~*~ “Which, of all the goodbyes in your life has been the hardest so far?” Manda, my inquisitive 12-year-old niece, has asked the impossible. Good grief. How do you tell a child, albeit an old soul, about the painful goodbye to lost youth? How do you get the young to understand that all that lies between youth and old age … More The Hard Question
“What are you thinking about?” Manda plops down beside me on the window bench and follows my gaze to the paddock. The sun is setting. It’s a perfect time for reflection. “You seem so faraway.” “I am, sweetie,” I sigh. “I am.” “Why?” “Oh, I’m thinking about your great grandmother. If she were still alive she’d … More Fanny
It’s 4 o’clock of an early spring afternoon and the mood in the kitchen is blue. As Manda and I both stare out the window to the paddock and survey the damage wrought by a spring ice storm we are rendered numb; speechless. Mother Nature was reckless with her pruning shears. By the light of a … More In the Pink
#FWF Memory Prompt: Write about your earliest memory. Good, bad, happy or sad. Before you begin, take time to dwell in that memory. Absorb everything you can about it. What you see, what you smell, what you hear and mostly, how you feel. Let it resonate. Marinate your mind in that one moment. Then begin. … More Alfie
Daily Prompt: Leap ~*~ “Leap’s a funny word, isn’t it, Aunt Sal?” “Why do you say that?” I ask while brushing the mud off my boots before entering the house. We’ve been out at the barn feeding the horses. Such a mucky day as the seasons transition. “Well,” Manda pulls off her boots and shoves … More Tea Time
Daily Prompt: The Road Less Traveled ~*~ I shudder to think about that alternate road while Manda, my 12-year-old inquisitor, continues to draw in her journal awaiting an answer. Indeed, where would my life have taken me had I stayed with her uncle Ted? We were ships that passed in the night, by the end, caught in each others’ wake … More Perish the Thought
Daily Prompt: Never Again Have you ever gone to a new place or tried a new experience and thought to yourself, “I’m never doing that again!” Tell us about it. ~*~ “So, what was it like, Aunt Sal?” Manda begs to know what it was like to dine in the dark. “I don’t know.” “What … More Never
Daily Prompt: Life After Blogs “Honey, I remember life before computers, so imagining my life without one isn’t much of a stretch,” I wink at my 12-year-old niece, Manda, who simply stares at me in disbelief. Of course, her generation has practically been raised by computer, so imagining a world without one would be a … More Another Writer
Daily Prompt: If I Could Turn Back Time ~*~ “I have no regrets, sweetie.” “Yeah, but if you were given a chance to live another part of your life again … you know, a do over, would you?” Twelve-year-old Manda’s digging for a story. “Hmmm … let me think about that.” I pour another cup … More Do Over
Daily Prompt: Childhood Revisited What is your earliest memory? Describe it in detail, and tell us why you think that experience was the one to stick with you. ~*~ “Aunt Sally, what’s your earliest childhood memory?” asked Manda while thumbing through the pages of an already treasured new horse book. Christmas had been good to her. “Why do … More Blank
Shedding Light on the Family Tree 