The Old Porch Swing

 Good morning!

I wasn't going to give you anything besides a life update today. I hadn't even really thought about trying to find something to post until last night. And then I only had a short time. So you get a short poem.

This week has been hot. We did get clouds on Wednesday and some yesterday. But they weren't thick, heavy clouds except some yesterday. But no rain. I'm glad I don't have to mow this week. The heat is supposed to break on Sunday and at least the beginning of next week is supposed to be in the 80ºs instead of 90ºs+. I'll go for that.

I have been writing pretty steadily this week on Don Wood. I jotted down the last scenes I needed and last night I started on what might be the final scene. So exciting to be almost done!!! Then it will have to be edited, formatted, cover designed, proof copy ordered, read and edited again all before it gets into your hands. But at least you shouldn't have to wait months for it. That's one thing I like about indie publishing instead of traditional. I can finish a story and don't have to wait a year before it becomes available.

Let's see, what else has happened this week? I've worked on getting girls registered for camp, and have gotten some other behind the scenes stuff done. Hard to believe the gates open on Monday! And I can't believe a week from today is July! Wow!

Well, I need to work on other things, so enjoy this short poem and I hope to see you next week.

 

 

The Old Porch Swing

Fondly I gaze
As I swing to and fro,
At the beauty before me
On the flowers that grow.

The warm summer breezes
How gently they blow,
And they sway the old porch swing
As if they did know,

That the memories they bring,
And that over me flow
Are the sweet days of childhood
I spent swinging to and fro.

So I sit here and dream
Of the times long ago
On the dear old porch swing
As I sway to and fro. 

 

Do you have a porch swing?

Have you had a hot week?

What do you enjoy doing on summer days?

Climbing with the Medfords - Part 2

 Good morning!

Did anyone else have mixed up days this week? I sure did! My Wednesday felt like a Tuesday or Thursday, and yesterday was a Friday–except I didn't post–and today is a Saturday. Not sure what tomorrow will be. Another Saturday maybe?

You see, I mowed the yard on Wednesday. It was the only day this week that was not in the mid to upper 90s with a heat index of 100º+. I have been so glad I finished my 100 miles of walking last week as there were heat advisories this week and I would not have wanted to go walk.

I'm still writing, but some days have just been slow this week. Not sure if it's partly because of the heat, partly just me, and maybe partly because I'm focusing a lot of energies and brain power into getting ready for camp and that is distracting me from my story. But I plan to keep working on it.

Today is my 3rd nephew's birthday. In some ways it's hard to believe Doodle Bug is turning 11, but at the same time, it seems that he already is that old. I remember when he was just a little guy. My grandpa and aunt are coming down this morning, and we are all going to head over to my brother's to celebrate Doodle Bug's birthday. (And if you are wondering, no, his parents did NOT name him Doodle Bug. His aunt BehBeh–that's me–gave him that nickname.)

Anyway, that's that. If you haven't seen my KDWC Journals, head over to Read Another Page and check them out. I have mine ordered. I can't wait to see it in print!

I hope you enjoy the rest of this short story.

 

Climbing with the Medfords

Part - 2

    The others were so busy looking at different points of the city and pointing out interesting things to the others, that only Lillian noticed an old lady looking out her window at the children on the billboard. Lillian thought she was talking on the telephone, but it was hard to tell. Feeling friendly, she waved at the lady, but received no response. “Oh well,” Lillian thought with a shrug. “Perhaps she didn’t see us after all. We are pretty high up.”
    It was Alice who, turning around several minutes later and looking down at the street, noticed the police car coming towards them and stopping under the billboard. “Hey everyone,” she said. “Look.”
    The others looked down in time to see two uniformed officers climb out of the car and look up at them before walking over to the base of the pole. One of the officers looked like a friend of theirs who directed traffic near the childrens’ neighborhood. When he spoke, they knew it was Officer Hitt.
    “What are you all doing up there?” Officer Hitt asked.
    “Catching a bird’s eye view of the city, sir,” Walter replied, glancing quickly at Frank and wondering what was going to happen.
    “And what are you going to do when one of you falls?” the other officer asked.
    “Oh, we won’t fall,” Frank answered quickly. “We’re being careful. And we’re used to climbing things.”
    The officers held a low toned conversation while the children waited uneasily. At last Officer Hitt called up, “Why don’t all of you come down now so we can talk without attracting the attention of the entire neighborhood.”
    The children exchanged disappointed glances but knew better than to disobey. Lillian, the closest to the ladder, went down first followed by Ester. Katie and Alice followed. Since Alice was small, she had to drop a little ways from the last rung of the ladder and while she hung there waiting for Katie to get out of the way, her left hand slipped. Right at that moment Walter, who was climbing down quickly and didn’t realize his sister wasn’t already on the ground, stepped on her hand.
    “Ouch!” Alice exclaimed, and Walter quickly moved his foot, but only to put it on the next rung of the ladder which in reality was Alice’s shoulder. As he shifted his weight, Alice fell onto the pile of books, catching herself with her left hand.
    With an exclamation of surprise, Walter, having lost his balance when what he thought was the bottom of the ladder disappeared from under him, fell with a thud onto his sister and the scattered pile of schoolbooks.
    To add to the confusion, Frank dropped from the ladder after Walter without looking and landed right on top of his friend!
    “Walter, get off of me,” Alice cried, hugging her left arm and trying to get to her feet.
    “Sorry,” Walter apologized, “I can’t move until Frank gets up.” But even when Frank was helped up by Officer Hitt, Walter had to be helped up too.
    “What hurts?” Officer Shepherd asked him when he saw Walter wasn’t putting any weight on his right leg.
    “I think I must have pulled something in my leg,” Walter groaned, cautiously bending his knee and then gingerly putting weight on his foot.
    “Sorry about that,” Frank told him with concern. “I should have looked before dropping. Are you all right?”
    “Yeah, I’ll be okay, but next time I’ll go last,” and Walter managed to grin at his friend before turning to the girls who were gathered around Alice.
    “Is it just your arm?” Office Shepherd asked, kneeling beside Alice.
    “My left wrist and my right fingers,” she sniffed, trying not to cry though the pain was pretty bad.
    Gently the officer checked her fingers. “I think they’ll be okay. They’ll probably be rather sore for a few days, but it doesn’t look like any of them are broken. They’re probably just bruised.”
    “That’s good!” Lillian exclaimed, “You’d never be able to write to Natalie.”
    “Or do your homework,” Katie added. Ester didn't say a thing but was quietly gathering up the scattered books and papers.
    After carefully checking Alice’s wrist, Officer Shepherd said, “I’m not a doctor, but I think your wrist is lightly sprained.”
    A collective sigh of relief came from the gathered children at that, but their relief was short lived. Officer Hitt, with a series face, gave them a stern lecture about the dangers of climbing billboards and told them never to do it again if their fathers weren’t there.
    “Do you understand?” the officer asked the sober children.
    “Yes, sir,” they replied.
    “All right then,” he said in a more cheerful voice, “let’s get you all home.
    “I think Alice should get a doctor to take a look at her wrist.” Officer Shepherd said. During the lecture he had improvised a sling for the injured arm from Lillian’s scarf, and Alice was grateful to be able to rest her arm in it.
    Never again did any of those girls climb a billboard. As for Walter and Frank, I can’t say for certain that they never did, but, if they did, they never told.

 

 Do you think Frank and Walter climbed billboards again?

Would you like to climb one? (If you had permission.)

Did you have mixed up days this week or were they normal?

Climbing with the Medfords - Part 1

 Good morning!

Are you sure it's Friday? Isn't it Wednesday or something? No? Maybe Thursday? Well, I suppose if you and the calendars insist that it is Friday, I should post.

This week has been busy. Not a lot of extra things at the beginning, but it was still busy. Between trying to get some blog posts done for Read Another Page, and editing and publishing Lessons from Liberty (yes, it's published now), and writing, and really starting prep for KDWC, and normal life, I guess it was a bit busy. Yesterday my mom, sis, and I went up to help my aunt clean out some things. Then this evening I'm heading over to a friend's house to help her try out her new ice cream maker. :) She invited the other single gals at church too. Maybe I should start calling us the "Unmarrieds". Oh, and my best friends are back in town, and I'm hoping to get together with just them (no kids for one time) to talk and celebrate their birthday that is coming up. And I need to get my final 2 miles for the Spring 100 challenge walked. I don't think I'll have any trouble doing that. I also need to finish getting ready to teach Children's Church on Sunday. I taught a last minute review last Sunday because there was a mix-up in schedule. And we have music practice after church again.

Anyway, I have a 2 part story for you this time. Well, you can have the first part this week. I first posted this back in 2016. I have a whole lot about the Medford family written, but it's all in letter form. I hope you enjoy this! And if you've subscribed to my newsletter and have read "The Medford's 4th of July" this is the same family.

 

Climbing with the Medfords

Part 1

    It was a beautiful October day. The sun was shining in a cloudless sky and the air was brisk as the Medford children of school age climbed onto the school’s bus. It was time to head home and the bus was full of chattering children.
    “What are you going to do when you get home?” Alice asked her best friend Katie.
    “I’ll probably have to help with some chores or start on my homework. I wish we could do something fun.”
    “Me too.”
    “Maybe we could go roller skating later.”
    “Oh, that would be fun. I’ll check with my mom after we get home.”
    The two friends continued to talk as the bus stopped here and there to let children off. They were discussing their teacher’s upcoming wedding when a sudden noise and the jerking of the bus interrupted them.
    “What’s happening?”
    “Did something break?”
    “Why did we stop?”
    The questions were asked so quickly that Mr. Benton, the driver, held up his hands. “I don’t know. You kids just sit there a minute and let me take a look.”
    After waiting a few minutes Mr. Benton climbed back into the bus. “I don’t know what we’ll do. There’s something wrong with the engine. Don’t know how long it will take and I’ve got to get you kids home.”
    “Oh, we can walk home,” Walter Medford spoke up.
    “Yeah,” Frank Burton put in. “We all live near each other. Why can’t we walk home?”
    “Please,” the rest of the children begged, eager to be out in the sunshine and fresh air.
    For a moment Mr. Benton looked at the excited, pleading faces of the school children. “All right,” he began. “But,” he raised his voice to be heard above the sudden clamor of tongues, “you must all promise to stick together!”
    A loud chorus of “We promise!” filled the air as the children eagerly grabbed their books and climbed down off the bus. With many shouts and waves, the children set off down the street in a happy bunch, jackets open or slung over shoulders. It was glorious to be outside at last with a tramp through the town ahead of them.
    They had walked a few blocks when suddenly Frank exclaimed, “Walter, look!” He pointed to a very large billboard. It was the largest one the children had seen and it excited their interest. “Let’s climb it!”
    “Yeah, let’s!” Walter shouted eagerly, running towards it with Frank on his heels and the rest of the children tagging along. Climbing billboards was a favorite activity for Walter and Frank as well as several others in the group, though no one had climbed one that high before.
    Reaching the bottom of the billboard pole, the schoolbooks were quickly dumped on the ground and the girls waited eagerly for Walter and Frank to tell them it was all right to climb. The two boys, feeling responsible for the welfare of the rest of the children, wanted to make sure the billboard was safe.
    “I think they just wanted a chance to enjoy it by themselves,” Alice whispered to Katie.
    Katie nodded.
    After what seemed like hours to those waiting below, Walter called down, “Okay, come on up!”
    There was a scramble for the ladder and before long Lillian and Alice Medford, Katie Burton and Ester Hershal were standing with the boys at the top of the billboard taking in the amazing bird’s eye view of Boonsville.
    “It feels like we’re birds in a nest,” Ester laughed. “But I don’t see any mother bird coming with a bug to feed us.”
    The girls laughed at that thought and Katie added, “Good, because I’d hate to have to eat a bug!”
    “Look!” Walter pointed, “there’s our house!” Sure enough the Medford house could be seen among the trees many blocks away.
    Turning to look in another direction, Frank pointed out the large church on Clark street.
    “Why, I think I can see the school,” and Alice pointed in the direction where a building of some sort could be partially seen that might indeed be the school.
    “I don’t know if it is,” Frank said.
    “It rather looks like it though,” Walter added, not wanting to sound too critical of his younger sister’s idea.
    “And see there,” Katie pointed near the Medford’s house. “Is that Rob and Sara?”
    “Where?” Ester and Alice asked at once.
    “There, at the corner grocery. Don’t you see them?”
    Frank and Walter turned. “Wouldn’t that be funny if it was? We ought to ask them if they were at the grocery at this time,” and Walter looked down at his watch. “Too bad we didn’t bring any binoculars with us. Then we really could have seen things.”
    “Walt, you and I should come back some time with a pair.” Frank grinned at the idea.

 

 Did you have a busy week?

Have you ever climbed a billboard?

Do you think you'd like to?

A Writer's Regret

 Good morning and happy Friday!

    Today is my sister's birthday and my parents' anniversary. (Yep, they share the same day just like I share a birthday with my Mom.) It's a beautiful morning. The sun is shining and the birds are singing and chirping. It's in the 50s right now, but is supposed to warm up to the 70s today. Not sure if my sis and I will walk before breakfast or afterwards. We do need to clean the house.

We've had rain, and humidity and warmth, and are now enjoying the cooler temperatures. Lovely walking weather.

This week has been pretty normal. I taught my final writing class for the school year. I mowed the yard. I've been writing. I think I have at least 5k already this week. And I know what comes next, so I'm eager to write it. This version of "Don Wood" is so much better than the last one. Don actually cares about this mystery instead of not being interested.

I've been practicing the violin this week as we have ensemble practice right after church on Sunday. And the children are playing bells for church, so we'll have to run over our song between Sunday school and church. They love playing bells!

I really had no idea what to post this week. So I looked at some of my old poems I've posted and this one just seemed to fit. Enjoy! :D

 

 

A Writer’s Regret

Dear readers and critics, family and friend,
I jot these regrets on paper with pen.
I fear I am ailing, I must have a disease.
It comes suddenly upon me like some giant sneeze!
There’s nothing to do, I can’t stop it you know
For if I should try to a gasket might blow.
Perhaps it is useless to try and explain
I have some strange symptoms, but no fever or pain.
My brain races on full of stories and words
It won’t stop its spinning, it’s growing absurd!
My mind moves much faster than hand with a pen
Perhaps I’ll get NEO and try him instead.
It still doesn’t help much, oh what can I say
It’s no use, I’ve failed to write them today.
The words keep on coming, I’m trying to sleep
Forget what they said, it’s no use to count sheep.
The stories are waiting, piling up with great speed
I know you are longing, your story to read.
But alas I can’t help it, I’m very perplexed
What thing should I write first, and what should be next?
Confused and bewildered, I’m sure you can see
The serious trouble that now faces me.
So accept my apology, understand my regret
If your story is not written, don’t go off and fret.
Some day it will happen, I think, I believe,
But now it seems something hard to achieve.

 

Was your week normal or different?

Do you ever have more than one story wanting to be written at once?

Should I post another short scene next week or a poem or nothing?