Letting Go-My Second Short Story

[Timl1980]

Here is the second of the short stories I have been working on...secretly nursing along as my personal study projects have slowly but surely come into more focus. Here we will meet three sisters, two of whom we know well...and the third...well...I will allow Nora to introduce herself.

 

Please enjoy...and please allow me the creative license I have taken...we don't know what it will be like in the new system...so this is just my imagination sparking amidst the darkness of Satan's old world...like a tiny worn out lighter attempting to light up just the tiniest patch of what things COULD look like:

 

Letting Go

 

Canyon Lake breathed...in and out...in and out...waves pulsing up onto its sandy white beaches. All around it sat large groups of people, relaxing on the beaches or in the rich green grass about it...laughing and singing and snacking on heaping whicker baskets overflowing with fresh fruit and fragrant loaves of bread. Children darted across the open spaces chasing all manner of animals...laughing and cheering as several clung tightly to the back of a giant tusked elephant that was galloping about an open field, its trunk extended heavenward...blasting out powerful trumpeting notes that filled the air, momentarily drowning out the laughter.

 

About a half mile away from all this ruckus, on a hillside to the east...an ice cold bubbling gush of crystal clear water welled up from deep underground and rushed down a rocky embankment, widening out until it formed a gently flowing stream that flowed down the hill and right towards Canyon Lake.

 

About halfway between the spring and the lake sat a small grove of weeping willows...their long slender branches flowing all the way down to the ground, forming a shaded area where several deer were laying...staying out of the bright sunshine. Willow branches trailed through the water as the stream swept past and kept flowing towards the lake...and to one of the two women standing under the grove watching the slender branches dancing through the water...bobbing up and down like fingers...it seemed like the trees were reaching out...attempting to slow the waters path.

 

As she watched the tiny swirls in the current caused by the dangling branches...Miriam's heart clenched in her breast...her mind's eye instantly snapping her back to another stream...a river, in fact...a river where she seemed to have forever...scanning it for danger...until she knew for certain that her baby brother was safe as he floated along, concealed in that little basket is it spun and bobbed along on the current.

 

A splash from behind her brought her back to reality...and, shaking her head, she turned and regarded the other woman...a woman she knew only too well...a woman who was even now moving large flat rocks...attempting to adjust the flow of the stream.

 

Zipporah wore a travel-worn, desert striped shawl...Midian in its weave. Her sandal straps were darkened by miles upon miles of walking...her hands smooth yet roughened...hands that Miriam knew had seen a lot of work...hands that had, once upon a time, saved her little brothers life on a dark roadside late one night. Right now her hands were steady...her jaw set. Zipporah knew water...she knew silence. 

 

The two women exchanged a glance...then Miriam stepped forward and pointed about 8 feet to Zipporah's left. "You're placing them wrong...shift to the left." She said, and stepping down into the ice cold spring...she began moving smaller stones to the area she had indicated, noticing that Zipporah remained silent, just watching her. "Come on, we need to reroute the current...otherwise the bank will give way!"

 

"Not yet! The flow is wrong...first we turn it...then we brace it." Zipporah said finally, her jaw tightening even further.

 

Instinct pulling her one way, pride tugging her the other...Miriam froze...her whole body tensing. Then she sighed and relaxed...her eyes taking in the sharply angled bank of the stream...gauging the place where Zipporah was standing...water rushing about her legs...and finally nodded. "Right...turn it first...then brace it afterwards." 

 

The two women exchanged a hesitant smile and began to set to work when suddenly a low whistle came out of nowhere...a whistle of surprise and relief.

 

Startled, they turned to where the whistle came from and saw a small compact woman pushing her way through the willow branches towards them. Dressed in a pair of Levi's and a sun-washed linen shirt, sleeves rolled up past her elbows...the woman strode over and stood facing them, shaking her head slowly, as if in amazement.

 

"May we help you, my sister?" Miriam asked, glancing at Zipporah to see if she recognized her...but seeing she was just as nonplussed as Miriam.

 

"Shoot...I thought I might have to help you..." She quipped to Miriam before slipping one hand up and attempting to tuck wisps of her short, silver blonde hair behind her ears. "You two looked like you might scrap...this is where I'd usually light one up and just sit back and watch!" 

 

The little woman took a couple of steps closer, sticking out one hand in the offer of a handshake. "Name's Nora..." She said with a grin, continuing on when they just stared in confusion at her offered hand. "I'm from Milwaukee...ya know...Wisconsin? No, I suppose you wouldn't, I'm sorry. I was 53 when I died...lungs...couldn't let go of the cancer sticks, know what I mean?" She paused, then added, "Cigarettes...tobacco." She explained, smiling in relief as she finally saw the two women nod in recognition...they had heard about tobacco.

"Of course I don't smoke anymore..." Nora added with a nervous laugh. "But when I heard you two getting ready to tangle...set my radar off, ya know? Started looking for a cig...calms my nerves, get my drift?" She asked as they continued to study her.  "Glad you got it worked out though...you need some help? I'm feeling great now...and I...well I...just want to help, ya know?" She said finally, swallowing the lump that had suddenly formed in her throat as she glanced upwards into the bright blue sky and the God she now knew was there.

 

Exchanging a gentle smile, Miriam and Zipporah crossed the few intervening feet and hugged her tightly before showing her what they were doing...and explaining how she could help. The three women worked steadily through the afternoon, stopping only to eat a small meal of fresh bread and a delicious cheese before they carried on, moving a large pile of rocks into place and securing the flow of fresh water.

 

Afterwards they cleaned up the area and took off at a slow walk towards the lake and the evening that lay ahead...all three laughing and chatting as if they'd known each other for centuries. As they rounded a bend and skirted a large stand of pine trees, Nora suddenly came to a halt, her eyes riveted to something half buried under a pile of pine cones. Quickly she crossed the few yards and dropped to her knees, hands fumbling with the credit card sized cardboard box...her fingers automatically thumbing back the top of the box...eyes suddenly eager.

 

Yes!! There were three cigarettes left...brown, filters soiled a little...but they were there...and they were Menthols!!

 

Nora didn't even notice the other two women walk up behind her...she didn't even see the worried look they shared behind her back. She just sat and stared...pulled one out...slipped it into its familiar place between her fingers and put it to her lips...when suddenly she stopped cold.

 

The filter touched her lips and her hands trembled...not from withdrawals...but from a sudden revulsion of what she realized she was about to do!

 

Slowly she let out the shaky breath she had been holding in...pulled the cigarette away from herself and glanced at the two women who were silently watching her, eyes full of understanding. 

 

"I...I don't know why I..." She began, then she fell silent and angrily crumpled the dirty Marlboro pack in her hands...hurling it all back to the ground and grinding it into the pine needles with the heel of her shoe.

 

"It's okay, my sister." Said Zipporah quietly, walking up and placing her arms around Nora, guiding her away from the grove of pine. "Jehovah has healed your body...your mind will follow, but it takes time and effort, am I right, Miriam?" 

 

Nodding, Miriam slipped her arms around Nora from the other side and all three women continued on...their silent prayers ascending upwards...where two figures seated on glowing thrones smiled gently and began to applaud, joined by millions upon millions of other angels...their faces beaming with joy...not because of a miracle...but simply because one more human chose to love righteousness...more than old habits.

[Dolce vita]

 

Always a great talent for setting the scene and the characters, dressing the silences and gaps to make them flow❤️

I liked knowing that Myriam had become a woman, I liked the comical twists that pepper the story: 'I'm from Wisconsin, you know? Oh no, of course, you don't know...'

The story helps us understand the difficulty we will undoubtedly face in intercultural and especially intergenerational dialogue.

I really really enjoyed it!

[Timl1980]

22 minutes ago, Dolce vita said:

I liked knowing that Myriam had become a woman,

 

https://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/501500100#h=25:0-35:242

 

This is part of the research I did into her as a biblical character, this article really opened my eyes about her as a person, especially about her issues with zipporah. 

 

Thank you for reading it and letting me know what you thought. I'm getting a little bit better in character development and the dialogue, step by step... ya know? 😆

[Tortuga]

Nice. I couldn't help but wonder if Zipporah was called Zippo. 

[Dolce vita]

1 hour ago, Timl1980 said:

 

https://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/501500100#h=25:0-35:242

 

This is part of the research I did into her as a biblical character, this article really opened my eyes about her as a person, especially about her issues with zipporah. 

 

Thank you for reading it and letting me know what you thought. I'm getting a little bit better in character development and the dialogue, step by step... ya know? 😆

Yes, I do know ☺️...

As Brother Richard @Tortuga would say : I have the feeling that Mimi is still a little 'mad' at Zippo, right? But where is Moses !

[ChrisW]

Oh, that was so interesting. I used to write short stories and poems. My mind is not the same. Maybe I will try again. 

I hope you continue with it @Timl1980

[Tortuga]

2 hours ago, Tortuga said:

Nice. I couldn't help but wonder if Zipporah was called Zippo. 

Zippo is a brand of cigarettes lighters, so it seems appropriate that Nora had a Zippo with her...

[Timl1980]

Thank you to everyone who has read it so far, I used to be much better when I was younger, sometimes I could pen two short stories a day and at least four to six poems, it was kind of my hustle in prison. Then I received a book deal from Simon and Schuster for my first novel and received a $2,500 advance, a lot of money in prison. But that's during the time frame when I was disfellowshipped, and the subject matter I was writing about was inappropriate, mainly magic-related themes like Harry Potter, so it came down to a choice and I tore up everything I had written and returned the majority of the advance. That's when I started studying between 10 to 14 hours a day, I needed to throw myself into something as a distraction because my mind was so active coming up with various ideas for short stories and novels, most of which I had offers on from magazines and book publishers. 

 

I'm extremely thankful and grateful that I chose Jehovah...I've never been disappointed yet!

Edited Monday at 06:57 PM by Timl1980

[ChrisW]

2 hours ago, Timl1980 said:

Thank you to everyone who has read it so far, I used to be much better when I was younger, sometimes I could pen two short stories a day and at least four to six poems, it was kind of my hustle in prison. Then I received a book deal from Simon and Schuster for my first novel and received a $2,500 advance, a lot of money in prison. But that's during the time frame when I was disfellowshipped, and the subject matter I was writing about was inappropriate, mainly magic-related themes like Harry Potter, so it came down to a choice and I tore up everything I had written and returned the majority of the advance. That's when I started studying between 10 to 14 hours a day, I needed to throw myself into something as a distraction because my mind was so active coming up with various ideas for short stories and novels, most of which I had offers on from magazines and book publishers. 

 

I'm extremely thankful and grateful that I chose Jehovah...I've never been disappointed yet!

You made the best decision. Jehovah no doubt was very pleased with your sacrifice. 🙂