Note: This time we all write with different sentence prompts applied to the same image.  |
| Artwork by Campo Writers Group member TNT |
Having a roommate
wasn’t quite what she had hoped it would be.
By RC
Chloe was a delightful
girl, for a goddess in waiting. Yes, she had been kissed by a goddess when she
was first born and her parents had assured her that the goddess had promised
she would one day become one herself. But first she had to meet the right man
(meaning the right god). She would never know who he was, however, until after
she fell in love with him—that was the magic and the challenge of it.
Well, Chloe loved
mystery and magic and as she grew up she always imagined she was up for a
challenge, no matter what it was. Therefore—and much to the amazement of her
friends—she couldn’t ever keep a boyfriend very long. It wasn’t that she was
not lovely and charming, because she was all of that (which you would expect,
since she had been so blessed at birth), but that she ditched any guy once she
perceived that he could not be a god—even in the disguise of a typical teenage
boy.
Finally, after a long
series of men in her life, she met Justin. He was not like any of the other
boys. He was beautiful, she thought. He even acted kind of like a god. He loved
acting and he had acted in lots of school plays. So, when he suggested that
they move in together (she was in college now), she jumped for it. She kept
expecting him to show his true identity, but it didn’t happen.
Instead, it was
not long before the mystique began to fade. Whereas he had been so gallant
across from her in that school play about Venus and Adonis (which suffered a
little from accuracy, but was still lovely), he was anything, but gallant at
home. He ignored her much of the time and he was terribly sloppy. He would
leave the dishes in the sink and throw his clothes around everywhere, and
generally do all the things that every other young man would do. And he had
never even gotten fresh.
After a while, Chloe
felt very depressed. She’d done everything she could to make the prophecy about
her come to pass, only to end with Justin. For sure, having a roommate wasn’t
quite what she had hoped it would be. So, on a sunny Saturday while they
lounged in the small courtyard she told him.
“Justin, you are just
not the man for me,” she said. “For a while I thought you were my very own god
come down here just for me. But you don’t rate, I’m afraid.”
“I’m sorry to hear
that,” Justin replied, “because I was really getting to like you, but you’ve
failed the test.” And with that, he snapped his fingers and looked up. To
Chloe’s utter amazement, a chariot descended from the sky, pulled by six golden
horses. A beautiful woman in a white robe reached down and Justin reached up,
and in a moment they were both gone.
Then she awakened to
find that she had dozed off in the lounger and Justin was still beside her,
eating his Cheetos and occasionally tossing one to the sparrows. “So this is my
god, eh?” She muttered. “Who was I fooling? I’m going to go and get a real
man!”
My friend’s house is a
short walk from the river.
By CC
My friend’s house is a
short walk from the river. All he has to do is cross his garden, scale a wall
and there it is. He preferred to visit the river in the dark, often in costume,
because it made him look strange to thieves and other predatory things that
might crawl down to the river to drink. Another reason he preferred the dark
was his limited eyesight. Others called him blind, but he was ever hopeful that
a cure could be found. He liked to scale the wall, jump down to the riverbank
and play his guitar. It was his healing time. Some times he even fell asleep by the river.
One night he finished
playing and slept for a short while. When he woke, the crescent moon was
glowing over head. He could make out the light from above, which made his
ascent of the wall a good deal easier this time. At the top he heard a voice
call to him. It was a woman’s voice, melodious and sweet.
“I have taken pity on your
lousy eyesight,” said the woman. He craned his head back, trying to pinpoint
the source of the sound. “Here, try this.” She said.
Suddenly his eyes were
full of dust. He sputtered and spun around, falling off the wall.. Rubbing at
his eyes, he tried to figure out what had happened. Suddenly he realized he really
could see …but… everything was upside down! He tried to stand up and fell
straight over. Only when he closed his eyes could he get to his feet. He
climbed the wall again and cried, “What did you do to me??”
“Well, I guess I got that
wrong. I’m not perfect. So sue me.” said the woman. “Sorry. Look up at me again.”
“I don’t trust you at
all,” he said.
“Well, I’m all you’ve got,
“ she replied. So he opened his eyes and saw her glorious upside down face
shimmering from the moon, and he saw the second shower of dust fall into his
eyes. Suddenly he was back to normal. Everything
he saw was a blur of light and shadow. And now he realized how grateful he was
for his normal state of being, eyesight and all.
Was she a goddess? Was she
a figment of his imagination? It hardly mattered. Whatever had happened, he now
knew just how good his life truly was. He jumped off the wall, found his guitar
and went home happily to his bed.
His superiors didn't want to see him leave.
By BG
His superior did not want him to leave. He had been such comfort to the group. They just did not know what to do. He was adamant, he had bigger and better things to do with his life, he was going places, seeing the world, meeting important people. He was going to make a difference in the world. His mind was definitely made up. Tomorrow he would set out for the great beyond.
He had sent word to his superiors with the girl who was one of the main players in the group. He knew that they would take her word when she went to tell them. They could not stop him if he did not go in person. He would not say farewell to anyone at all. He'd just let the news spread on its own.
He thought it would be a nice gesture to thank her, though, so he went to see her. Just as he arrived she surprised him. He knew right away his superiors would not let him leave. She was sprinkling him with enchantment dust. She was going to thwart his effort and keep him from going. After all, they were her superiors, too.
He interviewed them on the telephone, their only link to civilization.
by MD
The set designer was the best in the business. The play was cast with the most talented Broadway talent, and the make-up and costumes were the most authentic and sumptuous that could be acquired.
It was during dress rehearsal that the earthquake hit. The theater was rent in two, and the assorted stagehands, understudies, and musicians were all killed. The only survivors were the two stars of the play, stranded on the fairy tale set, and the director and a newspaper publicist, who stood among the rubble across the chasm of the orchestra pit.
The journalist eyed the director. "Well, this is not a very auspicious start. Should I continue with the interview?"
The director brushed the dust off his glasses. "The show must go on, as they say," he replied.
The journalist called across to the actors, who, in true show business fashion, maintained their places, she seated on the crescent moon, her leading man perched below on the parapet. She continued to sprinkle stardust on his head, and he did his best not to sneeze. But neither actor could hear the journalist as he fired questions at them from below.
"This isn't working," he said to the director. "I'm afraid the show must delay its opening night."
"Wait! I have an idea," the director exclaimed. He pulled his cellphone from his pocket and dialed. From far off, behind the paper moon, a phone rang. The leading lady allowed it to ring for 5 minutes, but finally she picked up.
"Hello?" she whispered into the phone.
"Paul Rogers here, New York Daily News," the journalist said. "What is your character's motivation?"
He interviewed them on the telephone, their only link to civilization. Although the show opened as scheduled, the interview was not printed because the newspaper office was destroyed in the earthquake.
Make a quantum leap in your thinking.
by TNT
It was the Masquerade Ball held for Jared. Monica sat on a swing shaped like the moon while her friends waltzed around he room with their bright and beautiful costumes. They all held ribbons to link them as they danced. The ribbons tangled them so they giggled and laughed. They were joyful although the occasion was sad.
It was a memorial for Jim Henson, the puppeteer. His partner and artist friends were there. Monica had come from San Diego by Greyhound. The bus had lost her luggage and her costume. She was bummed - she had worked so hard on her costume. But her friends and strangers were kind.
The people were dressed so fancifully - she felt out of place. She felt alone until suddenly there was a handsome youth below her serenading her with his guitar. He was wearing a mask. He sung a song she knew so she joined him in the chorus. It certainly made a quantum leap in her thinking and her mood.
"Thank you -" she breathed and threw a handful of confetti down upon him to show her appreciation. He helped her down from the moon and they joined the dancers. It was an evening she would never forget.
A crowd of people congregated around their cars, laughing and joking.
by RMAF
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