99 word prompt : Stone Butterfly.
January 7, 2021 prompt: In 99 words (no more, no less), write a story using the contrasting prompts butterfly and stone. It doesn’t have to be a western ranch chore; it can be any routine task. Go where the prompt leads!
If you want to participate, here’s the link: CARROT RANCH
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“I remember the day my father gave this to me,“ Reyna said, lifting her necklace toward the camera. “I was 17 and so embarrassed.”
“You’re 20, and famous,” The talk show hostess said, “Why wear that thing?”
“I’d yelled at him, this is ugly! I hate it,” Reyna said. “I thought he’d divorced my mom, then lost his job. He’d saved the money for it by sleeping without heat in his efficiency apartment.”
“Why does that matter?”
“He had Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. Mom told him she wasn’t his nurse and threw him out. Last night, he died in my arms.”
Such memories can make any necklace worth wearing.
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I had a small necklace given to me by my husband who died. He know I didn’t like wearing necklaces. I don’t remember how he put it — just that he had to get it for me. I wore it for years after he died.
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Fame doesn’t save us from what we lose. An interesting story that explores the complexities of this person’s relationship with her parents, blame, and guilt. In the end, she recognizes the beauty in her father. Poignant.
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Thanks. 🙂 I appreciate the critique.
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I got this from Charli Mills Amazon book page… “In 2014 she founded an imaginary place called Carrot Ranch where real literary artists could gather.”
Literary artist doesn’t describe me. Not even close. Engineer brain is closer. Like I noticed the link to Carrot Rach is broken here. That’s what I do. Find things that need fixing.
https://carrotranch.com/2021/01/07/january-7-flash-fiction-challenge-2/
There you go. All yours to input and get things back to normal. Whatever normal is. But you know, there are a billion versions of normal. one two three four (99)
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Thank you for letting me know the link was broken. I fix that right now.
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Just fixed it.
Thanks again.
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Hey! 99 words up there!
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Ah, the things one learns when trying to stay within a word count.
(1) I use the word count on my word processor before publishing.
(2) When doing the word count, if I write something like, “Her face…that face,” it would turn “face…that ” into one word. That’s why I have to put in a space “face… that.”
I mention it because it was only by accident that I discovered it. 🙂
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The kernel of the truth of your memory plays well with your piece.
(Should the day may, be the day my?)
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Thank you VERY much. I always appreciate assistance with finding words that aren’t quite right. 🙂
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Sad tale of misunderstanding 💜
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There is far too much misunderstanding in the world. It is so refreshing when understanding can be achieved in both people’s lifetime.
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That happens to often , people should be brave enough to say what we mean when we should and not bottle it up 💜
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First impressions don’t always tell the truth. Poignant story. I feel both pain and love.
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Thanks. 🙂
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I’m glad she came to know the truth and was with him when he died. I’ll remember this story next time I see someone wearing “ugly” jewelry.
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Thanks. 🙂
It may be all they have left of someone they loved.
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Yep.
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Pingback: Butterfly and Stones « Carrot Ranch Literary Community
Packed with so much emotion. Great piece!
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Thanks.
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