Subzero, Fahrenheit -451outside my window, but that’s really just me whining; we’ve been promised a high of 0 degrees F today, but the sun is shining hard through my south-facing windows to make my black cat’s fur hot. Continue reading
Stories
Mother Loaf
Well, at least he’s happy.
I wasn’t expecting a visit from my teenaged, road-working son, but here he is, leaning into a half-eaten, torn-into loaf of walnut-wheat bread, butter disappearing quickly. His bent arms are long enough to eclipse the entire side of my kitchen table, effectively blocking me out. Yes, of course I fed my kid. You always feed your kid. They never completely grow up, not in your eyes. Continue reading
January 23-25: Unbelievable, Journal
January 25: Journal
Gratitude
J-ust flipping through the journal stacks
O-prah, Ladies’ Home, and Country Shacks
U-p and comers follow their lead
R-ead with interest to determine their need
N-ow I, unfunded, can afford to say “no”
A-nd walk away from the circus show
L-imited funds have their happy use
© Liz Husebye Hartmann (2022)
January 24: Unbelievable
What’s in a Name?
“But I swear to you, it’s all true!”
“Yeah, I think you spend too much time on your own, Megan,” Flora laughed. She frowned at Megan, at the hair that hadn’t seen a stylist for an entire summer, the crow’s feet limned in white from squinting into the sun, and the strong, tanned legs with skin just a bit too dry. At least she was still shaving her legs, but the cuts-offs were torn and baggy, and there was a stain on the oversized t-shirt.
Flora continued, “So where is this little forest man you’ve been telling me about?” Continue reading
Who’s Being Tamed?
(Looking & Mission, Jan 20-21)
Hunched just behind the shrub-encircled tree, he squeezes his eyes shut. He’s grown to love the sunny-morning scent that precedes the screech and bang of the screen door, the soft pad of bare feet on cold, painted cement, followed by the softer hush of those feet crossing the grass. The wooden chair groans as she lowers herself onto its cool slant and tucks her legs out of the dew. Continue reading
Gimme Shelter
“Too much noise going on out there, and nothing more I can do about it, than what I’m already doing.” She clicked off the TV and tossed the remote on the scarred, stained coffee table. “I wish I had a remote to use on myself and my busy thoughts!” Continue reading
Just-Jot-It-January (Jan 13-14)
So, this month I’m doing a challenge to write a micro a day, for Just-Jot-It-January. Thanks to Linda G. Hill, bloggers in the “Play Group” have proposed a one-word prompt for each day. We share our responses back to Linda’s page, and are able to read what others come up with. I’ll post my responses every few days in bundles, to respect your in-boxes. But if a prompt tickles your imagination, please click its connecting link to read more!
Jan 14: Freckled
Maybe Later
Snowfall, dense and quick
Buries itself in the thick, pale epidermis covering lawn,
Mounding ‘round walkways from yester-days’ storms.
Penetrating to dermis, yet temps too cold for subcutaneous damage. Continue reading
Solitude’s End
He’d first caught the scent’s fragrant tang on an early morning breeze, on the first days after the snows had well and truly departed, and Summer lay tripping and sliding just beyond his range of perception. Continue reading
Valley of the Trolls 