write – Personal Pondering of Mine

Prompt 16: Addict

16. Addict: Everyone’s addicted to something in some shape or form. What are things you can’t go without?

An Ode To Coffee

I had this whole plan when I read this prompt to write an ode to coffee, whom I owe every day’s success and vitality. However these fabulous time hop apps have reminded me of something I wrote last year on this day that goes a little something like this:

I’m dreaming of a tomorrow where nothing is impossible. Where the sun rises and falls and still life goes on. A tomorrow in which we realize that borders are imaginary lines and what really matters is preserving the nature and people with whom you cross paths. I’m dreaming of a tomorrow where the opportunity to inspire others comes naturally. A tomorrow full of understanding and a readjusted social norm. You may call me a dreamer and I may not be the only one, but I know I am a doer. If you can dream and you can do than surely tomorrow is made for you.

This passage has made me realize that I am addicted to dreaming of tomorrow. I’m always coming up with these grand schemes on how it will be wonderful and the difference I can make but I can never accept what I am doing today. It is something I struggle with and am working to overcome. Tomorrow is filled with possibility but today isn’t over yet. If you haven’t made an attempt to actively touch the lives around you today then you have already given up on tomorrow. I’m proud that this year I have made changes in my life to embody these ideals; serving at Trinity Cafe on a weekly basis being my favorite time of the week. My care packages for the homeless have lit up faces right before my eyes. I’m grateful to be able to help others and make a positive impact in the lives around me.

My hope is that next year I can look back on this and be happy in knowing that I have taken steps to further embody this belief. No longer just be dreaming but actively doing more every day.

8 October , 2015 by Sam Categories: writing promptTags: 16, addiction, dream, prompt, tomorrow, write Leave a comment

Prompt 15: Eavesdropper

15. Eavesdropper: Create a poem, short story, or journal entry about a conversation you’ve overheard. [because every writer is one]

Wait!

Don’t Leave. Just sit here for one more minute. Don’t walk away just yet. I have more to say. I’m not ready to let you walk away. Stay here with me. Don’t make a scene.

It’s funny the conversations people have while out to eat. When you tell someone not to make a scene, you are usually creating the scene. I felt bad for the couple at table 42, they probably chose this table for privacy; not expecting a five year old’s birthday party of 10 to show up at the large booth next to them. The mothers all drinking while the kids run wild. One child wanders over to their table and looks up at them with big blue eyes as she drops her milk next to the woman’s purse. I intervene as quickly as I can, cleaning the mess and ushering the child back to their table.

Ma’am please, try to keep an eye on your child, she is disturbing the other guests.

I point to the other table with paper towels all around the floor. She apologizes and has the child apologize to the couple. The woman looks as if she will burst into tears at any moment – how mortifying. I hear the mothers of the birthday party whispering about the bits of conversation they hear. I interrupt them to offer another round. They see in my eyes that I know what they were talking about. I bring a free cookie to the couple breaking up. That is when I notice the ring on her finger. I wonder if this man gave her the ring or if this is her lover. They have yet to speak of any children or divorce papers. Children. I notice a child near the railing throwing crayons. I return to the party and ask them again:

Your child is throwing crayons off the balcony, it is a hazard to our business. Please, this is not Discovery Zone.

The couple pays and leaves. The woman storms off before the man can grab his coat. Schadenfreude sets in and I am grateful for the three dozen roses on my dining room table.

6 October , 2015 by Sam Categories: writing promptTags: conversation, create, dinner, eavesdropper, prompt 15, restaurant, schadenfreude, write Leave a comment

Prompt 1: Outside the Window

1. Outside the Window: What’s the weather outside your window doing right now? If that’s not inspiring, what’s the weather like somewhere you wish you could be?

Right now it is only 77 degrees outside and although our usual Florida humidity is up to 89% I can actually walk the dogs without sweat dripping off of my body. The voice inside my head reminds me that it is still early, the sun has a lot of rising to do. By mid afternoon it will feel like the sweaty pits of a volcano climber who has not showered in days. I see the sun now, creeping through the trees – my tomatoes are loving it. The glow it casts upon my balcony makes me want to dance and sing, to climb the trees as I once did, and to dive into a sea of water all at the same time. A couple more months. I have to remind myself that the heat will end, soon my sweatshirt and shorts will be the perfect armor against the fall weather. I dream of a road trip through the Appalachians, finding a spot nestled in the color changing trees to set up camp, and hiking through the natural beauty of the season. Fall is a time to shed old skin and become a better version of yourself. You are never too old to keep learning and growing.

30 August , 201530 August , 2015 by Sam Categories: writing promptTags: 1, create, fall, florida, heat, humid, leaves, outside, prompt, summer, sun, trees, weather, window, write, writing Leave a comment

New Years 2015

Every time the New Year rolls around people seem to fall into the trap of vowing to reinvent themselves and be better. Gym memberships go on the rise and we eat better and talk better and do better and then we wake up one morning and we are right back to square one. I find this cycle to be never ending and ridiculous, however this year I will still partake.
In 2015 I will embrace change and trust in myself because I am capable. I will take the proper steps to get where I want to be. I will find the perfect writing group and submerge myself in my world creating as much as I can and submitting to as many festivals and competitions as possible. I will attend and volunteer with film festivals and attend every workshop I can. I will get healthy again: eat better, spend more time outdoors, and even work out.
I am checking out my first writing group on Wednesday, but until then I have purchased a few books by female writers and Writer’s Digests Writer’s Yearbook 2015. I’ve also invested in a calendar and a few composition books, if I can create for at least an hour every day to start then I will be right on track. My most important goal Is to get out of Florida by the time the year is up. I need new horizons to explore.