My Short Short for the Day

In a world that had once thrived with human life, now there is no one.  No sign of people and their ravages upon the land.  There is only nature.  Peaceful, serene, pleasant nature.  Animals free to roam the wild in safety.  Plants and trees free from trampling and chopping.  Oceans free from pollution and trash.  The world is at peace.  Calm tranquility blankets the Earth as nature reclaims what was rightfully hers.

“Edgar, what are you talking about?”  Alice furrowed her brow at her little brother.

“I’m making a documentary about what it’d be like without humans.”  Edgar stated.

“You know, if there were no humans, then you wouldn’t be here either.”  Alice huffed putting her hands on her hips and shaking her head.

“Yeah, well, maybe I’d revert to animal form or something.”  Edgar replied.

Alice stared at him with a look of disgust.  “You’re so weird.”

“Yup.”  Edgar smiled then turned back to his camera.  “The deer nibbled the sweet green grass that had been forbidden them for so many years.”

Alice rolled her eyes and stomped off.

My Short Short for the Day

The long, dirt driveway leads up to the old barn.  The barn doors are always left open and the scent of fresh hay and horse manure waft out.  Off to the left is an old, red tractor for hauling hay and beyond that is the field.  The horses wander lazily around the grassy field which is surrounded by a fence.  The fence is made of three rows of barbed wire between wooden posts.  The woods line the length of one side, while our home and yard are at the bottom end of the field and the road lines the other side.  There is a tiny stream that runs through the bottom part of the field and a small frog pond over by the woods side.

The farm house is off to the right of the barn.  It is painted white with a large front porch facing the roadway.  Inside are narrow little staircases leading up from several different points in the house to the second floor.  The front room is a cozy family room with windows making up the wall that looks out onto the porch.  The kitchen is big and bright, roomy enough for the cook to walk around with a whole table full of folks waiting at the dinner table to be fed.  There are numerous small bedrooms to accommodate the large family and several little bathrooms to prevent long waits. 

That was then. 

Now there are no horses, no smell of fresh hay, no fences.  The farm house remains but it’s no longer a working farm.  The field has been divided into lots for single family homes.  The tiny river has dried up and the pond has been filled in.  Even the memory of those days has become dusty with time.

My Short Short for the Day

It was a day like any other day.  Nothing in particular stood out as Wilbur scuffed along the dirt path.  The sun was shining…like always.  The air was stale…like always.  The heat was uncomfortable…like always.  The lecture was boring…like always.  Wilbur sighed heavily and shifted from one foot to the other to keep his legs from going numb.  When would this end?  With another sigh, Wilbur looked around trying to find anything interesting to distract him.  Everything looked brown and lifeless…like always.  Then something caught his eye.  

It was a flash of something.  He scanned the ground trying to catch another glimpse when the flash blinded him for a moment.  Without thinking he moved towards the shining object.  What was it?  The lecturer carried on taking no heed of the student wandering away.  Wilbur walked briskly towards the flash, never taking his eyes off it.  As he got closer he realized the flash was coming from the stones laid out in some kind of pattern on a flat, gray rock.  He squinted to make out the pattern.  He leaned down closer to get a better look.  The flash came again and he felt a sudden jerk.  He couldn’t move.  He couldn’t see.  He couldn’t breathe.  He couldn’t think.

“And here we have the lizard stone.  Long ago, people believed this stone possessed the power to capture souls.  Whatever you do, don’t look directly into its eyes.”  The lecturer spoke in monotone.  “And here we have the prickly pear cactus…”

My Short Short for the Day

“It’s so cold Mom!”  Herman whined.

“I know dear, but you’ll get used to it.”  Mom said gently.

“But Mom!  I don’t want to get used to it.  I want to be warm.”  Herman drooped.  “Why can’t it be sunny all the time?”

“Because dear, we live in Maine.”  Mom replied patiently.  “We live where in a place where there are seasons.  And that means changes in the weather.”

“But why?”  Herman pouted.

“Because our ancestors decided to take root here.”  Mom answered shaking the snow off her branches.

“I wish I was a palm tree.”  Herman grumbled flapping his branches.

“But then look at all the beauty you would miss out on.”  Mom said pointing.

Herman paused his grumbling for a moment to look out at the scene around him.  He saw the snow dusted ground.  The glistening ice crystals hanging from the rooftop.  He smelled the crisp, chill of the air.  He listened to the peaceful, quiet of the day.  Everything was calm, pleasant and serene.  It was beautiful here he thought to himself.

Mom smiled and went back to shaking her branches.

My Short Short for the Day

It was a cold and dreary day as Missy trudged along the road.  School was out early but she had nowhere to go.  No place fun at least.  It had been cold for days and all the water froze over but it hadn’t snowed yet.  Only 3 more days until Christmas and no snow.  Missy hated green winters.  That meant no sledding, no snowmen, no snowball fights, no snow forts and no snow days from school.  She looked up into the gray sky.  I know how you feel she muttered. 

It got dark early now, so her mom had told her to head home right after school.  No dilly dallying.  Whatever that was.  She took the long way home today since she had extra time.  She scuffed her boots along the tar until she came to a patch of ice.  I wonder if it’s strong enough for me to skate across.  She lightly touched the edge and it held.  She put some weight onto that foot and it still held up.  She leaned in and CRACK!  She yanked her foot back before it slipped into the water.   Whew!  Close call.  Maybe it’s thicker towards the middle. 

She hesitated for a moment, then stepped as far out onto the ice as she could reach.  She leaned to put more weight on it and the ice felt solid.  She leaned a little more but then her foot slid away from her.  She jerked to pull it back but lost her balance and SMASH!  Landed on her butt and broke through the ice.  Not only did her feet get wet but so did her pants, legs and hands.

After a few seconds, the shock wore off and she climbed out of the puddle.  There was no hiding it, she was soaked and muddy.  And now, with the chill in the air, she was getting cold, too.  Stupid ice.  She muttered as she trudged along the road.

My Short Short for the Day

The gems sparkled in the sunlight.  Randy stretched out his hand to touch it.  So shiny!  He couldn’t resist. 

“Wait!  No Randy!”  Ally shouted.  “No touch!”

Randy pulled his hand back and pouted.  “Yes touch.”  He said sticking his lip out.

“No Randy.  You can’t touch that.”  Ally said squatting down to his level.  “It’ll hurt you.”

“Hrmph.”  Randy crossed his arms and turned away.

“Come on Randy.”  Ally put her hand on his shoulder and gently pushed.  “It’s time to go home.”

“Don’t want to.”  Randy pulled away.

“Please Randy.  Mom’s waiting.”  Ally pleaded.  “It’ll be dark soon.  We don’t want to be out.”

“Ok.”  Randy’s shoulders slumped in defeat.

Ally smiled and took his hand.  She started to move forward when Randy jerked her hand.  “Randy?!”

Ally stumbled and fell toward the stone.  “No!”  Randy yelled trying to pull her back but she was too heavy so he just held on tight to her hand.

Ally put her hand up to protect her face but there was not impact.  Ally opened her eyes and Thud!  “Oomph!”  The wind was knocked out of her for a moment. 

“Ally, where are we?”  Randy’s voice sounded so small.

Ally looked over at him sprawled out next to her, still holding tight to her hand.  His eyes were so big as he stared past her.  Ally followed his gaze and blinked hard.  “I…I don’t know Randy.”

My Short Short for the Day

It had only been moments since the boat capsized but all evidence had been sucked under the white capped waves already.  There was nothing left, nothing except Ralph.  He bobbed in the water, thankful for the life vest.  The only thing keeping him from being sucked under with all the rest of the debris.  What would he do?  How would he survive?  He had no idea which direction to go.  If only he had a compass.  But then again, he had never needed a compass.  True sailors only needed the sun and stars to guide them.  If only he could see some bit of land somewhere, though.  To give him a focus point.  To give him hope.  The icy cold of the ocean chilled him.  Starting to shiver he knew he had to do something.  The sun was heading down and who knows what would be out in the dark.  He could barely see below the surface now, and with the darkness in the air and below, it was too frightening to think about.  His heart began to race.  He had to swim.  But which way?  Which way was to safety? 

“Ralph, come on.  Mom said we’re leaving now.”

You just need to stay calm and think.  I’ve got it.  The sun sets in the west, all good sailors knew that.  Ralph turned his face up to the sun.  Ah, yes, I must go that way.  Triumphantly Ralph began to swim doggy paddling as fast as he could.  Look!  There’s land.  After swimming for hours, he reached the shore.  He flopped onto the sand, smiling in relief.  He had saved himself from the terrors of the ocean.  His story would go down in history as the greatest…

“Ralph.  Move it!”

…the greatest sailor…

“Ralph!”

…of all time!