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| << April16, 2007 - Hearts and Humor - Beware The Neighbor - Part Two |
April23, 2007 - Hearts and Humor - Laura's Storm >> |
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Hi, Gang. Welcome back, AOL members. It seems AOL has opened its warm arms to Zinester again. I hope it keeps them open. I missed you. Please say a prayer for those who died in the terrible shootings at Virginia Tech. What a tragedy to lose so many young and promising lifes. I think spring is finally here. It took its time coming, but today it is close to 70F. When I wrote last weekend, I said we were getting heavy rain and were supposed to get several inches. Well...we got a bit more than that. It started late Saturday night and didn't stop until noon on Monday. On Sunday alone, we had more than 7 inches of rain. When it was over, we had a total of close to 9 inches of water running everywhere. Many towns in New Jersey we under water. Ginny and I live high on a hill. We were safe, but our prayers go to those who suffered major damage. The are a few towns that still won't let the residents back into their homes. If you have a moment, say a little prayer for them. With the warm weather comes the birds. Our feeder in our back yard is a gathering place for them. I put sun flowers in it this week. The finches seem to love them, as well as the cardinals, sparrows, rabbits and my enemy "The Squirrel." More about "The Squirrel" in another story. I dug this old story out of my files and dusted it off today. I hope you enjoy it. Today is my quarterly "24-Hour Short Story Contest." I got my topic this afternoon. I have a 1000 word limit to come up with a story on the following topic: She could hear the buoy bell ringing in the distance but it was too dark to see anything beyond the receding foamy water. She shivered as the wind picked up, knowing a late-season Nor'easter would hit in the next few hours, and knowing this was her last chance. She raised her arm and threw the glass bottle into the darkness... WISH ME LUCK - I'll post my entry next week. Right now, I need to start writing. My entry has to be in by 1 PM on Sunday. If anyone is interested in greeting cards, Ginny belongs to a group of artists. They've teamed together to market their products. Check them out at: http://www.etsygreetings.blogspot.com Ginny's cards and other crafts are at: http://www.ginginsgoodies.etsy.com Be sure to check out my collection of inspirational sites at the end. There's something for everyone. Now for today's story. FEATHERED FIDELITY Relationships start with love and promise. Too often we see them weaken, crumble, and finally fail. I think all relationships should go with the birds. ********************************* "Mum, what happened to my hockey cards?" I cried. "Mum, I can't find my baseball!" I whined. "Mum, my favorite marble, the blue one, is missing. Where is it?" Tears streamed down my cheeks, as I searched my marble bag and under my bed. "It must have gone with the birds." she replied. Mum said the same thing every time. "It must have gone with the birds." ********************************* Forty years later, memories flashed in my mind. I think I figured it out. I was a young boy. A small yellow bird hit our front door. When I looked outside, I saw its tiny, unmoving body on our deck. I opened the door to see if it was just stunned or worse, dead. I knelt over it. Mum joined me. "Michael, I think it's dead. I heard the bang on the glass. It hit pretty hard." "Mum, should we bury it?" "I'm not sure, Michael. When I first looked out, I saw another bird land beside it and grab it's neck. It was trying to pick it up. I think we should let nature take care of this. Let's put it on the roof of the car and see what happens." We placed the little bird on the roof of my dad's car and returned to the house, where we watched it from our living room window. The bird's mate flew to its side and grabbed the back of the dead bird's neck in its tiny beak. With strength only love and devotion could provide, it lifted its companion from the car, carried the body across the street, over the meadow on the other side, and into the trees. It flew low to the ground, struggling with a weight equal to its own. The little bird flew between two and six feet off the ground, staggering in the air, as it carried its loved one home. The struggle was hard, but the desire not to be parted from its mate was greater. ********************************* I stepped from my home on a warm summer morning. I looked toward my neighbor's and noticed a strand of a spider's web. It was strung from the bush by the corner of their townhouse to the wheel of one of their cars. I thought it was strange. "A spider doesn't spin one strand." I said to myself. I reached to break the web and discovered it was a piece of fishing line. I gave it a tug. It was tangled in the bushes. The other end was knotted under the rear wheel of their car. One of the boys sat on their front deck. "Looks like someone booby-trapped your friend's car." I said. He walked to me. I continued. "Strange! It seems to go all the way under the car." I walked around the back of the car and saw a robin. It fluttered to get away, but the line wrapped around its tiny leg held it firm. I reached out. It squawked and flapped away from me. I moved faster on the second attempt and managed to get a grip around its trembling body. It twisted its head to snap at me. I held tight. The boy came close. "Get something to cut the line." I said quietly. "Don't scare it." He returned with a knife. "No, that won't work." I said. "When you cut the line, the tension will break its leg. Get scissors." While he was gone, I heard the agitated chatter of another robin in a nearby tree. It dropped from the branch it was perched on, swooped low over my head, landed in a tree behind me, and continued its racket. The boy returned with a pair of nail cutters. "Will these work?" he asked. "Perfect!" I said. ********************************* The robin was free. I held it a little longer. There was still a small piece of line wrapped around its leg. As I reached for it, the robin twisted in my hand and escaped my grasp. It flew low across the pavement, under a row of mailboxes, and up into a tree. The second robin stopped its chatter and joined it. It had stayed close, as its mate struggled for freedom. It wouldn't leave its companion until it was either free or its death separated them. ********************************* The birds I witnessed mated for life and the struggles that came with it. Mum used to say, "It must have gone with the birds." She meant it must have flown off. After what I witnessed, "gone with the birds" has a whole new meaning. I think all relationships should go with the birds. Michael T. Smith If you enjoy a story, feel free to pass it on to your friends. My only request is that you include the link for your friends to join our family. To join our family, go to: http://subs. zinester.com/ 86758/ REMOVE THE SPACES TO GET TO THE SITE. SPAM BLOCKERS ARE HURTING EZINES. DON'T LET THEM PREVENT YOU FROM READING GREAT STORIES. As promised, here is a list of great inspirational sites. I subscribe to all of them. You will love these sites. Run by my friend Carol, Storytime Tapestry at: http://archives.zinester.com/98907/ By my good friend Keith in Australia: http://www.agiftofinspiration.com.au/ My friend Phil runs http://www.peoplestuff.com.au/ Phil's awesome and brutally honest Zev, yes another friend, runs http://empoweringmessages.com/stories/ Heart Catchers is a wonderful site. www.DianeDeanWhite.com www.Heartwarmers.com and www.petwarmers.com are two wonderful story sites. http://hodu.com/ http://www.mydailyinsights.com/ www.ripplemaker.com http://www.sermonillustrator.org http://www.SkyWriting.Net Here's a newly discovered one I like: http://www.archive.zinester.com/9516 http://groups.yahoo.com/group/WarmFuzzyStories/ http://groups.yahoo.com/group/WithInSight/ That's all I can think of right now. If I come up with more, I'll add them. Enjoy!!! I love your comments, Send them to msmith4@nj.rr.com. I'll include some in every post. Here are some comments from last week: Dear sir, Your story is refreshing. It is like the cool water from the African pots where I live. You have lived a fantastic life surrounded by love.Please consider yourself very lucky as this is a rare gift in today's world. Enjoy yourself, Muyiwa *********************** I couldn't wait to read the second part of this story I can just imagine Georgia saying a little prayer every time she looked out and seen John going with any type of tool ..... Thanks for sharing Mike Hugs Alice ******************** OH my Michael, This is the first email/newsletter I have gotten from you in months. I am missing several newsletters and they all seem tied up in the old 'AOL vs Servers' problems. So, I haven't bothered you. Great to see you back again...Now, the question...will it last...or is this one that just 'snuck' through. Hope all is well. Blessings, Jo Ann S. ***************** If you wish to unsubscribe from my ezine, please click the link below. I beg you not to mark me as spam. This ezine goes out to only those who chose to receive it. http://www.zinester.com/cgi/unsub.cgi?86758&0& |
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| << April16, 2007 - Hearts and Humor - Beware The Neighbor - Part Two |
April23, 2007 - Hearts and Humor - Laura's Storm >> |
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