself, but her emotions were all aflutter.
“Oh yes, the fire. How frightening it must’ve been…” Helen fawned, encouraging Hannah to continue.
Emotions got the best of Hannah as she gushed, “Oh it was! We were just sitting down to dinner when the lightening struck! The lights flickered and everything went black until we realized the the trees in front were ablaze! Henry rushed outside. I tried to call the fire station but the lines were down. That’s when I heard Henry calling me to come help. I gathered up as many blankets as I could carry and rushed to join him. Thank goodness the Gordons were already here. I don’t know what we would have done without their help.” Breathless, Hannah took a sip of tea to quiet herself, fearing she had said too much.
“Well that was quite an adventure, and all during your first few days here, at that! I’m relieved of course, that no one was hurt and that the house was not damaged. I should thank you Hannah.”
“You’re most welcome, of course,” Hannah replied, “I only did what anyone would do.”
Helen chuckled, “Oh Hannah, such a dear you are. You think I’m talking about the fire don’t you?”
Hannah returned a puzzled glance at Helen as her face and neck flushed red.
Helen yawned, quite pleased with herself as she stood up, “Well, I think I’m going to retire for a short nap. I do believe the early morning trip has gotten the better of me. You don’t mind, do you?”
“No, of course not. Is there anything I can get you?”
“No dear. I’ll see myself to the guest room. We’ll talk later. We have some catching up to do, don’t you think?” Helen said, with a wink as she left the kitchen.
Hannah took another sip of tea as she replayed their conversation in her head. “Did I say too much? Why did I keep going on and on? What is wrong with me?! What did Helen mean? Not talking about the fire? More to talk about?” She threw herself into chores, dreading the afternoon. Henry’s return home could not come soon enough!
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Part 24 in a series originally inspired by Jane Dougherty’s Microfiction Challenge. Read other chapters HERE.
About the challenge: Each Tuesday I will provide a prompt photo, and your mission is to tell a story based on that prompt in 140 characters or less.
If you accept the challenge, be sure to let me know in the comments with a link to your tale. A final note: if you need help tracking the number of characters in your story, there is a nifty online tool that will count for you at charactercountonline.com.
I will do a roundup each Tuesday, along with providing us a new prompt. Have Fun!
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Here is the roundup based on last week’s photo from pixabay.com:
From LadyLee Manila a poetic tale about life:
a bridge of time so to speak
challenges we try to manage
from the bridge we see the world
seen sunrises and sunsets
days and nights no regrets
(138 Characters)
Michael of morpethroad, a bit of mischief…
They met a man upon the bridge on their way to market.
The dog growled, the girls screamed.
The man giggled. Then they threw him in the drink.
(140 Characters)
Kathryn of anotherfoodieblogger gave us a solemn tale that I’m sure many can relate to…
The family stopped at the top of the bridge, admiring the golden sunset of his favorite lake.
“Is it time?”
“It is time. Scatter the ashes.”
From Willow a triumphant tale of victory…
We’d watch the sunset from the bridge, celebrating that we have survived another week. All of us, even the dog had beaten the big C!
(136 Characters)
From Sonali at howling with the wolf, a reminder that none of us a alone…
Nobody knew about the inspiration – his three friend and dog infallible support team.
The painting, however, sold for 4 million.
(127 Characters)
Newcomer, Mick at MicksBlog, really got into the challenge with not one but three poetic tweets…
Silhouettes, eclipsing light.
Moon darkening the sun.
Partners traversing wooden bridge
Can they see silhouettes.
Yes, shouting back at me.
(138 Characters)
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The joy of silhouettes,
Setting sun many thanks.
Your plight is nearly done.
Moon to has power to create
Much silhouetting fun.
(123 Characters)
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Tanka
Silhouettes
black silhouettes
a humped wooden bridge as well
a dog with master
three people suddenly freeze
silhouettes in fear of hound
(121 Characters)
Lorraine’s frilly Freudian slip made me LOL with its odd twist at the end!
“Nice Doggie,” the girls said. Little did they know that the full moon was rising and this was a were-poodle: a house-size version of a were-wolf.
(135 Characters)
Joy at PoetryJoy proves that “every picture tells a story” by presenting us with three tweets (a story and 2 poems) based on the photo:
First the story…
He saw them framed by sun’s dying rays, knew it might come to this. He’d already lost wife and child; now they wanted his canine friend.
(137 characters)
Poem One…
A dying sun’s rays bathes inky figures
The river ripples with golden glints
Time and tide wait for no man
His canine friend beckons
But he wants to run
(140 characters)
Poem Two…
All is solemn, still, a place
now steeped in silhouettes
Bathed in liquid gold, they wait
His dog moves forward eagerly
But he pauses, hesitates
(140 characters)
Our new friend Gayl Wright, who heard about the challenge from Joy, joined us this week with a mystery…
An evening walk
A gorgeous sunset
Blinded by the fiery ball
They were mesmerized
In that very instant she vanished
Where did she go?
Would she ever return?
(149 Characters)
Louise at The Storyteller’s Abode zoomed in on the person in the boat hidden under the bridge for her tale. Good eye Louise!
“None of them knew I was there, under the bridge, but I heard everything.”
“And…?”
“Yes. I’ll testify. He did it. He killed them all.”
(134 Characters)
From Pat at blackcatalley, we get a glimpse at the beyond through the eyes of a couple of lost “tourists”…
“The Golden Gate’s view is disappointing,” she said.
The man replied, “This is Rainbow Bridge.”
“We’re …?”
“Yup.” And his dog happily barked.
(140 Characters)
Irena from booksandhottea shares a common story that anyone with a beautiful, big dog can relate to…(me included)
Three smiling faces welcomed Tom. He felt lucky to have such good friends, unaware it was his dog Barkley they were really happy to see.
(138 Characters)
…and finally my tale…
Agent Smith knew the Association would eventually find him.
“Go home to your families while you can,” he sighed, “nothing can save us now.”
(139 Characters)
I loved the diversity of this round up of tales and your eagle eye attention to the details of the photograph. As Joy mentioned on her blog, “every picture tells a story”…quite a few stories in fact.
Of course I am delighted to welcome new members to our creative flock of tweeters! I hope you’ll come back and take a stab at the photo below. If I missed your twittering tale, please let me know so I can be sure to add you to the roundup and post a link to your blog.
The prompt photo below is from pexels.com. So…what’s going on in this photo? Tell us all the juicy details…in 140 characters or less, of course! 😉
Have a great week. See you back on Tuesday! 🙂
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Acting paranoid he whispered, “No one believes me. But I swear I saw ’em, plain as day!”
“Just start from the beginning,” she assured him.
(138 characters)
kat ~ 17 January 2017
why do we murmur
when dawn comes
cold and dark beneath
clouds thick with rain?
behold how beautifully
the wet earth shines
gently greening
~ kat – 16 January 2017
(Magnetic Poetry – Nature Kit)
like mercury colliding... 