55 - Roadside Garden

He grew his garden by the road.
He ignored what he'd been told
of violations to health code.

He gave his plants loving care,
watered and weeded them with flair
and watched them grow in dirty air.

When harvest time did come around
he was saddened by what he found:
veggies flavored by polluted ground.

About Friday Flash 55: The challenge is to write a complete story in fifty-five words. If you've written a 55-flash, go let The G-Man know!

L' inconnu

We wander into the unknown
where paths are fresh
with fanciful discoveries,
sparkling objects of desire,
and heavy,
worrisome
things.

Hurry past.

Hold your breath.
Don't look back.
Savor each moment
of possibility,
and danger.

Amazing things can happen here.
Are you paying attention?

There is no way back.
Don't bother looking.
Around each turn is a new trail,
another invitation
to explore new worlds
and find out
who we are.

This is a Sunday Scribblings post.

55 - Danger Train

They told him not to go.

He didn't know the destination
or when he would get there.

Nothing was known of the conductor
or his companions.

Anything could happen!
You're really going to do it?

Of course he was going.

What point was there to living
if one didn't take a chance
now and then?

About Friday Flash 55: The challenge is to write a complete story in fifty-five words. If you've written a 55-flash, go let The G-Man know!

Blue Shell

Half-hidden in wet sand,
different from the rest.
Blue, the color of sincerity.
I dug it out and slipped it in my pocket.

Big rambling house among the dunes;
our playhouse on an April weekend.
We wore sweaters on the beach
and never saw the sun.

I strolled on chilly sand under leaden skies
and sipped Bailey's in an upstairs room,
scanning the horizon
through a broken telescope.

In the drizzly afternoon
I watched beach movies,
sipped wine,
and amused myself with cards.

At night we grilled by tiki torches
then huddled around the television,
rent-house blankets over our shoulders,
to fend off the April chill.

More solitaire,
More wine,
More beach movies.
As rain pattered on the roof.

Although we laughed often,
I said little.
Nothing exciting happened,
but everything did.

The wealth of one found shell
now serves as a blue reminder
of a cool and peaceful interlude
under protective skies.

This is a Three Word Wednesday post.

Drought

I've come to know my desert well:
the dry rocks of absence
and the finely filtered dust
of your distraction.

The water of your words
fell on impermeable disdain,
until hardened lands softened
and the persistence of your showers
fed my parched and withered land.

But you had no wish to nurture.

Now in my barren garden,
I remember when flowers bloomed
and I drank of your desire.

A word from you would quench my thirst,
but no relief from this long drought
will come today.


This is a Sunday Scribblings post.

55 - Tantalized

With patience and a flashlight, he could see through the cracks around the door, but couldn't make out what was inside.

Stored treasures from days gone by?

Molding evidence of some gruesome crime?

It was probably just dusty garden tools, but he had finally found the key and would now know once and for all!

About Friday Flash 55: The challenge is to write a complete story in fifty-five words. If you've written a 55-flash, go let The G-Man know!

Poker Face

Would your heart beat faster
if I dropped my poker face?
I see no substance in your smile,
just pressure to conform.

Trust in fairy tales,
believe the hype.
What charming games we play
when neither knows the rules!

If I laid my cards upon the table,
perhaps you'd be surprised.
I don't believe your future,
and the past isn't what you think.

Here in August's dog days,
steaming under summer's sun,
let's admit this game is over:
We each hold a losing hand.

This is a Three Word Wednesday post.

Talisman

The clutter of my memories
fills this room:
a shell, a stone, a button,
a tattered postcard.

None remind me of you.

As hours wind down
and time grows long,
I am troubled by this lack.

I long to hold some random thing,
pin a memento to my wall.
I need a reminder that makes me smile,
when the uncertainty of your affection
sends doubt into my heart.

But I walked away with empty pockets
and empty hands.

Without a magic object to sustain me,
I feel you drift away
and I pine for a lucky talisman
to keep me safe from harm.

This is a Sunday Scribblings post.

55 - Piñata

It seemed a fine occasion. Pepe and his friends were much admired.

But a few too many margaritas, and the ladies started hatching evil plans. They had big purses and those little burros were just so cute!

Before the night was over, the kidnappings had begun.

What fate would befall Pepe? Only time would tell...


About Friday Flash 55: The challenge is to write a complete story in fifty-five words. If you've written a 55-flash, go let The G-Man know!

Monster

In the raw and bloody sunrise
they will find you
in the hushed and tidy stillness
of your room.

You said do not help.
Do not ask.
None of your damn business.

Despising your own weakness
you rejected every haven,
preferring the uneasy chill
of barren lands.

Turn away
behind drawn shades.
Endure alone your crumbled soul.

When they come to say
they found you broken,
I'll weigh cold words upon my lips
and say I knew, I knew.

They'll shake their heads
and shred my heart
with questions.

I'll have no excuse
on that bleak day,
except to say that I was here
and you refused to come.


This is a Three Word Wednesday post.

Un-Belief

I sit here in a summer place
and ponder the games we play.
You, my earth-bound deity,
encourage faith in rainbows,
but my fears keep me grounded.
Experience has made me wise
in the ways of unbelief.

I never doubt each moment.
I trust your innocent sincerity,
and the lovely truth of words.
But where you see a path,
I see shimmering illusions
fed by tears and roots of lies
waiting to trip fools like me.

Sometimes in night imaginings
I paint castles in the air.
I dream of imaginary places
and wish that they were real.
But in morning's hard-edged dawn
the wisdom of experience whispers.
I must tether myself safely to this earth.

This is a Sunday Scribblings post.

55 - Cure for Bad Days

Best friend is leaving. Friend's husband is in ER. A key work contact has quit with no notice and my best employee is in tears.

How bad is my day? Even my bubble wrap won't pop!

Luckily there is a cure for bad days.

Flour, sugar, cocoa powder...

Oh, yes. Cookies can fix it all.

About Friday Flash 55: The challenge is to write a complete story in fifty-five words. If you've written a 55-flash, go let The G-Man know!

Train Wreck

We knew it had to happen.
You reap the fruits of what you sow.
Our only question was
how big would your crash be?

You made yourself a spectacle.

We saw the downhill path,
but only I felt sympathy.
I understand trajectories.
I have followed your track before.

Don't think I pity you.

Should I speak, or stay silent?
Touch your hand or pull away?
My kindness made you angry.
Words faltered on my lips.

These are my sins of omission.

Everything then made you angry.
Maybe it still does.
Why do you resent the world?
Has this crack-up eased your pain?

Who bandages your wounds?

Maybe you're still full of holes,
hot emotions that will not cool.
You cannot speak your needs
except in mad and futile gesture.

You push helping hands away.

And now the wreckage lies here
in one mad desperate heap.
The fires burn for all to see.
Is this enough to make you stop?

How far is far enough?

I wanted so much to warn you,
and tell you all I knew.
It would have made no difference.
You hated that I cared.

You didn't want the truth.

Please come back from the edge,
speak to those who do not judge.
Let patient persons love you.
Let someone give a damn.

Like me. Like you.

Instead of more destruction,
arise from these dark ruins.
And in tomorrow’s sunrise,
let us hear your Phoenix song.

This was written for Three Word Wednesday.