Picture it & Write! - Bygones

Picture it & Write

He'd arrived on a night much like this one; misty, whimsical clouds low in the sky, Lake Michigan lapping at the shore of her rented cottage. She had known he wasn't one to stay in one place for very long.

Two weeks ago, he'd glided down from heavens like a gift from God. His hot air balloon from a bygone era landed in the field behind her silver electro minivan.

Tonight, she stood there wondering where his adventure lies next. Would he remember her? Like she did, as his smell still lingered in the very air that surrounded her?

He'd changed her even with the few hours they had together. How would she explain those changes when questioned by well meaning friends and family?

Some would think she took their advice and paid Kurt back by sleeping with someone else. But they were wrong. Sex wouldn't fix what was wrong. 

She'd begun her own adventure to find peace after the scandal of Kurt's betrayal spread through their close knit community. Some would understand that she moved away from the pain of Kurt's affair. Others would claim she never cared in the first place and she had gotten what she deserved.

Hugging herself close, oh, she'd cared but now. . . watching the balloon float off into a different time and space. She knew she was going to be okay.

Hope you enjoyed,

Leann Holland

~ Picture It & Write! - Water's Edge

Water's Edge

(A short story)

Today would have been her twenty-fifth wedding anniversary. Yolanda Dean never expected to celebrate it by herself. They had made plans now that both kids were graduated and in college to travel a little. They, she and her husband, Lonnie, loved sunsets over water. They had traveled all over the west side of the state of Michigan taking pictures of the sunsets, entire walls showcased the beauty of Lake Michigan. It had all started with their honeymoon in Holland, Michigan.

Now, she sat here on the edge of the Pacific Ocean looking at the most vibrant colors they'd seen this year. But Lonnie's chair was empty.  She wouldn't cry. It had only been a month since his passing. It was so sudden, so unexpected. The kids told her to come and not let the tickets go to waste. 

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Her mother was sitting back in the hotel. Yolanda asked her to let her do this alone. Standing at the water's edge, she held his urn tightly. It was time to release his ashes per his request to be scattered over water during a beautiful sunset. Tears flowed down her lined checks, lines that weren't there a month ago. 

"Goodbye, my love!" Yolanda tried to let go. She cried harder. "Sorry, my love! You're coming home with me. I'll let you go over our beloved lake which isn't this far away from me." Hugging the urn sitting down in her borrowed beach chair, she picked up her bottle of iced cappuccino and drained it. Resting the bottle on her knee, the sunset magnified. She felt God and Lonnie smiling down at her.