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| << January03, 2007 - Hearts and Humor - Nothing Was Missing |
January18, 2007 - Hearts and Humor - Warm Memories of Ice >> |
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Hello, my wonderful family of readers. Sadly, many of you are no longer receiving my stories. It seems Zinester is being blocked by AOL and a few other ISP's. Even worse, my email address is also blocked by a spam protector called Spamhaus. I beg you, if you no longer wish to receive my stories, just go to the link at the bottom of this post and click the link to unsubscribe. Please don't hurt me by reporting me as a Spam. People can sign up and sign out. It's easy. I'm so sorry for not posting during the last week and a half. I've been very busy at work and at home. One night last week it took me more than two and a half hours to get home. New Jersey traffic can do that to you. I was supposed to put our tree and decorations away today, but I devoted the day to memories of my wintertime childhood. I'll do the tree next weekend. This is a long story. I'll post half today and the other half next weekend. This works well for me, because next weekend I'm entered in the Writer's Weekly Short Story contest. Many of you know that I enter this contest every three months. I never win, but I have a lot of fun. It forces me to write outside the box. Next Saturday, at 1 PM EST, I will get an email with the topic and the word length. I'll have 24 hours to write my story and submit it. The following weekend I'll post you what I wrote. This is a collection of my wintertime, childhood memories. I didn't have a computer or a video game back then. I had to use my imagination. Of course, as a boy, it usually took me into battle. I Could Fly Away The storm passed. Cold white clouds parted and a bright sun reflected off the white landscape. It was a big storm, dumping more than a foot of snow, which the winds whipped into huge drifts. One drift was six feet high and stretched across our lawn, parallel to our driveway. "Mum, can I go out and play now?" I asked. Mum looked outside. "OK, but be careful. Stay in the yard." she warned. Mum bundled me up: sweater, thick winter coat, hat, scarf, and a pair of winter boats that were so heavy, they felt like lead blocks on my feet. The strong wind ripped the door from my hand as I stepped outside. With Mum's help, we got it closed, but not before every loose paper on the kitchen table was blown to the floor. Carrying Dad's shovel, I waddled to the drift by the driveway. It was packed tight by the wind and easily held my weight. I climbed to the top and looked out over Dad's car. I was on top of the world. I walked to one end and started to dig. I placed the blocks of snow I dug out of the hole around the opening of my soon-to-be snow cave. They stacked up like the walls of a castle and would provide shelter from the attacking armies. When I was done, the cave was long enough to stretch out and deep enough for me to crawl in, turn around and face the opening. The sunlight penetrated the roof, bathing everything in an eerie, turquoise glow. My friend Jimmy stopped by. We went to work and soon had half the drift hollowed out. There was enough room for us and a couple more friends. Other kids joined us, teams were picked and a mock battle was staged. Jimmy and I, with a few others, manned the fort as the opposing forces attacked. I lifted my head from the hole. A snow-bomb sailed in my direction. I ducked, but not fast enough. My hat was ripped from my head and powdered snow floated into the cave as I retreated to safety. "That was close!" Jimmy said. "Too close!" I laughed and brushed snow from my face. "Let's dig a hole out the back of the drift. We can sneak out and get behind them." "Good idea." Jimmy said. "Timmy, you and Wade stay in here. Throw a snow-bomb out every once in a while. They'll think they have us trapped. Mike and I will sneak out and get behind them. When you hear us yell, 'Attack!' Jump out and start firing. "We'll get them twice! First we'll hit them from behind. When they turn to fight back, you guys can get them again." Our escape hatch was ready. We put our hands together, "All for one and one for all!" we yelled. Jimmy and I disappeared through the hole, crawled around Dad's car, wadded through the deep snow, and disappeared behind my house. We circled around the hill behind the enemy and crawled through the snow to the top. We had a clear view of the battle zone. Three of them hid behind a wall of snow- bricks. "When did they build that, Jimmy?" "I don't know, but they sure built it fast." Jimmy said. He slapped my arm. "Look Kevin is digging into the back of our drift. He's trying to sneak in." "OK! On the count of three, we'll jump up, yell 'Attack!' and let them have it. We'll focus on the three behind the wall. We have them trapped. When Timmy and Wade pop up, they can take care of Kevin. You ready?" Jimmy nodded. "Ok! Let's do it!" I stood. "Attack!" we both yelled and began to fire on the three behind the wall. Our first volley was a success. We got all three of them before they turned on us. "Where's Timmy and Wade?" Jimmy yelled as he took a direct hit to the side of the head. He dug snow from his red ear as another snow-bomb struck the top of his head and disintegrated into a shower of ice crystals. "I don't know!" I said. "Let's try again." We both screamed, "ATTACK! ATTACK! ATTACK!" Inside the drift, Timmy and Wade waited. "Did you hear something?" Wade asked. Vapor drifted from his mouth and nose with each breath. "I can't hear a thing." Timmy replied. "Do you think we should check?" "They said to wait until they yelled." "What if we can't hear them?" "We'll here them, Timmy." Wade answered. They waited while the short-lived battle roared outside. There were heavy casualties. Jimmy and I were beaten. My hair was matted with ice. Jimmy was flat on his back, covered in snow. One of my hands was red and raw. The mitten protecting it, froze to a snow-bomb and was launched into the opposition's side of the border. We raised our hands in surrender. Timmy and Wade soon were taken prisoner and marched to a firing squad. They were brave men. We were proud to have fought with them. "That was fun!" Craig said. "Can we do it again tomorrow? This time we get the cave." "Deal! See ya, guys!" ************************** To be continued..... To read more of my stories go to: http://subs.zinester.com/86758/ Now for comments on my last few stories. If you wish to send a comment, please send it to my new email address: msmith4@nj.rr.com or my old on mtsmith@qwestonline.com Comments: MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR, MICHAEL AND GINNY. I'm wrapping gifts for our little ones, grandchildren, great grandchildren nieces and nephews.Ours are receiving Tonka firetrucks this year without the sirens and flashing lights to use in the sandbox plus a spring horse and a wagon. These are old fashioned toys compared to the electronic things of today but provide fun and imagination for years to come though they're plastic now instead of all metal. Thanks for sharing your stories with us. Vel ************* Michael; I always feel that same sadness afterward. I wondered myself why, but I think you've hit it right on the head. For me the anticipation was the best part, because anything that was wrapped fell far below what I would have imagined it to be. Often it was a hand-me-down or something that wasn't even something I wanted. So it was always a let down afterward. Now my joy is seeing the gifts I place under the tree for others, and seeing the joy on their faces as they open them. I spend time trying to find something for each one that will bring them pleasure. Thanks for your stories. While I don't always comment, I do always read. Diana To unsubscribe, go to http://www.zinester.com/cgi/unsub.cgi?86758&0& |
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January18, 2007 - Hearts and Humor - Warm Memories of Ice >> |
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