One Heart at a Time

can an empty plate be a gift
to the young mouths
and empty stomachs
waiting for elusive food?

can a broken doll’s remaining head
pacify an orphan
after a destructive bomb
snatched her parents?

can an old, tattered blanket
warm up a homeless
sleeping naked
under the frozen rain?

can my hands and yours,
can my smile and yours,
be the calm,
be the balm,
of the wounds inflicted
by hate,
by war,
by injustices,
created by our co-humans?

maybe.
one heart at a time.

—

05.31.2017
©2017 Rosemawrites@A Reading Writer. All Rights Reserved.
Photo via Unsplash

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In response to Wrap it in Ribbons Please! by lillian.

So today’s prompt: write a poem that includes the word “gift”….or is a reminiscence about a gift you received or gave to someone. Gift us with your words!

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The Gift

After 30 minutes of stillness inside this steaming, stinky bus, I promised myself I won’t ride an ordinary bus again. I almost went off until I hear someone quietly sobbing.

The man beside me, a construction worker (I think) wearing dirty green chinos and old faded jeans silently cries as he clutches a plastic bag with his tired-looking hands.

I resisted asking him.

Five minutes passed…

I give up.

“Are you hungry? I have some biscuits here.”

He shakes his head.

I resisted talking.

But he suddenly speaks again.

“Today is my son’s seventh birthday.”

“We never celebrated birthdays.”

“We have no money.”

“But for the first time I was able to save enough to buy his dream ice cream.”

“Our house’s only 10 minutes away.”

“But in this traffic… my son’s ice cream is now turning into a soup.”

His eyes quietly welled up again.

Now so do mine.

 

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Word count: 150

©2016 Rosemawrites@A Reading Writer. All Rights Reserved.

Photo credit: Ellespeth’s friend

IMPORTANT NOTE: This story is inspired by a real incident I read on Facebook last year.

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In response to Flash Fiction for Aspiring Writers (FFfAW) February 23, 2016.

Rules:

• a flash fiction challenge (stories in 100-175 words or less)
• each story should have a beginning, a middle, and an end
• no serial (continuation) stories
• include a pingback to the challenge post

Thank you for a thought-provoking photo prompt, Priceless Joy! ❤

 

Read more short stories here:

WRITING 201: Most precious gift

Purchased gifts can be as expensive as caviares

Ready-made presents can be as commonly seen as night stars

Albeit precious gifts are monetarily impressive

Your soft whispered words are actually more effective

Enough of anything material

Resort to something that is truly more personal

©2015 Rosemawrites@A Reading Writer. All Rights Reserved.

Photo credit: Ignite Church 

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In response to Writing 201 Day 2 assignment:

Day 2: Gift, Acrostic, Simile

There’s a whole array of sensations and emotions attached to gifts, whether you’re the gifter or the giftee. The tension between packaging and contents, the joy of tearing through layers of wrapping, the surprise or disappointment of discovery once you know what’s inside.

Today, write something about a gift.

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I know this is beyond this course but I am now asking you guys to give me the most precious gift, prayer, as my mom is currently at the hospital. 😦

Thank you.

~