Written for Violetโs Literary Quote Challenge
where she asks us to include the following line
into our writing: โLife without sinning was like
food without salt; pure but tasteless.โ Hereโs my
response to Violetโs Literary Quote Challenge.
Tag: Discontent
In Denial
Sammi at Weekend Writing Prompt has challenged us to write
creatively in exactly 60 words, incorporating the word โvapidโ.
Using a few other prompt words, here is my 60-word response
in the form of a Dectina Refrain and a Haiku Duet.

Old
man with
vapid thoughts
and empty eyes
lives in denial;
puppeteers pulling strings
feeding hypnotic untruths
into flaccid, desolate brain
on the outskirts of insanity.
Old man with vapid thoughts and empty eyes
Gray, grayer smoke
above the clouds in the sky
no light shining brightly
Brown dying trees
dried leaves lay at the roots
no buds tacitly emerging
NARยฉ2024
60 words
This is โFool On The Hillโ by the Beatles
Dectina Refrain:
This refrain is written as follows:
1st line โ 1 syllable, 2nd line โ 2 syllables
3rd line โ 3 syllables, and so on for 9 lines;
the 10th line is comprised of the first four lines
as one stand-alone line.
This portfolio (including text, graphics and videos) is copyright for The Sicilian Storyteller, The Elephantโs Trunk and The Rhythm Section and is not for use by anyone without permission. NAR ยฉ 2017-present.