New Years Resolution

As the year winds down and you get ready to

make the rounds with your friends celebrating the

new year you make the normal resolutions that your

friends wish you to make.

In reality you have already made your new years

resolutions and are hoping that this time it

comes true knowing that you did your best to

make sure you can live up to your resolution this time.

Your new years resolution is a wish, a wish that you

need to see through to fruition for you know that

it will not come to pass without you making an honest

attempt at seeing it happen.

As the hours wind down you look back with some

happiness for the good times that you shared and some

regret over the times you could not do anything to

help wishing only to be there for those who mean the

most to you.

Happy New Year to one and to all,

may the New Year be a joyous one for you

and for those who mean the most to you.

For a friend, text of a card I made for her retirement

With the hard earned retirement approaching,
everyone is happy that you are finally getting the
well deserved retirement.

At the same time we are saddened by the fact we will
no longer have you here everyday to brighten our day and
will miss you dearly, leaving only the memories that everyone
will cherish.

When we try

When we try

When we try our best and it feels like we’ve tried so hard but gotten only so far
We can’t help but feel like we need someone to lean on

When we try and feel like we need someone to lean on, we try to hide away
Hoping that the people we can lean on will not see us in our despair

As we try we try so hard to do our best even when we feel like our best
Is not enough to given the outcome

As we try and feel like we have gotten only so far we find that we have friends that
Are willing to show us that we have gotten further than we thought

When we try, we show that we can be the ones to lean on when others
Think that their attempts are in vain when they have tried so hard

As we try we show that when we try so hard we cannot loose it all even
When we start to feel small from it not going our way

When we try, we are never alone in anything we do and we are shown by others that
Even when we think only went so far that we went much further than we thought

And in the end as we’ve tried and leaned on others we learn that those we depended on
Were leaning on us as well drawing from our strength in turn giving us strength

where you are going and what are you looking for

Where you are going and what are are you looking for

When you don’t know where you’re going or what you’re looking for, you feel
Like you are a lost soul that cannot find its way

As you go along trying to find where you are going and finding what you are looking for,
You realize that you have grown up so much that you barely recognize yourself

Through your searching for where you are going you learn to find your way down your
Own path that can only be charted by you

As you start to figure out what you are looking for you realize that you have always known
What you are looking for without even knowing that you knew what it was

In all of your searching you find that you are not such a lost soul after all for through your
Travels you find that things seemed to fall into place when you needed them to it the most

And as time goes on you find where you were looking for and it was right where
You needed to be for others who were lost just like you helping them to bring find
Where they were going as you learn that helping them was what you were looking for

In the end you end up going somewhere that you never expected to go and finding
Something that you never expected to find

winters first snow

winters first snow

Winters first snow always seems better than

the rest of the snowfall of the season

winters first snow always appears to come

down with warmth even in the coldest of nights

winters first snow almost always seems lighter

than the rest

winters first snow always seems to dance around

joyfully and playfully

winters first snow may not amount to much but

in years gone by it almost always seems like much more

winters first snow always seems magical even in

the worst of times that can be

in this time of religious...

in this time of religious holiday sentiment it is easy to forget about the people outside of our own little world.

in this time of religious holiday revelry, it is easy to forget about the things in our lives that matter outside of the festivities.

in this time of religious holiday happenings it is easy to forget that there are others out there maybe less fortunate than ourselves in one of many ways.

in this religious holiday season, whether you celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah, or Quanza you can never forget what those days represent.

How we are with our spirits

How we are with our spirits

How we are with our spirits we soar way up high, as high as the eagles glide

How we are with our spirits we can run with the wolves

How we are with our spirits we can out fox, the fox

How we are with our spirits we can show the raven the same intuitive stare that it has that shows that we are figuring things out as well

How we are with our spirits we can take on the boldest of the bullying blue jays

How we are with our spirits we can make the grizzly bear our brother

How we are with our spirits we can be as strong as the mighty oak and the hearty maple or
As wondrously beautiful as the paper birch and the weeping willow

How we are with our spirits we can be as focused as the salmon swimming up against the river

How we are with our spirits our touch can be as soft and gentle as the late spring breeze or as fiercely powerful as the mighty river during the early spring thaw

How we are with our spirits we can get the ever careful deer to lay down beside us in friendship

How we are with our spirits we can get the chipmunk to trust us enough to sit in our hand or to get the squirrel to be friendly enough to eat out of the same hand

How we are with our spirits we can hear the voices of experience talking to us in the wind

How we are with our spirits we can hear the trees talking to us as if we are brothers
Holding a grand conversation together

How we are with our spirits we find that the ground leads us to where we
Need to be just when we are needed there

How we are with our spirits we will find ourselves, find out who we are and find
Our destiny when we are ready or when we need to know

Memories

a single moment can create a that can be so good that

you cannot help but reminisce years later or wish that, that

moment never happened

a memory can be a great source of comfort in a time of need

or it can be a great source of pain when things are at their worst

a memory can give you solice in knowing that you helped

someone out in a time of need

a memory can be something that can drive you to be your

best when no one expects you to be there

a memory can push people away or draw them in when

you share it with them

a memory when shared can be a source of strength

to others that need a moral boost

in the end our memories are the stories of our lives that

make us who we are and enrich our lives

Hearts and minds

Hearts and minds

As we go about our daily lives, why is it the we close our minds and never open our hearts when
We see families on the street

As we go about our daily routine why is it that we turn a blind eye to the people on the street
Selling drugs, selling them to our children

How is it that we allowed money to be our incentive for everything we do now

How will I know that someone will be there for me when no one is willing to open up, will you be there for me, can you be there for me when I open my mind and my heart to the families on
The street

Will you be there to stand by me when no one else will be there in my time of need

When will we open up our minds to new and better things and how do we open our hearts
Without getting hurt

When will we learn that money isn’t the answer for everything we do

Taking a Stand

Taking a Stand

As each day goes by, you see and hear stuff that makes you feel like
All you can do is sit by watching it all happen

As the plight of others gets worse you start wondering to yourself is this what
My life is for and asking why the world has to be the way it is

When the turmoil appears to be at its worst, you wonder if your life was meant to be
Wasted in a world full of pain and sorrow

As the outlook looks bleak and no one appears to be doing anything at all you start
Feeling as if you can no longer just sit around anymore forcing you to stand up and fight

You see others who feel the same way then you notice that for many of those you see, your
Actions are a rallying call in coming out and saying we’re not going to take it anymore

As each person stand up to fight it says in a unifying voice that we cannot go quietly into the night
Forcing the shake up of the status quo while showing others that there is something better, something far better then what they have been shown that life should be or needs to be
Which gives you the diligence to do more and do your best

Daphne's trip to Castle Island (pages 9 - 11 final 3 pages) childrens story

While trying to chew her stuffed mouth she could see her best friend an her mom trying to look for Daphne and her mom tried to get their attention by waving and jumping up and down hoping that they would see her but she ended having to swallow what she had in her mouth which made her mouth throat hurt but she then ran up to her best friend almost tackling her. She then led them to where they were sitting talking up a storm to the point that they could not make any sense of what Daphne was saying.

When they got to where Daphne’s mom was sitting, both Daphne’s mom and her best friends mom started to catch up on a few things while the girls ate while they trying to play with each other. After they were done eating the girls went down the ramp to the small section of beach to play on the sand and in the water. Since there was only one way on and off of the beach and it a small section of beach with a retaining wall on two of the tree sides both of their moms didn’t have to worry too much as they watched them play. After a little while, their moms called them back up off of the beach and Daphne’s mom asked “her if she wanted to go around the castle one last time to spend a little time with her friend”.

Daphne replied by asking “just one more time” in way that suggested that it was a stupid question and then ran up the ramp with her best friend. With that they went towards the playground so that the girls could play in it for a little while and as they walked towards the playground Daphne and her best friend was playing with each other on the bottom of the grassy hill that the castle sat on top of and running circles around the trees taking turns trying to catch each other. When they came around the bend in the sidewalk which went around the hill the playground came into view and the girls made a break for it grabbing the only two swings that were available.

The whole time they were on the swings they were giggling and trying to twist the swings to hit each other while swinging until one of them fell off, and then they cracked up laughing and ran off to play on the jungle gym part of the playground. As the got to the ladder to climb up to the top of the jungle gym like the other kids there they were in a hurry to get up on the ladder and after they got up there they started running back and forth on the various pieces linking the pieces of the jungle gym. As other kids walked away from different activities on the jungle gym they went and played imaginary games with each thing with their favorite being the tic-tac-toe activity.

As they got bored with those activities, they noticed that instead of the normal poles between the bars to go back and forth there were handles that dangled and also a handle that let you slide across between the two segments of the jungle gym and tried to climb across on the dangling handles and played with the sliding handle trying to see who could send it back to the other one fastest even if they had to push someone that wanted to go across. After about an hour they had their fill of the jungle gym and went to rest for a few minutes on the little wall that made up the boundary for the playground.

After a few minutes they started playing on and around the wall which got old real quick which both of their moms noticed and got them moving again and while they were moving along they seen people walking their dogs, stopping to pat the ones the were friendly and getting lots of kisses from the overly friendly ones which were the really hyper ones. They ended up running back and forth between their moms and the furthest tree for which their moms could still see them. They ended up seeing a barbeque pit and started running after each other around it and as the got close to catching each other they would turn away from the barbeque pit instead of going around it.

After a few minutes their moms moved them along and they started walking and playing with each other as little girls did when they were walking with each other when there was nothing they could do but walk. As they were following their moms the came upon a bust of a firefighter for which they both asked “why is this here” for which they were told “it’s a statue to remember some firefighters that dies while fighting a fire” for which all either one of them could say was “wow” and then they started walking again.

As they moved along they made their way up to the leading edge of the retaining wall which also had a decorative fence that was pretty much two decorative poles between two decorative posts along the top of the retaining wall. They ended standing there for a few minutes commenting on the different boats and ships that passed by, they even seen some sailboats with some of them being rather large. As they commented on the boats especially the larger sailboats the mother of Daphne’s best friend pointed to a specific sailboat and said that, “that boat is called a tall ship and goes around the world training people how to sail and to be paraded in the waterways”.

They all stood there watching the tall ship pass by and after it so far passed them Daphne’s mom said “ok, lets go” so they started up again. The girls started walking but lagged behind because they wanted to continue watching the boats and were hurried along by their moms. They then started running to catch up and ended up tripping themselves up causing their moms to stop and wait for them. After they got up and brushed themselves off they were a little subdued from being embarrassed from falling and just walked holding their moms hands for a couple minutes.

Shortly after that they came upon another statue and Daphne asked “why does that one look like a soldier?” for which her mom said “it is a soldier, it is a statue remembering people who came from this area that died in the Korean War.” They stopped in front of the statue just long enough for her mom to say that and then kept walking and after a minute or two the girls got a second wind and started sticking their tongues out at each other and acting as if they didn’t see each other doing it and then took off running again. This time they ran up the hill and decided to race each other by rolling down the hill a couple times as their moms watched as they continued walking.

As they came around the bend Daphne’s best friends older brother came out of the back of Sullivan’s and just caught sight of his and Daphne’s mom and waited there for them, while looking for the girls which he did. He was watching to see if they had noticed him and after he realized that he hadn’t been noticed by the girls he went and hid behind the dumpster by the back door making sure that he could still see them so he would know when to jump out. After they got a little past him he came out and motioned to their moms to keep quiet which let them know that he was going to scare them.

He then snuck up behind them and scared them by getting down to their level, walking up behind them quietly and said “boo”, they jumped and screamed causing him to fall to the ground with laughter, their moms even had a good laugh at how much they jumped and screamed. The girls ended getting a little mad at him and going over to him and kicking him saying “that wasn’t nice” as he was laughing he tried to say “but it was worth it” but could not get the words out because he was laughing too hard. After he was done laughing, he got up and said hold on let me get my backpack.

After he got his backpack, they started walking along the parking lot in front while the girls told him about what they had been doing. They followed the parking lot away from the castle making their way towards the car that Daphne’s best friend and her mom came in which was down the street about halfway between the parking lot they were at and the one the Daphne and her mom parked in. when they came up on the car which was across the street, Daphne asked “how are you going to cross here with all that traffic” for which her best friends older brother said “don’t worry about it” as their moms said their good byes and then the girls did that.

After that Daphne and he mom continued walking and Daphne said “this is a big beach” for which her mom said “this isn’t big, I have seen much, much bigger.” While they were walking Daphne started showing that she was tired and with in a couple minutes started lagging behind the way little girls do causing her mom to pick her up. By the time they got to their car Daphne was fast asleep causing her mom to gently put her in the back seat of the vehicle. After putting Daphne in the back seat her mom just sat there in the front seat for a few minutes to relax while listening to the radio before driving home.

A little under halfway home Daphne woke up and was surprised to see that they were in the car driving home and asking in a voice that showed that she was still half asleep along with a little whiney “where are we going?” with that her mom said “well, look who woke up” and then let her know that they were on their way home, then proceeded to ask “are you thirsty, we can stop somewhere if you are?” for which Daphne replied “I am hungry” for which her mom said “ok, we will stop at the when get to the next rest stop” after a few minutes they came to a rest stop that had a fast food place and went stopped there to get something quick.

Instead of going through the drive thru Daphne’s mom decided to go right into the place to allow them to stretch their legs. As they waited in line Daphne’s mom was trying to get her to decide what she wanted for which she was taking her time because she just wanted to look around the restaurant. By the time they got the cashier, Daphne’s mom had taken it upon herself to order for her and decided to order a kids meal for her which would also give her a little toy to play with. After they got their food, Daphne’s mom asked “do you want to eat here or in the car?” for which Daphne said “in the car” then immediately started picking at her French Fries as they walked back to the car.

After settling back into their seats the were off again while Daphne ate her food so fast that you would have thought she hadn’t eaten all day, while her mom was picking at hers while driving and trying to tell Daphne not to eat so fast or to put so much into her mouth. After Daphne finished her food she realized that she had forgotten to check to see what her toy was which ended up being a little figurine from the newest animated movie out and had wanted to see. Daphne’s mom was happy that she was playing with the figurine since she was lost in her own little world using her imagination to have it interact with imaginary characters and with other toys which lasted for the rest of the trip home.

As they got home, Daphne could see that her best friend was already home because she could see he best friend playing outside in her yard as her best friends brother was getting the last of the stuff that her best friend and her mom had brought to Castle Island to entertain themselves while waiting for her best friends brother. Daphne started getting excited to the point that she was squirming in her seat and realizing this, her mom said after you get changed you can go play if you want. As they pulled into their driveway Daphne’s best friend seen them and rushed over to meet them and to ask if Daphne could come out and play since they were next door neighbors for which Daphne’s mom said she just has to get changed before going over there.

With that Daphne hurried her mom up to the front door to unlock it and after her mom opened the door she ran upstairs to change, changing in a hurry so she could go play with her best friend and let her know about her day before they ran into each other at Castle Island. As Daphne’s mom was bringing in the last of the stuff that she had brought but never used, she was almost knocked over by Daphne as she ran out of the house over to her best friend and immediately started talking about her day.

Daphne’s mom finishing up with bringing the stuff into the house sat down in her favorite chair looking out the window watching Daphne and her best friend thinking to herself thankfully the day is over and hoping that Daphne will be to bed early from having a full day of activities at Castle Island.

Daphne's trip to Castle Island (pages 7 & 8 ) children's story

As the group of people walked back to the entrance through the courtyard, Daphne and a few others looked around in awe and taking it all in before the went back through the two sets of double doors that were two to three stories high that made up the front entrance. As they walked out Daphne’s mom said “let’s go this way” and directed her to the left and started walking around the fort and down the hill towards the harbor side of the beach which also had a fishing pier on it. As they get close to the fishing pier she can see that people were actually fishing and starts running the rest of the way to the fishing pier.

While Daphne ran her mom said “don’t run to far” then she stopped over my the monument right across from the fishing pier and started looking at the depictions on the monument while fidgeting about while waiting for her mom. When she got there she called out to Daphne for which she responded “it’s about time you caught up” for which Daphne’s mom just stuck out her tongue, then they walked out onto the fishing pier and Daphne was amazed at how close the boats and ships were to the pier and how big they were.

They walk out onto the fishing pier which was named for a firefighter who had died in the line of duty. When they got to the first person who was fishing Daphne asked “have you caught anything yet?” for which the guy replied “just a few crabs that ate my bait”. Then she went up to the next guy asked the same question but this time the guy said “open up my cooler and you can see but just don’t touch” Daphne then opened up the cooler and seen a couple small fish and asked “are those real fish” for which the guy said “yep they are, one of them is what I am using for bait and the other is a fish I caught using a sea worm and if you want to look at some open that little box inside my cooler”.

Daphne opened up the box and seen the worms and said “ewe those can’t be worms they are too ugly” for which her mom said “they really are worms” and then asked the guy if she could pick one up to show her. Daphne’s mom then picked one up and showed her the worm and said “they even have small teeth that are really sharp” then she forced the worm to open up its mouth. Daphne then said “gross I don’t like those worms” and then shuttered from getting the chills then she ran down to the end of the fishing pier because she seen someone fighting with their fishing rod and wanted to see the fish as it came up.

After a few minutes of just staring down at the water waiting for the fish to come up she seen the silhouette of the fish and it was fighting to free itself from the fishing hook and the guy. As the fish got closer to the surface she could see it was a big fish. After the guy had gotten it up to the fishing pier Daphne asked “what type of fish is it” and he said “this is a blue fish and don’t really know why they call it a blue fish”. Then she watched the fish flop around the fishing pier as the guy took the hook out of the fish’s mouth and asked “what’s going to happen to it?” for which the guy just looked at her and then at her mom.

Daphne’s mom getting the hint asked “are you ready for lunch?” for which Daphne replied “mommy no because I don’t want to leave the beach” then her mom replied back “we don’t have to there is a place just out of sight called Sullivan’s but everyone just calls it Sully’s and they have cheeseburgers, hot dogs, French fries and even your favorite ice scream” for which she replied “ok” and then started walking almost skipping along as she went. As they walked along towards Sullivan’s Daphne asked “how come you didn’t bring me here before” for which her mom said “I waited until I knew that you would like coming here.”

As they turned the bend, Sullivan’s came into view and Daphne’s mom pointed it out saying “there it is” for which Daphne said “cool”. As they got to the front of Sullivan’s Daphne said “wow, that’s an awfully big line” for which her mom said “during the summer there is always a long line like this as long as it ain’t raining”. As they made their way through the sea of people trying to find the end of the line Daphne was amazed by all of the people there trying to get into the small take out restaurant and every she seen another kid around her age she would try to run up to them and play but her mom would not allow it.

As they finally found the end of the line Daphne asked in a whiny tone “I’m hungry, how long will we have to wait here?” for which her mom replied “should only be a few minutes” with in a few minutes Daphne was fidgeting as they slowly made their way towards the front door of Sullivan’s with the line getting longer and longer behind them. With Daphne’s fidgeting causing her to bounce around and look all over the place she would occasionally look from one end of the line to the other in amazement especially with the endless stream of people coming out of the restaurant.

As they inched their way closer Daphne got more and more fidgety and by the time they got close to the doors of Sullivan’s, Daphne started playing on the large granite rectangular planters that were just high enough and deep enough for someone to sit on. She kept doing figure eights between one of the planters and one of the concrete supports, sometimes walking, sometimes skipping and sometimes running stopping just long enough to let someone by and to smell the flowers. After a few minutes Daphne’s mom told her “here we go come on” and Daphne ran up to her mom and started holding her moms hand still somewhat fidgeting.

As they entered Sullivan’s she looked around taking it all in as they slowly moved further into the restaurant. She started looking at the glass cabinets and the stuff inside of them while trying to ask her mom what each thing was for which some things she knew and some things she didn’t. as the made their way up to the front of the line to wait on the next register Daphne’s mom had to call her back into line one last time and said “you will know who is at our register” as the walked up to the cashier. When the walked up to the cashier Daphne having to stand on her tippy toes looked up over the counter and was surprised to see her best friends older brother there.

With a surprised look she jumped back and asked “what are doing here?” for which he replied “it’s my summer job and I get to come to the beach every day” with that said Daphne’s eyes widened up and she said “wow”. After that her best friends older brother chuckled and asked “do you want a hot dog or cheeseburger?” and she looked up at her mom and before she could ask her mom said” she’ll take both and make it two of each” and then he looked down and asked “do you want your strawberry ice cream in a cup or cone?”

Already knowing what she was going to say and then he said without her saying anything “a cup it is” and then asked “what size Pepsi do you want” for which Daphne’s mom said “a large for me and a medium for her”. Daphne’s mom then handed her the money and said you can give him the money, she then struggled to hand him the money so he reached over the counter so she could hand him the money, by this time a few of the customers with children and the other cashiers were chuckling a little bit. As Daphne and her mom walked over to the order pick up area they could hear the other cashiers teasing him a little bit.

After only about two or three minutes their order was up and Daphne and her mom grabbed their order and started walking out of Sullivan’s and ran into her best friend and her best friends mom who was just entering Sullivan’s. When Daphne realized who it was she was happily surprised to see her friend and almost dropped her lunch. As Daphne ran over to her friend she almost lost tripped out of giddiness and barely held onto her lunch, when she got to her friend she asked “when did you get here” for which her friend said we just got here and wanted to let my brother know we were here so he can come find us when he gets off work”.

As they started talking, Daphne’s mom said to her “let’s wait outside for them” and then told her friends mom we will be over by the ramp leading to the small section of beach by the parking lot” and then motioned Daphne outside and her friends mom nodded ok. As they walked out Daphne not wanting to leave started at first walking backwards towards the doors while watching her friend and her friends mom and bumping into a guy who then just looked down at her and said “hi little one” and then continued walking as Daphne turned and ran to catch up with her mom almost running into people crossing her path.

When they got to the ramp, Daphne’s mom said “put the food on here so you can eat” talking about the wooden guardrail that was on one side of the ramp. Daphne then put it down and showed that she was real giddy due to her best friend showing up there by pacing back and forth and getting really fidgety while waiting for her best friend while saying out loud to no one “what’s taking them so long?” and trying to look for her friend to come out of Sullivan’s while nibbling on her food. Her mom ended up telling her “hurry up and eat, your ice scream is melting” for which she replied by stuffing her mouth with the cheeseburger she had been nibbling on and having trouble chewing because of it.

Daphne's trip to Castle Island (pages 5& 6) chlidrens story

of the guy. He had seen Daphne jump and said “I didn’t mean to make you jump” then he walked over bent down and asked “would you like to see a magic trick?” and Daphne asked “your not going to do the quarter behind the ear trick are you” “I see you know your magic tricks so I can’t fool you with that one” he said then he said “nothing in my hands, and as you can see nothing up my sleeves where I have no sleeves on” then he reaches behind her with one hand and makes a couple motions with his other hand in front of her face.

Then after a few seconds he said “I believe this belongs to you” and pull from behind her back a large lollipop. Upon seeing the lollipop, her eyes bugged out and she asked “how did you do that?” “A good magician never reveals his secrets” he said. He then said “I bet I can guess your name” for which she said “how could you know my name” “Well I do, and it is Daphne, right?” he said and she looked stumped as to how he could know this and her mom said to her quietly “he use to work with me and he seen the pictures I have of you at work” with that Daphne’s mom asked “Mike how’s your new job going?” “well Sandy, you know how new jobs go” he said.”

With that he motioned the small group of people to a small room from which the tour would start from. After they were all seated, he went through the normal start of tour guidelines which were more of a quick talk about safety on the tour since sections of the building were unsuitable for more than a person or two at a time and that the sections are fences off for the public’s safety. While he was talking out that Daphne was looking around the room and slowly raised her hand to ask “are any of the things in here real?” and Mike said “some of the things are and please don’t touch anything some of it is really old and fragile”.

With that she followed her mom back out into the courtyard as the group started walking up a ramp that brings you up to the top of the fort. As the group follows the tour guide he pointed out the flags on the railing of the ramp noting the significance of specific flags while holding them out since there was no wind to speak of. He mentioned an American Flag in particular that can only be raised in a few places which happened to be only a handful of national historical sites and explained its history due to the amount of stars and how they were placed on the blue field.

As they walked up the ramp Daphne commented on how long and how high the ramp was which her mom said to her in return “that’s because we are going on top of the fort to see a few cannons” and Daphne replied back with “real cannons?” for which her mom said “possibly, you will have to see if he says they are”. As they got up to the top the tour guide pointed out a small cannon saying that “this type of cannon was used just to lob a cannonball to a nearby ship during a battle and that it was one of a couple cannons that were at the fort” he then pointed out the cannonball beside the cannon and dared the kids in the group to pick it up.

Daphne like any other little girl could not resist trying to picking up the cannonball. As the kids took turns trying to pick it up they did their best and even a few at a time tried to pick it up at the same time with no luck. After they had their fill of trying to pick it up the tour guide said “that it was a real cannonball and is the same type that were used in this cannon but the cannon itself was a replica”. As they started walking the tour guide mentioned “that the flags that you see here along the rooftop hanging on the railing are the flags of the state flags of each individual state, while as you can see the U.S. flag is on a pole.”

As they started to walk a little further Daphne walked up to the outer wall to get a better view of the area. When she got to the wall she had to stand on her tip toes to look and still had to have her mom pick her up. After Daphne’s mom picked her up she was amazed at the view from the top of the fort and all she could muster was a “wow that’s a long drop” with that Daphne’s mom put her down and hurried her up so they could catch up to the group. As they caught up they were directed by the tour guide to go down the steps and go through the small hallway and up the stairs at the other end of the hallway.

When they got to the other side of the hallway they were looking at a large cannon for which the tour guide said “that’s another replica of a cannon and as you can see it points out at the harbor and it is for ships that are a little further out” for which a member of the tour group asked “how far out are you talking” for which the tour guide said that “it can shoot a cannon right around the distance of that bridge way out there”. As the tour guide was explaining that Daphne was trying to look down the barrel of the cannon but could not jump high enough to see inside.

Daphne’s mom picked her up let her look and then said, “I think you would like the view over here better” then she turned to face the water and Daphne’s eyes lit up as she seen all of the different boats and ships in the harbor. Daphne then wiggled till her mom was forced to put her down then she ran to the outer wall was able to see a little bit of the harbor and all of the boats. As she looked around she paid no attention to the tour guides attempts to have them follow him and asked her mom “can we go down there after we get done here” for which her mom responded “sure we can, that was next on my list to take you anyway.”

As Daphne’s mom led her away from the view to catch up to the group, Daphne kept trying to look back and look. When they caught up the tour guide was in the middle of telling the group about their next stop on the tour which was a power magazine that stored the black powder for the cannons. One of the members of the tour asked “why is it that there is dirt all over the top roof?” for which the tour guide responded “it’s for hiding and protecting the powder magazines”. With that the tour guide directed them to the steps that led into the powder magazine and told the group to go all the way in.

The tour guide let them take it all in and said that “the reason that the are so many ninety degree turns was to eliminate the possibility of an accidental explosion from a stray spark when firing the guns and the cannons.” After a couple moments he said “when you’re done taking it in come out so we can get back to the tour” as the tour slowly filed out of the cramped hallway of a powder magazine, the tour guide directed them towards a set of stairs that led back down to the courtyard and told everyone “be careful due to the steepness of the steps” and then led them down to keep everyone from running down.

After they were all down he brought them into a doorway that opened up into a room larger than the average floor plan for a home. From there he moved on to the next room while explaining the different activities that were done in each room. While he was explaining all this there were a few people who had said that “they loved the open floor plan” and others that said that it was “a little on the cool side”. There was one person who actually asked “why is it the there are no hallways between rooms” and the tour guide said that “this is due to the need to be able to move quickly and easily between rooms when there is a battle going on”

As the came into one of the other rooms and before the tour guide could mention it, one of the people on the tour asked “why does it look like there is a blocked up doorway there” as the tour guide started talking about what had supposedly transpired to cause that doorway along with Edgar Allen Poe writing a famous story about it, Daphne started getting antsy and stopped paying attention that she almost wondered off into the next room. Just as Daphne decided to go into the next room the tour guide quietly came up behind her and said “boo” which caused her to jump and scream.

Daphne then said “don’t do that, you scared me” like little girls would say then the tour guide turned and motioned for the group to follow while Daphne walked into the room a little mad at the tour guide and pouting. When the group was all in the room someone yelled out “look pizza ovens” for which the tour guide said “nope this was the kitchen and these were to cook the food and a staple food was bread for them”.

Then the tour guide finished explaining what normally went on in the kitchen they moved on to one last room that had a few things in it with one of them being a mannequin dressed as a soldier with a musket from of the periods that the fort was active and in front of it was a model of Castle Island that included the break water that made up Pleasure Bay. After explaining a couple things the tour guide motioned to the doorway that led back into the courtyard and said “thank you for coming today and if come this way we can all head back to the entrance of the fort.”

Daphne's trip to Castle Island (pages 3 & 4) children's story

While they were walking, Daphne could not help but notice that there were lots of other people there some of them walking, some of them rollerblading and some on skateboards going up and down the asphalt. After a couple minutes of taking in all of the people Daphne realized that there were boats attached to moorings on one side of the breakwater and asked “why are there boats on one side and not the other side” for which her mom replied “because they don’t allow motor boats on in the bay that this breakwater makes and the name of the bay is Pleasure Bay” for which she asked “why do they call it Pleasure Bay?” for which her mom said “who knows” as she points out someone on a wind board in Pleasure Bay.

By the time they were done looking at the person wind-boarding they were at The Sugar Bowl and Daphne’s mom said “look, you can see the people fishing now” and Daphne looked over and seen what to her was a multitude of people fishing even though it was only a few people some with multiple rods of different sizes. She then started running between the people asking questions and seeing if they had any fish.

There were a couple that did have some fish and they humored her and allowed her to see the fish for which all she could say was “wow” and ask “what type of fishy is that” for which one said “this is a blue fish” and “this is only a small one” when the person said that her eyes bulged out in surprise, then she moved on to another and they said “this is a flounder and this is a sun fish”. After a little while of running between people her mom said its time to go to the building in the distance and as they left she seen someone with a drop line, pulling up their line and the person mumbling about something on the line for which she found to be a crab that was eating the persons bait.

When Daphne seen the crab clamped on the hook while trying to eat the person’s bait, she asked “ewe what is that?” for which the person said “it’s a crab and I he and his other crab friends keep eating my bait” Daphne was confused by him saying that he was using bait and asked “how come your not using those shiny pieces that the people back home use” for which the guy asked in return “I take it you live by a lake” and she replied “yes” and he said “those shiny things are for fish in a lake not for a fish in the ocean” and then Daphne goes running up to her mom asking “mommy I thought we were going to a beach not an ocean?” and her mom replied “honey, we are going to a beach and it is on the ocean besides we’re not that far from the beach you can see it from here.”

Daphne’s mom pointed to where they started and said “the beach goes from where we parked the car all the way over to that building” and Daphne said “wow that’s a beach, cool” after allowing Daphne to stare at the size of the beach which wasn’t the largest of beaches but bigger than Daphne had ever seen and looking at the skyscrapers in the background for a few minutes Daphne’s mom said as she started walking down the second half of the breakwater “time to go so you can have some fun over there at the beach, besides I think you will like what is over here”.

As Daphne’s mom starts walking Daphne hesitates while still looking over at the beach, then runs up to her mom and asked “what is it that I will like” and before Daphne’s mom could answer Daphne realized what her mom had meant and hears the running water out of the pleasure bay through the locks in the breakwater and runs up to them and said “wow, mommy come here and look, its amazing” with that Daphne’s mom gives a good laugh as she walks up to Daphne and went to speak but before she could say anything Daphne said “I’ve never seen a waterfall before mommy”

Daphne’s mom said “that isn’t a real waterfall, that’s a manmade one that is caused by the out going tide going through these locks”. For a good few minutes, Daphne was draped over the railing staring at the waterfall caused by the locks in the breakwater and without warning see something out of the corner of her eye plop into the water which turned out to be a person throwing a drop line from the waterline at the bottom of the breakwater right by the locks.

After running back and forth between both sides of the locks watching people with drop lines along the waterline she looked up and realized that they were close to where they were going and said “wow, is that where we are going?” Her mom say “yep, and we can actually go in it too.” As they started walking Daphne asked “what is this beach called?” for which her mom replied “Castle Island” and Daphne asked “why do they call it an island for” for which her mom said “that’s because it use to be a real island until they decided to build the area around it” and then Daphne asked “how did they do that?” and her mom said “with landfill, which was from a hill that they decided to flatten or to shrink”.

While walking Daphne’s mom could not help but laugh a little given the giddiness that Daphne had like girls her age have when they can’t wait to get there. When Daphne looked up and seen her mom laughing a little she asked “why are you laughing” for which her mom said “nothing” then Daphne ran in front of her mom turned to her and grabbed on of her moms hands with both of hers and said “hurry up” in a little bit of a whiney tone as if they could not get there fast enough. With that Daphne’s mom stopped and playfully said “no” and then pulled Daphne to the nearest bench and sat on it while Daphne still tried pulling while repeatedly saying “come on”.

As Daphne tried to get her mom to get back up and go right up to the building that was pointed out to her when they were still at the Sugar Bowl, her mom got up and started letting Daphne pull her along but also guiding Daphne towards something that was just out of Daphne’s sight due to facing her mom. When they got there the other kids playing caught her eye and she forgot all about the building that she was trying to get too. She let her moms hand go and looked around saying “wow, I didn’t know this place had a playground” and then asked “can I” before her mom could respond Daphne was already running for the swings.

As she got up to the swings she noticed that there were swings with different types of seats, some with the hard plastic seats and some with a rubber like seat and even some for little kids and babies. After swinging on each type of swing that she could go on she went onto the jungle gym part of the playground and had fun playing with the other kids while climbing latter walking across small bridges and going down the slides until her heart was content and worn out from all of the running around.

After collapsing onto the ground to rest for a little while, Daphne asked her mom “what is that building” for which her mom said “that is Fort Independence, which is really old and why they call this place Castle Island” with that Daphne sat up crossed her legs and said “wow, how old is it? Is it older than you and daddy?” and her mom said “it’s even older than Nana’s mommy” for which Daphne was too mesmerized, to respond with any questions. After a few minutes of Daphne just sitting there cross legged staring up at the building she asked “how come they call it a castle if it is someone’s fort?”

Daphne’s mom said “well that because when they had it built the only buildings that were this big at the time were castles so even though it is just a fort it was called a castle” with that Daphne said “wow” then got up and tried lifting her mom up by grabbing her hands and pulling her from her sitting position. With that her mom got up and said “ok we can go up there and go in it, but you have to beat me up the hill or we just walk around it” with that Daphne started running with her mom walking up letting her win and when she met up with Daphne she said “ok, you win let’s go”.

Daphne’s mom took her by the hand and walked through the first of two sets of two to three story doors. As they walked through them Daphne notices small slits in the walls and asked “what are they for” for which her mom replied “those were for people to put rifles through when people tried to attack the fort” and as they walked through the second set of doors it opened up to a large court yard with a couple people sitting at a collapsible banquet table just past the doors to the right and a small roped off waiting area to the left of the doors. Daphne’s mom walked up to the people and they asked her to sign the register, told her it was a free tour and that they could wait for the next tour which was in a couple minutes.
While they waited Daphne looked up in wonder and taking in the size of Fort Independence when the tour guide came to the small group that had gathered and said “hello, my name is Mike and I will be your tour guide today” with that Daphne jumped from being startled by the sudden voice

Daphne's trip to Castle Island (pages 1 & 2) childrens story

As Daphne plays with her dolls instead of finishing up getting dressed for a day at the beach, her mom yells up to her “Daphne, are you dressed yet?” after a few moments she hears some toys drop and some stomping of little feet letting her know that Daphne wasn’t anywhere near ready. Daphne’s mom hesitates for a few moments and starts walking up the stairs and hears little feet running for the stairs. Then a few seconds later Daphne almost runs her mom over running down the stairs because she couldn’t see her mom from around the bend in the stairs. When Daphne see’s her mom standing there on the stairs she stops short with a thud a few steps away from her and almost falling into her mom.

Daphne then looks up at her mom and says “all dressed” with a grin from ear to ear because she knows she is going to the beach. What Daphne didn’t know was that she wasn’t going to the beach she was use too, but rather a beach that her mom grew up going to. Daphne thinking that she was going to her normal beach, promptly stated, “I can’t wait to play with Becky and Andy and find all those cool things lying around the beach.” With that Daphne’s mom had to stop her before she said any more and had to disappoint her by telling her “honey, we are not going to our normal beach today.”

Daphne replied by pouting and said “I don’t want to go then”, and stomped over to the sofa and sat with a very big plop while crossing her arms and staring at her mom angrily which made her mom laugh making Daphne even madder. While trying to stop laughing, her mom tried to say “honey, when you are done pouting and ready to go, let me know” but could not say it with out laughing given Daphne’s expression. After a few minutes, she came back to see if Daphne was in a better mood, for which she was and as soon as she seen her mom she tried acting as if she was still mad at her.

Her mom stopping in front of where she had her keychain and said “I guess I am going to have to go all by myself” for which Daphne just said “humph” and turned away, then her mom said “well, I guess your going to miss out seeing all of those sail boats and the playground” for which Daphne replied “so what” then her mom turned to the table and grabbed her keys saying “that’s too bad, I guess that you don’t want to see the really large motor boats and all of the people fishing either.”

Daphne then trying to act like she was still mad but curious, asked “they got people fishing there” for which her mom replied “yep, and the fish can be this big” stretching her arms out as she replied. Then Daphne asked “how big are the boats” and her mom replied “well since you don’t want to go, I guess I won’t tell you anymore”. Daphne suddenly had a change of heart and got up, ran to her mom grabbing her hand and said “lets go” and her mom asked “does that mean you want to go now?” with Daphne pulling her mom by the hand with all of her might nodding yes the whole time with no luck, then she let go of her moms hand and got behind her and tried to push her.

Her mom then said “ok, ok let’s go” and then said “hurry up and get in the car before I change my mind” once said Daphne ran to the door, opened it in the process slamming the door against the wall beside the door almost breaking the etched stain glassed window that went the length of the door at the doorframe and then she ran as fast as she could to the car. As her mom closed the door to lock it, Daphne got really antsy and “yelled hurry up, I want to see the boats and see how big the fish really are.”

With that Daphne’s mom teased her and walked up slowly to the car to antagonize her and by the time her mom got to the car she was squirming and trying to open the locked car door. Daphne’s mom could have used her remote car alarm to unlock the door but decided to let Daphne squirm because to her it was funny seeing her daughter squirming in such a hurry to get in the car.

When Daphne’s mom finally got to the car, she was laughing at her daughter as she whined about how slow her mom was getting to the car. After they got in the car and started driving it was an endless barrage of questions from Daphne to her mom with the most frequent question being “are we there yet” which annoyed Daphne’s mom because it made a short trip feel like an eternity. After a little while Daphne’s mom said, “the beach we are going to is in the big city” for which Daphne responded “how can you have a beach in the big city?” and Daphne’s mom explained that “a big city can have a beach if they are near the coastline and would have a beach in the ocean instead of a lake and you’ve been to the big city the beach is in” for which Daphne asked “I have?” and then asked “which city?”

Daphne’s mom said “it is a city that you like and go to every summer to look at the swans and feed the ducks and geese”. “Mommy, that ain’t a beach that’s just a little pond for the birds and those funny looking boats with the swan on them” Daphne said looking perplexed as her mom said “Honey the beach is in a different part of the city”. “You will know when we are almost there” Daphne’s mom said as she honks her horn at someone that just cut her off. Daphne then asked “mommy how will I know” for which her mom replied, “you will see this small castle, and if the weather is good we can get there early enough we can even take a tour of it.” “The city has a castle on the beach and you never took me there, why?”

“Well honey I just did, but it’s not really a castle, it is actually a fort and because of its size and when it was built it was classified as a castle even though it’s not” said Daphne’s mom. As they drive along on the short distance on the highway, Daphne’s mom tries to distract her from her line of question first by trying to play the normal games they play on their short day trips when they do things when Daphne’s dad isn’t around because of his travels for work.

Unfortunately, the games didn’t work, then Daphne’s mom tried to talk to her about her friends Andy and Becky but quickly found that she wished she didn’t bring up the subject because now Daphne was talking about what she was going to tell them when she got home. Eventually, Daphne’s mom asked her to play her hand held video game or watch part of a movie so she can get some rest so she can take in all of the sights on Castle Island for which Daphne’s mom never told her the name of. At first Daphne had a hard time with it being the naturally inquisitive little girl she was but eventually settled into watching her favorite movie on the overhead DVD player.

After a little while as with any little girl, Daphne started squirming and wanting to ask more questions on the beach but a little whineier than before, and thankfully they weren’t far away and Daphne’s mom was able to divert her attention to the water on off to their right side that was coming into view. With that the only thing that Daphne could say “are we there yet” over and over every so often with it only ending when they pulled into the part of the street that was reserved for beach parking at the edge of the breakwater reserved for beach parking and her mom saying “we’re here, sort of”.

As Daphne’s mom got out of the vehicle Daphne asked “what do you mean sort of?” for which her mom replied “I’ll show you” as she was shooing Daphne out of the vehicle. After all of the stuff was out of the vehicle, Daphne’s mom said “see that building way over there on the other side of the water” for which Daphne replied “ya” as little girls say, “that is where we are going but we have to walk from here if you want to watch some people fishing” said her mom. After that she motioned for the asphalt that covered the top of the breakwater that went straight out into Boston Harbor.

As they started walking, Daphne asking questions starting with “where does this lead” for which her mom replied with “It leads to what is called The Sugar Bowl” for which Daphne responded back “why do they call it the sugar bowl?”, not knowing how to answer her mom just said that “I don’t know why they call it that, someone named it that before I even knew that it was there”. Then she asked “is there where they fish?” as little girls would say, for which her mom said “yep, but that’s not the only place they fish, they also do it on the far side of that building” for which Daphne replied back with “what type of fish do they catch there?” and her mom said “many different types”.

Walking in the Cold Winter Wind

Walking in the Cold Winter Wind

In the pre-dawn hours as the cold winter wind blows at you with the fierceness
That feels like it goes right threw you as you are walking your morning walk, and it
Feels like you just can’t get warm

As you start to shiver all you want to do is go home and curl up into a ball with a comforter
All around you to keep warm inside but yet you keep walking

As you walk, you keep telling yourself I need to keep walking and you start walking faster
And faster until you’re almost jogging you then notice that even with the cold winter wind biting
At you, you start warming up enough not to be intimidated by that wind

While you are walking you realize that the wind is driving you to keep warm makes you even
More determined to walk that much faster and as you realize this you are surprised by
The fact that you never even noticed that you are where you wanted to be and the walk is
Now a memory

finding the strength

Finding the Strength

As you sit there and the realization sets in you wonder what, am I to do know
Do I give up and let it take me or do I stand there and fight

You then ask yourself how do, I muster the strength needed to tell my family and the strength
To put on the bravest of faces for those who matter most

As you sit there struggling to find the words and muster the strength you realize that the strength
Comes from deep inside of you, a place that says I must be strong, strong for those who need
Me the most for they are the ones who have the unwavering faith in my ability to be there
For them

As time goes by and it feels like it is at its worst, with your strength starting to wane you notice
That those who needed you the most are now the ones who are showing the most strength
And exactly when you need the support the most

You then start feeling you strength come back as you realize that those who mean the most to
You are now the source of your strength which in turn gives you the will to keep on fighting
And gives you some peace of mind in knowing that you made the right decision when
You stood up to fight the toughest battle

The Brownstone (fictional story) page 5 of 5

As I looked around the room I noticed the people who had been sitting outside on the front steps who I thought I had known for years even though they acted as if they had just met me that morning, I also noticed family and friends that I knew, I knew but yet my friends looked different. My friends looked like they should be the ones that I had to walk through on the steps. As I started to mingle with everyone, I started feeling as if I was returning home rather than having just buying the house. As the party went on I felt as if it was good to be home and that it had been a long time since I had seen the old house which as good, if not better then when I left.
After the party was over and the staff settled in for the night with the exception of the guy I sat there in the living room in front of the mantle piece with the guy he welcomed me home and said it has been a long time since I had left that he was truly grateful that I had returned home because all he could do was wait for my return so he would have someone to care for and looked forward to taking care of my children and my children’s children. With that I nodded off to sleep and as I was almost sleeping I could hear the guy talking to himself and thanking the house almost mumbling under his breath trying not to wake me and to keep me from hearing him say it.

the end

The Brownston (fictional story) page 4 of 5

These people when I walked up to them felt like old friends like I had them as friends since childhood but yet I could tell that they didn’t see me the same way but yet they were sitting at what I thought was my favorite hang out place. When I came up to the group of people one of the people could see that I was perplexed and asked what was wrong, before I got the nerve to respond a guy, the guy came out of the front door and walked down the front steps through the people and said he was glad to see that I could make it today so that way we could finalize the purchase of the brownstone which perplexed me even more.

Even though I was perplexed by the fact that I was buying what I remembered to be an abandoned house I felt as though I remembered going through the whole process of buying the house but could not come up with a single specific memory relating to the whole thing. When I was directed to the front door I started walking and felt a foreboding shutter go right through my body making me want to run but I kept walking to do something that I didn’t know that I was doing until that very moment. As the guy opened up the door I felt as if there was nothing there behind me but darkness but when I turned around I could still see the people just sitting there.

As I passed through the doorway I could see a doorway at the far end of the living room a sizable living room with the closest piece of furniture that looked like it was someone’s attempt of combining two different classic pieces of furniture. This piece of furniture looked like it was suppose to be a telephone table but instead of a chair attachment it was a loveseat with a table at either end. As I got a better look around the other pieces of furniture didn’t stand out but what did stand out was the various indistinct paintings and pictures on the wall that went from the front door to the doorway on the other side of the living room. The largest painting was hanging over a mantle piece and the people in it seemed distorted.

The guy directed me to a table and chairs that somehow appeared out of nowhere since I didn’t see them there when I walked in and didn’t see anyone bring them in. As I walked over to the table I noticed that even though the living room was well lit there appeared to be no light fixtures anywhere in the room and noticed that there seemed to be a spot on the floor that seemed strangely out of place for the house but yet it was in a place where I felt there should be a dark hole in the floor but yet it just seemed like a dark spot in the floor. I asked what had happened there and the guy just said that the people who had been living there had problems there.

I started to walk over there and half expected the guy to stop me but he didn’t and it was a solid floor when I stepped on it. When I walked over to the guy who was already sitting down at the table with the paperwork out ready for me to look over and sign. While we were going over the paperwork the guy was telling me that the house came with its own staff for which I could keep or replace if I chose but he thought I should get to know the people who worked there before making my decision. After the paperwork was looked over and signed things slowly started to change as the guy got up and said that he would inform the staff that they had a new owner which struck me as very odd.

As he got up and walked through the doorway opposite the front door, I got up and started walking around looking at the paintings and the pictures and noticed that they were now very distinctive with memories I had from childhood that almost seemed to come to life while looking at the pictures and remembered what had transpired on those days. Some of the pictures were of things that I seem to remember that no one had a camera with them but yet there were pictures on the wall. The paintings including the large one over the mantle piece had come into focus with the one over the mantle piece being myself and looking as if it was an old painting but yet new at the same time.

By the time the guy returned he was somehow different yet was still the same person. He was no longer acting as if he was a realtor but rather a butler who had been working for him for a great many years. It felt comfortable to treat him as an old friend but yet as an employee at the same time. With the slightest of gestures he motioned me to the doorway for which I seemed to remember being darkened and felt as though I wasn’t permitted to go through. I walked up to it, nothing happened and as I walked through it the lights came on and a room full of people yelled out welcome home.

The Brownstone (fictional story) page 3 of 5

The guy said “it’s the house trying to keep you out of that doorway you keep wanting to look into because it knows the servants have not readied it for you” which answered part of the question but not all of it. When asked about why it was leading to the abyss he simply said “anyway to keep you from looking” at the same time I realized I was going to go nowhere with the line of questioning I decided to check out a theory that I was developing and started just glancing at the pictures and oil paintings while picking up my pace towards the abyss.

The guy asked me “what is going on, do you really want to be by that hole?” but would not tell me why he was asking and was getting fearful of what I was doing. As I got closer to the abyss the further the guy got from me because he feared the abyss but still would not tell me why he was so fearful of it. As I glanced at the pictures while working my way over to the abyss I noticed that this stranger of a guy was actually in some of the pictures with my family and it looked like he was a caretaker of some sort in them. After I got to with in a few feet of the abyss the guy was talking more to himself than to me because all he could do was mumble about something, something he didn’t want me to hear.

What he was mumbling was barely audible to me and even though he was mumbling to himself what he was saying was somewhat disturbing, he was talking as if he was questioning why I was heading to the abyss while at the same time questioning the house as to why it was letting me walk up to the abyss but not let me see what was in the next room. With in a few minutes he was frightened by the fact that I was so close to the edge of the abyss, saying he did his best to stop me from going where I wasn’t wanted which sounded like he was telling this to the house.

Then he said that he didn’t want me to find out what was in the abyss because it would mean it would he would have to leave the house his master to bring me back. He was genuinely afraid of me being there at the edge of the abyss and by the time I was trying to look down into the abyss he was curled up in a ball rocking back and forth mumbling out loud but to himself that he didn’t want to go and that it wasn’t right that the house let me look because he didn’t want me to see what was in the abyss. He didn’t want me to be able to see that it was the way out of the house, a way home, and a way to the home I knew, the home I actually remembered and not this place that seemed so foreign to me.

When I tried to turn and walk over to him I turned into what felt like a brick wall for which I bounced off of right into the abyss, and as I fell backwards into the abyss time seemed to move real slow and seen the guy get up and try to rush over to the abyss to catch me but he was moving just as slowly as the time was. The last thing I seen before all went black from the abyss was the guy being hit with an invisible force that sent him flying, flying right for the darkened doorway that the house was trying to keep me from peering into. With that all went black and it felt like I was falling into nothingness and then there was nothing almost like the state between dreaming and being awake.

The next thing I remember I was woken up by my alarm clock which was odd since I didn’t remember ever going home let alone setting my alarm clock and going to bed. When I tried to remember what had happened the day before that would have me black out like that all I could remember was sitting on the front steps of the old abandoned brownstone with some friends. When I got up and got dressed, things were as I remembered them but yet they were somehow different almost as if there were subtle changes to the details that I could not put my finger on.

As I went through my normal weekend routine I noticed more subtle changes in different places but the biggest differences were in recognizing certain people I knew almost like it was the first time I ever seen them. I had gotten the surprise of my life when I walked up to my favorite hang out which was the front steps of the old abandoned brownstone, instead of the brownstone looking like it was long since abandoned it looked brand new and a few people were there that I recognized as people I somehow knew but I didn’t know why. They were people I recognized from what seemed like a dream from the night before, a dream for which I seen them as friends all except for one.

The Brownstone (fictional story) page 2 of 5

As he welcomed me I could not help but wonder what was going on and asked “I thought I was not welcome here”. After giving a bewildered look for a few moments the guy said “you were not welcome here together as a group” for which there was bewilderment from the guy who then said “it has been a long time since you left and we were trying to make sure everything was perfect for your return”. As I stood there bewildered he sensed that I didn’t know what he was talking about but struggled to find the words to give an adequate explanation.

After a few agonizing minutes which seemed like hours he asked “do you remember who I am” then looked lost as I just shook my head in response unable to find the words a few moments later I mustered enough to ask “what happened to all of my friend that I was in there with” for which he said “those were not friends they were people who have worked here that had to go looking for you and bring you home”. As the guy tried to ease the feelings I had the house was slowly starting to spruce itself up almost like there were invisible workers cleaning up and polishing where needed, then the bed disappeared and in its place was an old bench that was more of an elongated telephone table.

As I looked around the living room more details came into light that were not there before including old turn of the century pictures and old oil paintings. Of the oil paintings the largest one the closest one which now hung over the mantle piece was a large one that had me in it but it wasn’t me. The painting has what looked like my great grandparents but a lot younger than I remembered but it also had others in the painting as well people who looked like I should know them but yet unable to recognize them.

As the old turn of the century pictures came into focus I walked up to get a closer look at them and there were some that were even older. They were so old that you could tell that they were taken when photography was still relatively new but yet there I was again even younger with the people who looked like my great grandparents and this time there were other people there that looked like they could be the parents of my great grandparents all of who looked really young. As I looked at the pictures and paintings on the walls, the guy came out and said “this house is yours, it is your birthright, it is your home and it is calling you home for it misses you dearly”.

While looking at the pictures I started remembering some of the moments in the pictures but they didn’t seem like they happened ages ago but rather a few years ago and the memories started coming back like those moments happened just yesterday. As I moved on to the oil paintings other than the one over the mantle piece none of the paintings looked familiar with the exception of one for which the guy told me that I had painted myself. As we moved along I was trying to make my way to the darkened doorway that even with all of the new detail was still darkened and the guy was trying to prevent me from peering into the room because he was saving it for after I remembered who I was.

As I tried harder and harder to get to the darkened doorway the more he tried to keep me from peering into it until I finally asked “if this is all mine then why can’t I see into a room that is mine” for which he said “it isn’t ready for you to enter it” without knowing what he was talking about I asked “why would that be” which brought a puzzled look to his face and he tried to mutter a few words and could not, then was forced to abandon his attempts to keep me from peering in. As he let me walk up to the darkened doorway I started having trouble walking closer and closer to it until I hit what felt like a brick wall but there was nothing there.

After being stopped in place the woman looked out at me as she was passing the door and said “you can’t come in here yet we’re not ready to have you” so I went back to the walls of pictures and looked at more of the pictures since I could not get any closer to the darkened doorway. The fact that I wasn’t allowed to peer into the darkened doorway didn’t stop me from trying to get closer and closer and actually noticed that the house seemed to be leading me to the abyss at the side of the door instead of the darkened doorway. When I finally realized that I decided to ask “if this is my birthright to be here in my home then why am I being led back towards the front door and on the side of the hole in the floor”?

The Brownstone (fictional story) page 1 of 5

Sitting around outside with a few friends by this brownstone house that had fallen into disrepair with no visible sign of someone stepping foot into it in many years and with many attempts to see beyond the wooden planks that boarded up the windows from the inside failing, we noticed that the house itself was beginning to stir to life.

The windows which had become brown with age showed some light faint of life with a subtle dropping of one planks in the window closest to the stairs, which should have allowed someone to peer into the home but it was as black as could be. As we moved up the steps to take a look inside no one could see into the house due to it being dark inside even with flashlights that a couple of us had.

The door seemed to have become unlocked, so I tried the door and found that that it really was unlocked even though it had always been locked before and that the lock was visibly rusted in place. The doorknob had creaked and was kind of hard to move but it did move and you could hear the door move ever so slightly when the piece that kept the door in place slipped into the door when the knob turned. It ended up being stuck in place from not being opened in a great many years, but with some force I did manage to open the door and I practically fell in onto the floor or at least what was suppose to be the floor and would have fallen in if it wasn’t for a friend catching me.

When I looked up I noticed that the room was lit but I could not see any type of light source and the room was just as brown with age as the windows were. I then looked down at the spot in the floor that I would have fallen on onto and found that there was no floor there but rather a small abyss that was as black as the inside of the house was before the lighting came on. At first there was nothing there then an unmade bed slowly began to appear as we were looking around and from that bed a guy got up out of the bed came almost right up to us and said you are not welcome here.

As we stood there looking around we found ourselves unable to enter past the doorway but yet unable to move away from it either for the front steps had become a small closet like room with just the top few steps there that we stood on. Every few minutes the same guy would get out of bed and tell us the same thing over and over again “you’re not welcome here” then walk about for a couple minutes and then go back to bed. After what seemed like hours we noticed a darkened doorway at the far side of the room directly in front of us. From that we started hearing noises coming from the darkened doorway and then eventually a woman pushing large pieces of kitchen furnishings.

These furnishings were not restricted to kitchen tables or chairs but rather included counter tops and stoves and even a movable sink. As she did this she looked out into the room we were looking into but appeared to not take notice of us being kept in the doorway. As time went by the front steps we occupied and the doorway we were in seem to shrink and each time it appeared to shrink someone disappeared and after a little while the person reappeared in the room on the far side of the living room with helping the woman moving the kitchen furnishings around.

The person who had disappeared from the front steps only to reappear in the house didn’t seem to remember or to see that there were friends of his on the far side of the living room past that darkened doorway looking into the house. The look that each person had on his face was that of someone who had belonged there as a servant and was trying to get the house ready for someone to come or something to happen.
As my friends disappeared from the front steps the doorway got smaller and smaller until I was the only one left and a little while after the last of the friends disappeared from the steps and reappeared in the darkened doorway helping the woman the guy who had been getting out of bed saying you’re not welcome here got up one last time and walked over to what was left of the doorway into the living room and as he got up to the door, what ever was keeping everyone from entering the living room released itself. After that happened he didn’t come out and say what I had expected him to say but rather said welcome home.

turning the tide

Turning the Tide

As time goes by slowly as it does, for the task at hand seems insurmountable
While doing you best to keep it at bay and going nowhere

You start to think that all you are capable of giving is a feeble attempt at combating
Something so enormous that no matter were you look it just seems to be getting worse
By the minute

When you start believing that your efforts are all for not, you are shown that there is hope
In what you are trying to accomplish when you see that collectively with others just
Like you are slowly turning the tide in your favor, while seeing small things around you
That are up against those same odds and yet they miraculously survive unscathed to give
You a renewed faith and the promise that you are doing is not in vain and stands as a
Tribute to your valor

After the tide has been turned and the day has been won, you are allowed to take your leave
So you can do what you must so you will be ready to do it all again if there is ever a reason
To be called back to do that for what many would call a selfless act of true bravery for
You which you just call your job while thinking nothing of the sacrifice even though you feel it is a job you must do to help others when all that they know is on the line

the beauty of a flower

The Beauty of a Flower

The beauty of a flower can be as simplistic as the single petal of the water lily or the
Complexly designed pattern of the stargazer lily

The beauty of a flower can be seen in the miniature rose where you can barely see
The intricate definition of each petal that appear to blend together from the
Color and the smallness of the petals, or it can be like the biggest of roses that has a dizzying array
Of petals accentuated by colors that appear to have lots of contrast yet be complementary
To each other as well

The beauty of a flower can be in seeing a field of pansies that looks like a sea of colors or it can be seen in the small patch of daisies that are blowing in the wind

The beauty of a flower can be smelled floating in the gentle spring breezes or when you take the
Time to stop and smell your favorite types of flowers

The beauty of a flower can be in the tiniest of flowers that seems to stand out or it can be
The sheer number of small flowers that appear to cover the wiry plant on the side of the road

The real beauty of a flower is in its strength that comes through in times of adversity where
You think that it can not be hardy enough to thrive but yet it thrives enough to allow
It to bloom and it becomes the most beautiful flower

old man winter

Old Man Winter

As autumn slips into winter you watch as those dancing shadows from the old oaks and maples
Fall somewhat silent as the gentle winds that fed them go from a whimsical feel and
Movement to a cold harsh wind that gives everyone the chills

As the days pass you notice that the refreshing morning briskness is no longer and has been replaced by a morning chill that the rising sun has trouble warming up and eventually
Giving up trying as the days pass

When you are off on your daily errands you can’t help but miss the sweet songs of the birds that
Use to see all around flying and singing, that have now traveled to warmer weather and
As you look around remembering you don’t even see the ever playful squirrels except for the
Lonely one rummaging through its food stores

As winter sets in and there are no more leaves to dance around in the wind as old man winter gives you a new show to watch as he slowly blankets the ground and the evergreens
With a layer of snow that is so deep, pure, and white that all you feel you can do is watch
In wonder as it comes down and as it comes down you wish you could stay in that moment
Where there is so much beauty in it, then bottle it so you don’t have to let it go

As the stillness ends which came with the falling snow, you slowly start seeing a few animals
Stirring about that had been waken from their slumber from the added chill in the air and
Are now trying to get warm again while trying to find their favorite patches of food
Which are now hidden under the freshly fallen snow

When you have finished taking in the moment you go out to clear a path you look around
And see what looks to be a winter wonderland with the children going sledding down the gently
Sloping mounds of snow and the not yet plowed street, while seeing others building snowmen and seeing their parents clearing their own paths while making mounds that the children can use for sledding

As the time goes by you know that old man winter is giving you this one gift before he really
Goes and gives an even greater chill that makes you shutter from your very soul from it being
So cold and then giving you the cold west wind that bites you as you are still shuttering
From that chill he gave making you feel as if all you want to do is stay at home
Drinking hot chocolate with your favorite toppings that bring back the fondest memories
Of childhood growing up after a long day of playing in the snow

With the harshness that old man winter has dealt you all you see is the hardiest of animals outside
Walking and playing about which is just another way of keeping themselves warm and you
See the people who enjoyed the winder wonderland before the biting chill now all bundled up
Looking like the snowmen they made from the winter clothes just to keep warm

As time draws you deeper into winter you start yearning for spring to come and give a respite from the seemingly never ending chill that takes hold of you at your very core that makes
You want to just crawl up in bed and stay there all day and all night.

how do you

How Do You

How do you know when the time is right to let someone know that you are
Interested in them when each time you meet the situation doesn’t permit it to be

How do you show then heart and soul when the timing never allows you to show them

How do you show the openness needed to let someone know when you are ready to go
Beyond the awkwardness that the both of you feel in each others presence

How do you let that someone know without letting certain others know about your feelings
When it comes to that someone

How do you let that someone know how you feel without knowing if they are ready to
Hear what you are ready to share with them

How do you know when that someone is waiting for you to come out and bear your soul to them

how can we

How Can we

How can we teach someone to trust when all they know is mistrust

How can we console someone who appears inconsolable

How can we teach respect when no one wants to be responsible

How can we be civil when others act out of spite

How can we teach when no-one wants to learn

How can we not do our best when we see the worst in others

How can we not do things to help others

How can we not pay attention when things go wrong

How can we not do our best to bring out the best in others

How can we not do our best to see the best in others

How can we not be at our best in everything we do

A Prayer

A Prayer

A prayer can be just a few simple words

A prayer could be something simple but that is meaningful

A prayer could be a question when you need answers

A prayer could be said to protect the people we care about

A prayer can be said in the hopes of a good journey

A prayer could be said in the hopes of getting things done

A prayer could be said in the hopes of making sure that everyone stays safe

A prayer could be said in the hopes of gaining understanding

A prayer can be said in an attempt to not lose our way or to find someone

A prayer can be said to help someone in need

A prayer could be said when we feel that we are lost and alone

A prayer said in the presence of the sick could put their mind at ease

A prayer could be said to help guide someone home when they are leaving this
Earthly realm that we call life for a better world

A prayer said with someone in need raises their spirits

A prayer gives sanctuary to the weary mind

A prayer is a way to get a load off your chest when you feel you need to speak the
Words out loud to God

A prayer can be said to know that we still have faith

A prayer shows that we still talk to God

A prayer when answered may not always be the expected answer but is always
What is needed at the time