Isolate, #RDP #flashfiction

(c)2020 by Pamela Schloesser Canepa

It’s easy in times like this

not to trust,

to let fear take over.  

You think, if you isolate, what you fear can’t win.  That, if you isolate, you are starving the fear, shutting off from what you fear.

Let  me tell you about this little monster.  It grows in cold, dark, lonely places void of light, within people who fear the warmth, who assume the worst of others.  It grows; it takes over the very person trying to starve it.  For, one who assumes the worst, needs to give oneself a chance to be proven wrong.  If you are never proven wrong, then why would you change your beliefs?

Isolating is great, when it occurs to get things done, to get down to business and feed your own thoughts.  When one isolates to avoid, that monster grows ever stronger and IT feeds off your own thoughts.  I know.  You see it growing all over me, don’t you?

Two young men had stopped but walked off as the old women opened her coat and removed it to reveal her arms covered in dirt and a green growth all over her arms.  She had lost her audience; they were disgusted and maybe even afraid.  

A little child peeked out at her from behind his mother’s leg where he’d been hiding.

I see you!  Don’t be afraid!  Don’t let it take over you, don’t do what I did.  You still have time!  Be brave, little one!

He didn’t turn away; he knew she was not the monster but simply had been overcome. Still, he stayed close to his mother.

Quickly, his mother whisked him away, and the old woman smiled, once again putting on her coat.  Her audience was gone, but she had reached one impressionable soul, and this was good.  For, she knew paranoia would again sweep the land, and likely very soon.

(Written in response to the Ragtag Daily Prompt word: Isolate.  Quite timely, yeah?  Visit them at https://ragtagcommunity.wordpress.com/2020/03/13/rdp-friday-isolate/ )

 

 

Enchanted. #RDP #wordoftheday

Pixabay photo

Enchanted, (c) 2019 by Pamela Schloesser Canepa

It seems infused with spirit,

this place.

It is not cold or dead

or alone.

In the absence of the light,

can you hear the whispers?

In the silence of winter,

Can you feel the warmth?

The footprints others leave

on our heart.

We are surrounded,

ever changing inside

always choosing

to let in the light

or the dark.

To which do open your heart?

 

*Written in response to the daily word prompt at Rag Tag Community Daily Prompt

 

Punch. #RDP #flashfiction

Flash fiction response by Pamela Schloesser Canepa, (c) 2019

“Wree, I feel like we are going to be a great success! Thanks for your guidance. I’ve got no idea what your secret is, but this seems to be working.”

“Of course it is, Chap. I know what I’m doing. Could you just, tame your excitement a little though. They can sense it from a mile away. We need to be confident, smooth.” Wree stood and straightened his imaginary tie. Of course, he looked good.

“I’m just not believing it all yet. We’ll be heralded by all, we’ll be famous.” Chap beamed. “I keep thinking we’ll be found out, though, for what we really are.” The smile faded, and anxiety crept over his face. “I mean, I see you and your reptilian nature,” he whispered. “Why don’t they? Why don’t they see my tentacles and fangs?”

“Stop it, Chap. Don’t worry; they’ll never see it. They drank the punch a long time ago. We look like winners to them. We look like money, and it blinds them. Sit tight, because this is the millenia in which we will conquer.” He stood proud again and smiled at an approaching female at the perfect age for carrying and producing an interplanetary specimen. “Hello,” he said with a wink.

****The RDP prompt is shared daily at the Ragtag Community site. You may find today’s prompt at https://ragtagcommunity.wordpress.com/2019/11/09/rdp-saturday-punch/ What would you make out of today’s prompt? Thanks for stopping by! Please leave a comment and tell me where you are from, what planet, galaxy, etc. 🙂

Photo by Collis on Pexels.com

Maverick. #lightandshadow

Welcome to the weekend!  How about some speculative flash-fiction to combat the effects of a stressful week?  Thanks for reading!

Maverick, by Pamela Schloesser Canepa

Maverick didn’t like being followed.  Having once been a soldier in the Gulf War, he was always very aware and at times, hyper-alert.

No one knew the beings were here on earth, until Maverick discovered his shadow was not the only one following him.  Who would have suspected that our first alien invasion would be orchestrated by invisible beings?  Pretty much no one but Maverick looked up from their cell phone while walking.

All I know is, one day they were not here, and then one day, they were.  Look for a shadow with no human partner.  It may be following you, or just standing on a corner.  Maverick said these beings probably don’t get much sunlight (or any equivalent) on their home planet.  Do they like the sun?  Who knows.  When you see an unpaired shadow, perhaps it is an alien just standing and soaking up the rays.  Or maybe they are watching you, observing.  Maverick says it’s the latter.

Meanwhile, the government is making cell phones even cheaper, and requiring each family to have one for every person over age six.  They struck a deal with the aliens.  Be aware.

Maverick and I always leave our cell phones at home.  You might want to consider that too.  Be aware!

**This is my entry for the Rag Tag Daily word prompt, shared each day at http://ragtagcommunity.wordpress.com

Check them out, follow them, and join the daily writing fun!

**The above photo is my own, taken on an innocent family walk in North Carolina where the beauty of fall is apparent and colorful.  No aliens were harmed in the taking of this photo. 🙂

Jumble. #RDP

Her closet was chaos spilling forward.

I opened the door and it was like a jack-in-the-box junped out at me.

“You don’t understand, ” she said. “We’ve all got something. These things mean so much to me.

Only, when she’d look for a particular pair, she could only find one shoe or couldn’t find the pair at all. I refused to help.

When she was jailed, two years later, a year after I got fed up and left, it was based on evidence found at the bottom of that closet. No wonder she’d kept it a jumble for so long.

Did she forget what she had buried under that heap?

She hid those skeletons well, just for a while.

Visit http://ragtagcommunity.wordpress.com and learn more about the Ragtag Daily Prompt. View some more entries or even join the fun!

April. #RDP #shortreads

(C) by 2019 Pamela Schloesser Canepa

The wind was howling and we needed to take a break from our cliff hike.  Mike spotted a cave ahead in the distance.  “Let’s stop there,” he suggested.

The height was already making my breath come in short spurts; the wind made me feel like I’d be toppled over any minute, but with one foot in front of the other, we made it to the cave.

“Further in, so the wind won’t blow dust at us,” Mike said.

It sounded reasonable to me.  Further into the cave, I saw a huge blanket on the ground.  Mike and I look at each other warily.

In my peripheral vision, I spotted something moving.

“Stop right there!”  Mike wielded a pistol.

“Really, Mike?”  I was disgusted.

“You wouldn’t be so judgmental if it was a bear,” he argued.

The moving object was much too thin to be a bear.  As it came closer, I could see it was human in shape, with its hands up.

“No harm here, it’s just me,” the small form said.  A small form with the voice of a man.  He seemed taller as he slowly came closer.

Unthreatened, Mike put his pistol away.

“Do you live here?”  I asked.

“Oh, no.  I was camping with my girl.  She wondered off; I’ve been looking for her, well, until the wind picked up.”

“Shouldn’t there be a search party?”

“Not anymore.  It’s just me now.  I’ve been at this for a few weeks.  Haven’t gone home since I last saw her.”

“When exactly was that?”

“The end of April,” the man replied.

“Did you know it’s September now?”  I asked.

“September?”  He chuckled.  “That’s not funny.”  His face grew worried and withdrawn.

“When the wind dies down, we’ll take you into town for a coffee and steak, my treat,” Mike offered, probably feeling badly for having been so defensive.

The man just nodded, eyes wide open as saucers. Exiting the cave, he sang softy:

“April came and went. 

Its beauty fleeting, its energy spent. 

But my love is all but gone.

And all I have left is this sad song.”

MIke and I exchanged nervous glances, wondering what we’d gotten ourselves into.  I patted the man on the back.  “That’s Mike, and I’m April,” I said.

 

***Thank you to the Ragtag Community.  Visit them for other takes on the prompt and to join the daily writing inspiration at Ragtag Community on WordPress

**Both the poem and story are written by yours truly.  Thanks for stopping by.  Your comments are also much appreciated!