I’m a little late to our Fairy Blog Mother’s party, but who can resist Rochelle’s invitation with Ted Strutz’s picture on the front? I will be in and out of FF world for a while. I’ve been teaching aerobics at the local Y which is closing at the end of January. In order to continue teaching the ladies I’ve fallen in love with, I must take an online class then a big test. I only say big because it’s been ages since I’ve been tested for anything but getting through life without hurting myself. AS always, thanks for reading my work.
Twin boys rest beside my bed in wheeled bassinets.
My heart breaks with joy.
Three-year-old boys clatter through the house on miniature plastic trucks.
I pray for ten minutes of silence.
Seven-year-olds rumble across the kitchen on roller skates
while singing, “Wheels go round-and-round.”
I roar with anger.
Seventeen-year-olds arrive home with fast cars.
I worry.
Twenty-one, my boys ride down the tarmac in a military plane
headed for God knows where.
I weep until my chest hurts.
At twenty-three my boys return in twin caskets
draped in American flags wheeled down the tarmac in the rain.
My heart breaks again.
Such a clever use of the prompt, Alicia, Almost a poem
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Thanks, Neil. I’m glad you thought it clever. I’m never quite sure how to format short sentences like this, so I tend to do it like this.
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Oh, my heart! This is so well done, it’s as if you truly lived it. I hope you didn’t. Did you?
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No, thank goodness! Thanks for your kind comment. Alicia
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Dear Lish,
You covered the life cycle beautifully…but oh that heartbreak at the end. Wonderfully written.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Thanks, Rochelle, life seems to turn us in circles, doesn’t it? Cheers! Lish And a very Happy New Year!!!
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Oh, dear one, this just breaks my heart to read… and so true for far too many.
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No mother or father, sister or brother should see someone they love come home in a box. Thanks for reading. Happy New Year!
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AMEN!
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Oh man, Alicia… you’re killing me today! Beautifully done, no matter how heartbreaking.
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Thanks? I’m glad you liked my story ~ no matter how heartbreaking. Happy New Year!!
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It was good! Definitely!
Happy fabulous 2018 to you!
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Wow! Such a collage depicting the passage of time. Very poignant tale, poetically related.
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Thank you! Happy New Year. So glad you stopped by.
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this is a heartbreaker. sad.
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I’m glad you stopped by to read. Happy New Year!
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Awwwe, what lyrical language and how poignant!
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Why thank you! Happy New Year!
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A life cycle in 100 words. Brilliantly done.
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What a lovely thing to say. Thanks!
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So sad, the cycle of life cut too short.
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This was a fun one to write. Although it turned out sadder than I’d planned, Cheers.
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Cleverly done. A very sad story and so much told in so few words.
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Thanks, Clare. Happy 2018 to you and yours.
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My heart breaks too thinking about the 23 year old twin boys and their devastated mother.
Beautifully written, Lish.
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Thank you very much, Moon. Happy New Year to you.
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My pleasure, Lish.
A Happy New Year to you too. 🙂
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Very powerful Alicia and quite heart-wrenching at the end. I loved the progression from innocence to experience and finally despair and sadness
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Thanks, Michael, I tried to catch the highlights of the boys growing up. Happiest of New Years to you.
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This is lovely. Your words have nudged the tears that have been lurking behind my eyes for days, out into the open. Thank you, Lish. And good luck with your testing! Such a lovely intro to this story, too.
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I’m sorry you’ve felt tearful the last few days and hope everything is alright. Sometimes shedding a few tears makes one feel better. Yes? I’m looking forward to still being able to work with my ladies. Some are in their early 80’s and rely on my class for exercise. Cheers and Happy New Year.
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I can hear the wheels turning and am reminded of them being millstones grinding you down… so very well written.
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Thanks very much, Bjorn. I like your comparison to millstones grinding. Happy New Year.
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It was almost as if they were born to break their mother’s heart. You did this so well, from their first moments to their end in 100 words and to make us feel the pain too – wonderful writing Lish. Happy New Year to you
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It does seem that way, doesn’t it? Thanks very much. Happy 2018 to you and yours. LIsh
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My pleasure and to you, Lish
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dang – did you have to twist my heart this way –
but well done! and best wishes on your test – workout teachers have a special heart!
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Oops! Sorry and thanks, too. And thank you for your kind comment about workout teachers. I’m retired but have become entangled with this group of lovely women. Cheers.
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and it was sweet to read how you bonded with your students – but it is sad that the Y is closing
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It sure is! The trip to the Y in town is an hour round trip.
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Clever use of the prompt, and such a poignant tale.
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Thank you.
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As I got further into the poem, I feared what might be coming. Very emotional. Well done.
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Thank you, Russell. Happy New Year to you and Connie.
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Beautifully done. So graphic.
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Thank you, Sandra. Happy New Year!
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So sad! But lovely too.
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Thank you, Happy New Year.
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Dammit!
Sorry…your story was provoking.
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Dammit! works for me. Thank you. And Happy New Year.
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I’ve read of a mother who lost five sons in WWII. I’d be inconsolable about losing even one child. They’ve been showing the movie “Saving Private Ryan” on TV recently. I could feel the sorrow in your story, Alicia. Lovely writing. —- Suzanne
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Thank you and Happy New Year!
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Happy New Year 2018, Alicia! 🎇🎆🙂— Suzanne
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