Image by Pete Linforth from Pixabay ~ Poem by Anita Dawes
I thought this quite apt this morning, as our lives have become a bit of a nightmare lately…
Post will follow shortly…
A Half Remembered Nightmare… #Poetry
#nightmare
The Blade… #Poetry #The Sunday Whirl #Wordle 588
Image by WilliPuschel from Pixabay
The Blade I stand alone, waiting for the moment When silence wraps itself around me I am broken, thin as paper I hear the blade slice through my mind I shuffle along, my shoulder bumping each doorway I enter I am nearly there, again I hear the blade, sharp edged, cutting away at my life The inside of my mouth tastes powdery, like fine sand Strange manifestations assail my eyes Confusing day and night Preventing my progress in reaching the last door that is marked home I stagger towards it, like a blind man When I feel the blade slice through for the last time… ©AnitaDawes2023
This one gave me goosebumps!
The Scarlet Ribbon ~ Excerpt and Review #Fiction #UrbanFantasy
Book Description
When a dirty blue car mows Maggie down outside her local supermarket, she becomes trapped in the nightmare world of a coma patient. She manages to rescue an abused and neglected child in this very different world.
But when it looks like she will finally wake up, she cannot bear the thought of leaving the child behind.
But is this other world real, or was she just dreaming? And if it is real, can she help this child?
“Maggie is a likeable character who is easy to engage with, and I found myself willing her to find the courage to embrace happiness. If you like a story that is more than just your average romance then I thoroughly recommend this one…” Amazon Reviewer
“Excellent reading, excellent writing with several unexpected twists that lead to…well, that is for others to find out too. A heart-wrenching and gripping story. Well done, Anita Dawes!” Amazon Reviewer
Excerpt from The Scarlet Ribbon
I felt the sheets being straightened, and deft fingers checked my tubes and wiring. I still seemed connected to the real world, but for how long? How long would I be allowed for goodbyes, even though I couldn’t say them?
It was childish, but if I couldn’t say goodbye, maybe it couldn’t make me go. I held on to that thought, hoping it would somehow make it true.
I heard the sound of rubber soles crossing the floor, then the metallic click of the door latch. I hoped Doctor Marsden hadn’t left the hospital. I would be very interested in his explanation.
Jack smoothed the hair from my face, and his lips touched my cheek. He whispered in my ear, ‘Where are you, Maggie? If you can hear me, please come back. I love you so much. Whatever it is, Maggie, fight it. Don’t let go. I’m not leaving this hospital without you.’
As I listened to him, wondering if he meant it, I drifted away again.
I had no idea how long I’d been lying beside Annie. Days and nights here seemed normal, but back in my world, I knew time seemed to be faster. I was so confused. I didn’t understand why I was incapable of touching Annie, yet the arm I wrapped around her hadn’t fallen through the mattress the way it did everything else. I couldn’t catch the belt, yet it had marked my skin. Why didn’t any of it make any sense?
All I could think of was that some inanimate objects were different.
Annie’s arms and legs looked sore, but the skin wasn’t broken. Her mother hadn’t even come to see if she was all right. God knows how long she would be left on her own. I could hear muffled voices from below, another fight brewing. Why on earth did some people have kids? If they were so capable of hurting them, they must have known beforehand, had some little clue that they didn’t really want them.
Annie had relaxed a little. Her breathing was easier, hardly punctuated by the remnants of the sobbing, although a shudder would disturb her every now and then. One small, grubby hand lay open while the other was closed in a tight fist. I could see a piece of red ribbon sticking out between her first finger and thumb. I reached for it but couldn’t move it. The determined way she held on to it even in her sleep, I knew it meant something special. I wondered if somebody had given it to her. I doubted if those things downstairs masquerading as parents had anything to do with it. It had to be someone nice by the way she clung to it.
I wondered if she had built up some false hope that the giver might come back and save her from the misery she lived in. I knew it was possible. It was also possible that the accident had damaged my mind, that this was all a dream. Whatever the truth was, I had no choice but to go with what I was being shown…
Latest Review
D.L. Finn
4.0 out of 5 stars Seeking answers on the other side
Reviewed in the United States on 17 May 2022
“Scarlet Ribbon” is a story that made me wonder about the afterlife and what is in between. Maggie was out with her husband when she was run down by a car. She ended up in a coma for two long years, but her time became relative as she found herself in a strange place. Her body was in the hospital, but her mind or soul was experiencing a different reality.
While she was under, she could see what her husband was doing and was taken to other worlds and the past. She wanted to help, especially a young girl. There was cruelty and a blissful existence that coincided in the different places. As she seeks answers to her dilemma, she finds out more than she wanted to about how sheltered a life she had and people’s true side.
I have always wondered what goes on when people are in a coma, and this was a fascinating idea of what could happen. There never seems to be one simple answer or outcome to Maggie’s desires. I love her determination to do what is right, but within her new world, I felt her confusion as she bounced from one situation to another. I was rooting for the person she connected with on the other side.
The story picked up the pace when she emerged from the coma, and work began for her to heal and try to remember. The ending was a surprise but didn’t feel done just yet. I hope there are more versions of her life to come and I will be reading them.
Many thanks to Denise for her wonderful review!
My absolute favourite story of Anita’s, The Scarlet Ribbon is 2.99 for the next two weeks, and can be found HERE
The Ghost of Christmas Present…
The Ghost of Christmas Present
We really wanted Christmas to be special this year but could not possibly have foreseen what 2021 had in store for all of us.
For the first time ever, it feels right somehow that the year is slowly dying, slipping away unnoticed among all the chaos and misery.
We are feeling much the same way as the ghost of Christmas hovers in the doorway like an unwelcome guest, unsure, as we all are as to what will happen next.
2022 is just days away, a brand-new year.
A year we are beginning to think will be the same as the last.
This is normally the time when we start looking forward to a new year, convinced it will be the one to remember. Truth is, we are dreading it. Among so many other things, this year has shown us just how vulnerable we really are.
At the beginning of 2021, we were determined not to allow despair or depression in the door, and for a while, we managed to maintain a cheerful front. We carried on writing/blogging as usual but gradually over the months, we seem to have become so old, dare I say fragile?
This is how a total loss of control must feel.
I woke up this morning with the overwhelming desire to send all the misery, worry and complacency packing along with this dreadful year.
To rekindle the spark that will make us all feel alive again.
At first, we will probably have to ‘fake it until we make it’, push the envelope like crazy until life feels better.
We wish all of our friends and followers a wonderful New Year, a year full of promise and possibilities, and we will shortly be sending out the first of our 2022 newsletters, looking forward and planning a much better year…
The Sunday Whirl ~ Wordle 525 ~ #Poetry
The sky blushed a ring of scarlet light Dusk had spread its mantle, the air damp Fright night below, trick or treat Played as in the past A black velvet bat perched on the church roof As the clock chimed midnight The floor inside the nave red with blood The local priest lay spread out A ghoulish version of the bat above Who, among the faithful disliked the sermon? Who felt his sins exposed? Who worried that Father John Was about to break the confessional vow? Who among the meek and mild Had so much to hide? Let the trial by whispers, the pointing fingers Begin… © Anita Dawes 2021
An Unforgettable Book…
Description
SHADES OF DELIVERANCE MEETS THE WALTONS…
Simple’s life is a painful nightmare.
He is one huge bear of a man, but with the heart and mind of an innocent child. He suffers terrible abuse from his vicious and uncaring backwoods family.
Together with his half-sister Leanne, they are hunted like wild animals and suffer the terror of nearly being burned alive as they try to escape.
Will they ever discover the joy of freedom?
Excerpt from Simple…
Walking towards Gran, I could feel the blood draining from my body, trying to find some place to hide. It felt as if it had all gathered in my feet, making each step I took the hardest thing I had ever done.
Gran got up from her rocker and I watched it continue to move, as if she had left some part of herself sitting in it. She walked inside the cabin and waited for me. She had never done more than cuff me across the back of the head, but I figured I had to be in for more than that this time. I was trying to think of the worst she could do.
It was cool inside the cabin. Gran was sitting at the big wooden table grandpa had made. She might as well have been the town judge, sitting behind the high bench. She didn’t move or look at me as I sat opposite, waiting for judgement. I knew better than speak first. I couldn’t have, even if I wanted to, my mouth had dried up. Gran finally spoke, her voice hard, as if she had eaten gravel. ‘You’ve done a bad thing, Leanne. Taken our trust and pissed it in the wind. Jimmy says he should be the one to punish you, says you had no right taking Simple anywhere near the Spiers. Reckon I should turn you over to him, save my words for someone who can hear them.’
I said, ‘I can hear real good,’ with more grit in my voice than I intended.
Gran fixed me with one of those looks that made me wish I could turn to stone. ‘Seems to me, young lady, if your ears still work, then your brain’s gone soft like Simple’s. Fancy interfering in business that aint yours. You know right enough, he needs telling more times than the sun wakes us and then some. You want him took off for takin’ town young’uns?’
‘Course not, Gran.’ My voice came out as a whisper.
‘Simple was hurt real bad. I couldn’t just leave him…’
Amazon Review
This is a story about some very tough and mean people somewhere in the backwoods and mountains of America. It is told from the perspective of a young girl whose mission in life is to protect her big, but simple-minded brother from harm. The story is compelling, frightening and sometimes brutal in the manner of the film Deliverance, but it is also a heart-warming story of loyalty, love and deep affection. It was not what I was expecting, but I’m glad I read it. It has an unforgettable quality about it and the characters are complex but convincing. It really is a great story and unputdownable.
Look Away… #Poetry
The Sunday Whirl ~ Wordle 506 ~ #Poetry
People, follow the sign
back through history
Listen to the still voice
leading you through the drought
Keep note of the symbol
you have seen along the way
The week ahead will slide away
Too fast the end comes
Your rights have been assaulted
By an onslaught of other opinions
Let it be, don’t pour oil on fire…
© Anita Dawes 2021
The Listener
I answered a phone call.
I stood hearing words I should not.
The voice spoke with a mouthful of gravel,
Scraping against my eardrums
It’s done, they’re both dead.
I felt as if I had been dropped into a vat of starch.
My body stiffened; my hand glued to the receiver.
I now know the location of the buried bodies,
Not far from where I stand.
Whoever it was on the other end, hung up.
I was left listening to the buzzing sound of angry bees.
Words cannot describe the fear running through my veins…
© Anita Dawes 2021
Free Fall… #Poetry
Too hot to sleep in bed, I drag my duvet to the garden
It feels cool beneath the stars
I watch, as shadows dance across the face of the moon
What or who they are I cannot tell
until they begin to free fall, growing larger,
the nearer to Earth they come
I stood with my duvet around my shoulders
Too fearful to move any further
I could see the dark forms of human shapes
Slowly gliding now, it seems with a purpose.
Knowing across the road stood the rooftops of my neighbours
As many shadows disappeared, while others floated on
I know two of my neighbours are about to give birth
Are they new souls, waiting for their first breath?
If so, what of the others that came along
Surely not simply for the ride?
I could watch for changes in the neighbours I speak to
Ultimately what could I do?
Tell them I watched shadows fall into their houses?
They would have me locked up.
I know I was awake and not dreaming, where could they go?
Two days later, Mr Thompson died.
Reminding myself he was old, my mind asked the question
Did I see the shadow of death, plus companions?
searching for souls to take, others to inhabit?
Now, whenever I see the two newest tiny neighbours
I remember the night
I watched dancing shadows cross the moon…
©anitadawes 2020
Anita Dawes and Jaye Marie 