August small stones

Now that I’m on day 16 of the September Pebbles 2016 challenge I thought I’d post my entire list from the Awake August 2016 Small Stones challenge. According to the page guidelines post “No advertising. No selling. Just your thoughts and ideas and have fun.This page is for your small poems and thoughts, please share and enjoy each others talents. Everyone is individual and that makes this page brilliant.”

When the Awake August challenge was over, people in the group decided to keep posting, so the page admins changed the challenge to September Pebbles. I’ll post those sometime next month.

1. A young girl with white-pale skin and wine-red hair visited for a week. We kissed goodbye this morning.
2. The strains of Unchained Melody bring back memories of 1955 and two besotted teenagers swaying in time on a hot August night.
3. A long walk with a friend on a hot summer day brings a connection of compassion, understanding, and love. We can’t stop talking.
4. An orange-streaked sky like fire amidst smoky-black clouds started my day.
5. Every morning I read The New Yorker while pumping on the elliptical. Today I read a series of 1-page essays, definitely small stones for The New Yorker. My favorite was Mary Karr’s about throwing away her 5-inch stilettos and replacing them with small stones for her feet flats.
6. A few ants came visiting this morning. I opened an ant hotel to welcome them.
7. I hear the roar of bicycles speeding by our home as they vie for the Grand Prix on a sunny, bright Sunday in August.
8. Sadness, tiredness prevail today. I’m not good for anything, anyone. Tomorrow will be better.
9. My young friend’s mom died yesterday. She wants me to be her sub
10. Two beautiful young women have come to visit this week. I admire their self-assurance and their smarts. And how the little girls in my life are growing up.
11. Being high on a train platform brings a whole new perspective on a familiar landscape down below.
12. Thousands of iridescent strips of mylar shimmer in the wind like liquid silver. 
13. Giant birds of paradise gently sway outside my window, letting the sunshine play upon their uplifted and expansive leaves.
14. My son and daughter-in-law are married six years today. Much love, hugs, and kisses all around.
15. The sun finally broke through this morning’s gray sky for another glorious day in southern California. Cool, clear, and still.
16. We talk writing around the breakfast table, sharing resources, favorite gurus, and social media hints. I’ll go back next time the third Tuesday of the month.
17. Saw old friends after a long drought, and the conversation lively, intimate, and loving picked up where it left off.
18. The smoky sky burns my eyes. I need to close them for now.
19. The little Syrian boy with the mop of brown hair stares straight ahead, no tears streak his dirty and bloody face as he wipes the blood from his palms onto the seat of the orange chair.
20. A chilly breeze accompanied me on my big, long walk to the beach this morning. The sun finally appeared when I was through.
21. Pushing, pulling, balancing, stretching all part of a tortuous Pilates work out this morning. A great sigh of relief at the finish.
22. I’m slow this morning, relishing this bright sunny day and no need to be anywhere at all.
23. I scroll through the morning’s emails and one after the other want my money: for politicians, for last call sales, for new books over at Amazon. Isn’t anybody I know out there anymore?
24. Hunched over the paper, my husband writes, erases, mouths, writes in the answers to his daily Sudoku. I don’t speak Sudoku.
25. A hacking cough for days on end turns into pneumonia, and in a flash all trip plans get cancelled.
26. Driving the 405 in bumper to bumper traffic kills my right hip and my timely arrival.
27. A hazy sky, a soft breeze, a mildly warm temp all make for a lazy day. Just the way I like it.
28. The Sunday newspapers piled on our square breakfast table have to wait. Writing comes first.
29. A strenuous workout, my usual berries and peanut butter breakfast, and a hot shower and shampoo. Now I’m ready for the day.
30. Every morning the sky is gray, the air is cool, and I think could rain be finally on its way? But no, after a couple of hours the sun takes over and dashes all hope.
31. My fingers hover over the keyboard as if to say, no, this isn’t the last small stone day. Let’s keep moving on.

Please join the challenge. There is still time. And who knows, maybe there will another challenge in October. What do you think it will be called?