“I drifted into a summer nap under the hot shade of July, serenaded by a cicada lullaby, to drowsy-warm dreams of distant thunder.” —Terri Guillemets. 7.9.25 through 7.15.25
Mama & Papa Robin have been busy! I can't believe the chicks just hatched out on the 5th. Their eyes opened two days ago. 🐦 Photo (webcam image on computer screen), by Jeannine.
This is where I present my daily microfiction stories, mostly based on the past week’s prompts from The Fiction Dealer. By posting my humble tales - the good, bad, silly, and indifferent - I hope to inspire others to allow their creativity to come out and play.
The daylilies are happy this year. Photo by Jeannine.
I’d been sick for days when Uncle Joe stopped by for a visit, bearing his special beef stew casserole.
“I figured you wouldn’t be up to cooking much,” he said as he placed the dish on the kitchen counter. “I’m not much of a chef, but it’s the thought that counts, right?”
I smiled my thanks, but after he left the laughter bubbled up. Uncle Joe’s kind offering is consigned to my freezer, the deep frozen graveyard of good intentions. Why do they always forget that I’m a vegetarian?
“Old Man of the Mountains [i.e., Mountain], Franconia Notch, NH.” Public domain. Posted on Picryl.
Cannon Mountain in New Hampshire once had a face. The Abenacki called him “Stone Face,” but the colonists referred to him as the “Old Man of the Mountain.”
Where did he come from? Geologists will tell you he was carved out by glaciers. The Abenacki tell a beautiful tale of a legendary chieftain’s love and loss. Daniel Webster told us, “Men hang out their signs indicative of their respective trades; shoemakers hang out a gigantic shoe; jewelers a monster watch, and the dentist hangs out a gold tooth; but up in the Mountains of New Hampshire, God Almighty has hung out a sign to show that there He makes men.”
Why did Old Stone Face plunge into Lake Profile more than 20 years ago? Did the eons of erosion finally pull him off the face of the mountain? Did the ancient Abenacki chieftain’s spirit finally break free of the cliff to find his long lost love? Or did the Old Man jump into the lake after witnessing the folly of our leaders? After all, old Stone Face crumbled away in 2003, when George W. Bush ordered the invasion of Iraq, after falsely claiming that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction and ties with al-Qaeda.
Here I am, home all alone… except for the bats in the attic and the rats in the basement and the squirrels in the chimney and the ants in the kitchen sink. All alone, except for the wasps building delicate paper domes under the eaves and the birds building nests of straw beneath the porch. I’m just lucky, I guess.
I chanced upon a busy airport and watched the perfect coordination of the take-offs and landings, always expertly avoiding disaster. Once in a while a worker would dance about excitedly, describing a new source of product, and off everyone would fly, working together to bring the cargo home. The place was neat as a pin, filled with efficient workers, all eager to please.
What’s that you say? Oh, no, I’m sorry, you can’t book a flight, because this airport isn’t for humans. The tiny, six-legged pilots have no need for planes, for they have their own personal wings.
Brilliant as always. Loved the Mountain face one. Reminded me of Neil Gaiman's American Idols where the gods are struggling because people don't believe in them any more
60 mg of Home made me think a little differently about the prospect of being home alone. And I love the Mountain face one, too! All are so very good. Thank you!
Brilliant as always. Loved the Mountain face one. Reminded me of Neil Gaiman's American Idols where the gods are struggling because people don't believe in them any more
60 mg of Home made me think a little differently about the prospect of being home alone. And I love the Mountain face one, too! All are so very good. Thank you!