In response to 1000 Words: Twelve They had just passed the ancient town carved into the mountainside when the sun finally disappeared. Darkness made it difficult to navigate the rocky terrain, and they had only a vague idea where they were going. The valley seemed endless, and the mile-high slopes on either side seemed threatening; […]
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Standing by a moss-covered cave, Silljar said, “Open the doors!” This order spread fear into the hardened panzers, who stared at her in disbelief for a second, before they slowly, very slowly walked to the steel doors. Strong hands removed a rusty steel door bar and the sturdy doors were opened. They could feel it, […]
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A warm summer breeze blew along Mthatha’s main road, carrying dust from the bone-dry verges in a whirl of hot air. The afternoon sun beat down on the commuters, shop workers and vagrants moving about the pavements – some stopping for a chat with road-side pallet stall vendors; some just waiting patiently to hail the […]
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There is a lapping of water inside my head – hollow and wet. I can feel the water trickle away from the hull of my mind with each tiny wave. Chaotic trails of water rippling down the wooden sides, eager to rejoin their brethren in the quiet little river of my thoughts. “These are my […]
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Writing Prompt Two: So this is what it means to drown. Before our adventure begins, the beginning must be told. When I met him I was quiet, internal, mindfully collected in a strong, elegant sort of way. I had dedicated so much of my efforts to becoming a pillar of womanly independence that I had […]
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Writing Prompt One: When I dreamed of the desert I never imagined it with snow. Yet here we are; hot sand beneath our feet and crystal flakes falling from they sky… I’m really starting to wonder if Colorado is such a very real place, after all. Sand dunes fill the horizon to the north of […]
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“Bao, wake up. Don’t fuss. Hurry. We must go!” The muffled restraint of my mother’s voice woke me from a dream. A dream I had many times pondered over in the morning after. A dream of flight, of rush. A dream just like this moment. Through foggy eyes I watched her dress my sisters without […]
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Each dip of the paddle into the crystalline waters of this arctic river sends droplets of melting ice to my cheeks, the frost of frozen air crowding on my eye lashes. My feet rest against this bottom of the humble vessel of wood and metal, the grains within the boards highlighted with white, icy trails. […]
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Her eyes bounce along the lines of the menu. It’s edges shielding her face, but for those magnificent brown eyes, soft, encompassing eye brows, and gently wrinkled forehead. She seems perplexed by something she’s reading. My own eyes scan the menu, searching for an answer to the question which lingers on that tanned forehead. […]
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When you get to her age you discover life becomes more about the routine of birth and death. And while she’s experienced the first she often sits alone in the dark of her living room waiting to experience the last. A ringing telephone becomes the pistol in a game of Russian roulette; whether her […]
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