WWW #31 – Heart Warming Tale – Text #2

Wake Up and Live Happily Ever After

By B.

During winter, we often feel cold in our bodies and in our hearts. Overwhelmed and exhausted by our environment. There is this holiday rush, family, friends, all over, and then we are back to the harsh reality of our routine. Harsh? Who said our routine has to feel that way?

We spend more time complaining, feeling sorry for ourselves than actually giving ourselves a chance to do what we want to do. To be who we want to be. To feel how we want to feel.

Doesn’t that sound just plain amazing? Verging on too good to be true, doesn’t it? Well I am not just going to throw you out there, and let you tackle this issue all by yourselves. In this article I will share a few leads you can explore, to try and make a difference in your own little bubble of life.

WWW#33 – Deleted / Erased – Text #2

Purpose

by Hailie Andersen

Plodding down his daily route, he could feel the heaviness of boredom and solitude weighing on his limbs. Lately he had been contemplating his life and wondering how he had gotten there. Comparing his current situation to what his younger-self had projected his future could look like ten years ago. There was a world between there and then. Job – check. House – mmm… he owned a flat… semi-check. Athletic build – he exercised but was no model… semi-check again. Family – alien concept he still desired, but did not seem to have in him to construct. Wife – no girlfriend in ages. Marriage – felt more and more like a never-happening tale.

***

Keys turned in the lock. He walked in, and shed his coat and jacket in the lobby. Then he eyed his flat. Soulless, nude space, open lines, cold, empty walls, uplifted only by the view, and the grey light filtering through the high windows. The absence of decor mirrored the void he felt biting at his core. He needed something to counter its grasp, replace it with meaning, or deflect it with a placebo blend.

Instinctively, he sat down on his couch and switched on the TV. Hoping to be filled by others’ stories. Zapped from one channel to the next. Found nothing to his taste. He breathed in. The atmosphere was warm. Maybe too warm. He needed air. Fresh air. He got up, slid the glass door, and walked out on his balcony.

Dressed only in his classic, matt, silk shirt, he braved the negative temperature, resolutely. He looked out over the lake and to the horizon. He needed to feel something. Gushes of frozen winter wind slapped repeatedly at his skin. He could sense his body shrink and shiver in the cold. Still he stood there. Unwavering soul lost in his thoughts. His perspective felt blurred. He needed focus.

***

Johan knew he needed to act – turn his ways around, because they were not working. If he stayed there watching his life pass him by, he was aware he would disappear. Shrink into oblivion. Be deleted, erased. Leave nothing behind him upon his passing. Drown into the mass of loners out there.

Interview With A Writer – #1

Hey Guys,

We have been saving a few gems for you for quite some time now. With the spirit of the end of year festivities backing up our sails, it feels like the best time to let such gifts wash out to your shores.

Here comes the first of those anticipated jewels, a delightful interview with one of our beloved authors. You know her from her text Styla (WWW#11 – Werewolves – Text#5).

Without further ado….

Meet – Heather Polk, a.k.a. Artofself

Introduction

–       Could you tell us a few words about yourself? (Introduce yourself – where do you come from? – Where do you live? – What do you do for a living? – any dreams, aspirations? – …. )

My real name is Heather Ann Polk. My nickname is Bug or Hettybug. I love nicknames-my entire immediate family uses them. I am a prolific dabbler who hales from Baton Rouge Louisiana. I work for a construction company called Turner Industries where I manage job site costs. That may sound boring, but it can truly be a challenging job. My dream is to one day become a published, bestselling author and to travel the world with a man that I truly love.  I deeply and passionately feel that life should be tasted at every opportunity, but more importantly, shared with someone. Go out and find that someone to share life’s great experiences with!!

***

Books

–       If there were one book you could recommend to our readers, which would it be?

As I read that question I laughed. My favorite book changes all of the time. Not only that, I’m always behind everyone else in reading the good ones.  For now though, my recommendation would have to be the Inferno series by Sylvain Reynard. I absolutely love, love those stories.

–       Is there a book you read that you think changed your life somehow or spoke to you in a way that no other book did?

I can’t say that I’ve read any life-changing books, but I have read a book called The Untethered Soul by Michael Singer that has given me a different perspective on viewing and questioning who I really am.

–       Would you mind sharing with us one of your favorite quotes?

WWW # 16 – Partners in Crime – Text #3

Letter to the Sheriff

By B.

 

People think we are just wicked and mean,

But we are desperate.

We have never seen anything come our way.

 

People think we are lazy and we cannot shoulder hard work,

Nor long cold hours staring at a moving screen.

Clearly they have never planned a coup.

 

I have been sitting by this house for days,

Trying to establish a pattern, a routine of some kind,

But there is nothing predictable about these guys.

 

I feel like I am wasting my time.

This short will never happen. We are lacking data,

And manpower to make sure it is safe.

 

There is always a risk. The key is to minimize it.

The best guys in the business

Hell, the best in history are born planners.

WWW #14 – Never Say Never – Text #2

Momentary Certainty

by B.

 

Even if you mean it,

It doesn’t mean anything.

Never, always, forever

Whatsoever

cannot be taken for granted.

Beware

Of their implication.

 

Your word should be a serious engagement.

You should only voice promises you can live up to.

 

---

 

First published on Diary of a Soul Writer

 

---

Featured Challenge #2 – Screens – Text #2

Exposed 

by B.

Why is it that we need to share and connect so much with virtual people, or real people who are not in the room? So much so that we dismiss the presence of those who are.

Have not you noticed that you spend more time on your phone, starring at your agitated screens, checking your messages or writing some than actually talking to people, looking into people’s eyes?

We spend more time sharing pictures and commenting on what we do than spending those moments with those we cherish.

Why is it that

WWW #13 – Borrowed – Text #3

Vicariously

by B.

I do not know about you, but I am a fan of romantic comedies. I always marvel at the beauty of these stories. How extremely silly or thoughtful the characters are. They are just like us, except they are more. They are caricatures with whom we can identify. They think less and they act more. It seems to make them very happy. Sometimes they think too much and end up being very lucky. I do not believe in, nor do I appreciate those types of storylines as much. My favorites are the ones that are packed with action. I adore it when things happen, and the characters make choices, good or bad choices, but those choices always end up well received. Romantic movies remind us that there are great people around us, and they are well worth taking a leap for.

 

I am really good at watching, appreciating, or creating moments in stories. I enjoy it so much, it makes me feel elated, when I write or watch or read about amazing love stories, grand gestures and magical love affairs. My imagination is packed with great ideas and wonderful romantic moves, but when comes the time to endorse them and do it for real, i.e. make a move so bold it could feature in one of Sparks’ novels; I am just like anyone else. I am petrified. I would like to borrow the supernatural abilities of a gifted medium to know the ending, before a story even begins in real life, so that I could peacefully make my way to the entrance, or to the exit, risk free.

 

Featured Challenge #22 – Truth – Text #1

The Truth About Love

(an organized poetic essay)

by B.

0- Introduction

When you feel attracted

To a possible special someone,

When you put yourself out there,

You have to be prepared to accept

What will come next.

As Luck is a key,

Whichever the outcome may be,

It will not seem fair.

Coup de Coeur #1

Prisonnier Visionnaire

by B.

Je choisis aujourd’hui de vous parler de Loermont. Ce jeune auteur fait ses débuts dans l’écriture. Ses textes ne le laissent absolument pas transparaitre, tant il manie les mots avec précision et souplesse. Au fils des lignes, j’étais transportée. Je me retrouve tant dans cette expérience visuelle et émotionnelle du voyage en train qu’il a choisi d’explorer.

WWW #1 – A Fork in the Road – Text #2

A Fork in the Road

by B.

When I reach a fork in the road,

And pick a way,

I don’t look back, no way.

 

I move right ahead,

And to the future.

 

“What” and “If”s are altogether too pricy,

Painful, and incompatible with reality.