My grandmother’s lamp Shines bright in our front window Shade of green and red My brother Jim’s lamp Stands between two wingback chairs Pink and green stained glass My brother John’s books Fill a Mission oak stacked case Bound in red and gold A china cabinet From my best friend Patricia Filled with memories A…
Category: Timed Writing
Flash Prompt: Haiku on Night and Sweet Sleep
Silence surrounds me Night’s chill permeates the air A far-off dog barks My body craves warmth Soft bed and heavy blankets Dreams of summer days Sweet sleep calls to me Restorative night awaits Sunrise pink with hope
Flash Essay: Chest Cold, Students and the Oscars
I have a grand chest cold, one that causes me to seize up when I cough and rattle when I breathe. No fever, no aches and pains, just a cough that makes people instinctively step back, as if to say, “Please don’t give me whatever it is you’ve got.” Besides that, I saw students from…
Flash Essay: What I’ve Learned from Research about Huck Finn
I am helping one of my students with a term paper on Huck Finn and as part of the process, we’ve researched what inspired Mark Twain to write the books he did. Here is some of what I’ve learned: Mark Twain (aka Samuel Clemens) started Huck Finn in order to tell the humorous anecdotes he’d…
Flash Memoir: Where the Love Was
I didn’t want to go to kindergarten when it was time for me to go. All my friends were going to Humpty Dumpty Play School, but I hated it. I much preferred to stay at home and play by myself or with baby Sam in our room, near Mama. I played school on my own,…
Memoir Prompt: Memories of My Dad
Yesterday was my father’s birthday. Here is a piece I wrote about him a while back, but still rings true for me. A window into my world with him: “Have I told you today how much I love you?” This was a question my father asked me every day I was growing up. “I love…
Prompt: Early Saturday Morning After All Night with the TV On
My husband is still sleeping. He fell asleep watching television; I did, too, but I got up and headed to bed. He woke for a moment and said, “I’ll be there in a minute.” I knew I’d wake up at 3 am and find the television still on along with all the lights and hear…
Prompt: The Word “Time”
Time is an issue for me. It has been an issue for a long while. Not when I was a kid. Then time stretched out like a relaxed cat, stretching long, and I relaxed with it. Playing outside up in trees and pretending each limb was a room in my imaginary house, and me climbing…
Prompt: Marcia Ball and the Texas Blues
We saw Marcia Ball and her band the other night here in Texas at a local club called Loose Wheels. They are a long-term Austin band and they play a combination of Texas blues and Louisiana rock. You could imagine yourself sitting in a New Orleans bar listening to her pound away on her piano…
Prompt: Haiku: Cold Cross-Town Trip at 2 am
Entering the cold A frigid winter’s evening Hides inside the car Cross town trip drags by Car heater spews icy air Legs quiver and quake Front door lock resists Wind so cold it slides through clothes Home awaits with warmth Gas stoves radiate Shivers are replaced with heat A happy relief A night filled with…
20 Minutes a Day 