🐘 Nancy is a storyteller, music blogger, humorist, poet, curveballer, noir dreamer 🐘
Written for Sadje’s What Do You See
Continue reading “Deliberate”At Great Minds Think Friday Challenge,
Sarah & Rohini ask ‘What would you do
with a magical stopwatch?’ It can be
sped up, slowed down, or even paused.
One caveat … it cannot be stopped.
Written for Crimson’s Creative Challenge.
Here’s where Crispina’s image took me.
Written for Reena’s Xploration Challenge –
to write a story, poem, etc., inspired by the
image shown below. Here is my response.
Written for Sue & Gerry’s Weekly Prompts
Colour Challenge – “silver”. Also for Fandango’s
FOWC and the prompt word “constellation”.
Here’s where the prompts took me.
Written for Sadje’s “What Do You See”.
Here’s where the prompt took me.
Written for Song Lyric Sunday –
“Pondering Existential Thoughts”.
This is my response to the challenge.
Written for RDP, where Punam asks us
to get creative with the word “time”.
Thanks, Punam! Here’s where the prompt took me.
Written for Song Lyric Sunday –
“It’s About Time”.
This is my response to the challenge.
Written for RDP, where Martha asks us
to get creative with the word ‘evanescent’.
Thanks, Martha! Here’s my take.
Written for RDP, where sgeoil asks us
to get creative with the word ‘dwindle’.
Thanks Heather! Here’s my take.
Written for MLMM Monday Wordle #452.
Our prompt words are: forget, reminder,
busy, time, passing, late, missed, find, out,
store, revolve, and schedule. Thanks, Di!
Here’s where the prompt words took me.
Written for Thursday Inspiration #302 –
“Right Place, Wrong Time”.
Here’s my inspirational response.
Today at RDP, we are asked to share a
story, poem, photo, painting, essay, etc.,
centered on the words ‘stand in’. Here’s my take.
Written for RDP Friday: PIANO!
This is my story.
This week at Glyn Wilton’s Mixed Music Bag,
he’s asking us to write about a song in which
the title or a line mentions the current month.
Here’s my September artist and his song.
Happy 14th Poet Pub Anniversary!
Written for dVerse Poets Quadrille
Monday – #227 where our inspiration
word is “turn”. Here is my quadrille.
Written for Only Murders In My Mind
Weekly Writing Prompt #66. This week’s
inspiration is the photo seen below.
This is where the image took me.
Written for Shweta’s Saturday Six Word
Story Prompt #139 – ‘wish’. This is my flash.
Written for Sadje’s What Do You See #291
and Sue & Gerry’s Weekly Prompts –
The One Day Prompt (13) This is my response.
Written for dVerse Poets – Fancy
Meeting You At The Pub Today and
Saturday. We are asked to share any
poem of our choosing. I am sharing
a haibun I wrote almost one year ago.
Since then, our feelings remain unchanged,
except now laughter comes a bit more easily.
Written for dVerse Poetics where the theme is
“Despite and Still”. My inspiration is the poem seen below
written by John N. Morris. Here is my haibun.
Written for Ovi Poetry Challenge #75.
Our inspiration word is “persevere” and this is my ovi.
Written for dVerse Quadrille Monday #206.
Our prompt word is ‘bend; here is my poem.
I long to be myself again,
before the pain began.
Now wistfully staring at
old photos
of a younger me,
lithe with slender arms
and shapely legs
which once did bend
with graceful ease.
Dancing dreams fill my nights;
I want to sleep forever.
NAR©2024
This is “Pretty Ballerina” by The Left Banke
All text, graphics and videos are copyright for The Sicilian Storyteller, The Elephant’s Trunk and The Rhythm Section and are not to be used without permission. NAR©2017-present.
Ronovan Writes has offered up Ovi Poetry Challenge #52
where we are asked to write an ovi using the word
“tomorrow” as inspiration. Here is my ovi.
Songs say time keeps on slipping
Like brooks o’er shiny stones tripping
And kids their jumps ropes skipping
It just keeps moving on
It’s safe to say time flies
Like an eagle into the skies
So smoothly, he barely tries
I’d like to touch the clouds
No time to do that now
Worry lines crease the brow
Don’t fret about when and how
Nothing good will come from that
No sticking your head in the sand
It’s time to march with the band
And accept a helping hand
It will all get done
Why put it off till tomorrow
When time you cannot borrow
It flies faster than an arrow
Like quicksilver in your fingers
Don’t say there is no time
To make another rhyme
Or an old oak tree to climb
You have all the time there is
NAR©2024
This is “Fly Like An Eagle” by Steve Miller Band
All text, graphics and videos are copyright for The Sicilian Storyteller, The Elephant’s Trunk and The Rhythm Section and are not to be used without permission. NAR©2017-present.
“Danielle wants to learn how to drive, Bob”
“Don’t look at me, Helen. Last year’s lessons with Vanessa nearly put me over the edge.”
“Well, I can’t do it! Ever since Marcia Morelli snatched that promotion for Real Estate Agent of the Year away from me, I’m spending all my time at work playing catch up.”
“That’s not my problem, Helen. Anyway, I signed on to coach Brandon’s baseball team this season, remember?”
“Oh, cry me a river, Bob! You’re the one who took an early retirement; your schedule is much more flexible than mine.”
“That’s right, I retired so I could do things I enjoy like playing golf and going fishing. It’s important to stay mobile after retirement so we don’t become dust in the wind.”
“Well, if you can’t do it and I can’t do it, why don’t we get Vanessa to teach Danielle how to drive?”
“Are you out of your mind, woman! Vanessa’s been driving less than a year. She can’t take Danielle out driving! Can you imagine the mayhem when those two hit the streets?”
“At least I’m making suggestions, Bob. All you’re doing is justifying why you can’t do it.”
“Oh, Helen, save your breath and don’t look at me with such contempt. I’m right and you know it. I won’t idly sit by and watch both our daughters driving without an adult in the car. It’s out of the question.”
“You won’t? Oh, that’s wonderful, Bob! I knew you’d come around!”
“Now hold on there, Helen. I didn’t agree to anything.”
“Why, sure you did, Bob. You said you wouldn’t sit idly by while the girls are driving around without an adult in the car.”
“But I didn’t mean…..”
“Look at it this way, Bob. Danielle is used to being driven everywhere she goes. If you don’t teach her how to drive, you’ll just have to drive here wherever she wants to go. I’d say this is a win/win situation.”
“And how do you figure that, Helen?”
“Simple! By giving Danielle driving lessons, you’ll be doing your part to keep our insurance rates down, you’ll be able to coach Brandon’s baseball team and still have time to do the things you enjoy and you won’t turn into dust in the wind. And all it takes is just one daily one-hour driving lesson! You’re a genius, Bob!”
“I am? Yeah, I guess I am. Hey! Wait just a gosh darn minute, Helen!”
NAR©2024
This is Kansas with “Dust In The Wind”
This portfolio (including text, graphics and videos) is copyright for The Sicilian Storyteller, The Elephant’s Trunk and The Rhythm Section and is not for use by anyone without permission. NAR © 2017-present.
It was painfully obvious that I hadn’t practiced my piano lessons during the week.
When questioned why, I offered the same old tired excuse: “I didn’t have time”.
My teacher looked at me and said something I will never forget: “You have all there is”.
Think about it.
NAR © 2023
Word Requirement: 48
There’s a feeling you get when a relationship is about to end. It sort of sneaks up on you like ivy climbing up a tree trunk. You see it starting but it’s nothing terribly worrisome; then it slowly starts working its way up the trunk until it overtakes the tree. It’s got a strangle-hold on that poor tree, suffocating it. It doesn’t matter if it’s a mighty oak or a frail mimosa; the ivy will win out every time.
That’s the feeling I now had for Jeremy and I don’t know why. I just knew it was time to break things off. That was clear; what wasn’t clear was how I was going to tell him.
It’s not as though we started off like a couple of teenagers on a hormone rush. Ours was a gradual connection much like our disconnection. We had chemistry. We could make each other laugh. We liked the same music, the same food, the same movies. We could talk at length or enjoy a quiet, lazy Sunday afternoon. We had incredible sex and a lot of it.
Jeremy gave me a braided love knot bracelet; I accepted it because it was pretty and didn’t feel as permanent as a ring.
We talked about moving in together but it never happened. Now I’m glad we didn’t; that would have made things so much harder. It was good to come and go as we pleased; now I found we were doing that less and less. I don’t believe it was deliberate; we just started drifting apart. Everything gradually slowed down and cooled off. I realized at some point I had finally exhaled and I was no longer suffocating.
We spent a cool Spring afternoon sitting on a bench at the beach. Watching the waves rolling in and falling back, I knew the time had come. Quietly I told Jeremy what I was feeling and he slowly nodded in agreement. I think he was glad the pressure was off him. I started to remove my bracelet but Jeremy refused to take it back.
I slowly walked away and took the long route home through the park. It had begun to drizzle. I stared down at the pavement as I walked. Just then I came upon a dead bird at my feet. I stood there staring at the poor little finch; he must have fallen out of his nest. I took a few tissues from my pocket, wrapped them around the bird and carefully picked him up; he was still warm, his tiny body limp.
I carried the lifeless bird home and retrieved a small spade from my gardening tools on the back porch. It began raining a little heavier as I dug a deep hole beneath the tidy row of boxwoods; there I buried the bird. Before filling his grave with dirt, I took off Jeremy’s bracelet and placed it across the broken wings.
My face was wet; I couldn’t tell if it was the rain or my tears.
NAR © 2022
The Elephant's Trunk 