Short Story Series info

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My series of seven short stories (in order written and published via vocal.media for a series of challenges) based on life as a kid in rural-small town central Illinois:

Grandpa's Old Barn (https://vocal.media/families/grandpa-s-old-barn),

Rural Delivery (https://vocal.media/families/rural-delivery),

The Flower Kettle (https://vocal.media/families/the-flower-kettle),

The Bull's Run (https://vocal.media/families/the-bull-s-run),

Glowing Green (https://vocal.media/families/glowing-green),

Snowdrifts (https://vocal.media/families/snowdrifts),

Idyllic Afternoon (https://vocal.media/families/idyllic-afternoon).

Excerpts from each of the seven short stories are included below.

Grandpa's Old Barn: "It sure does! And look at the next drawing! The dragon is burying something out there. See the trail? It goes down the hill and up the ravine to a spot under the old oak tree and there's the red dragon covering something in a freshly dug hole."

"Do you think it's real, Oliver? Do you think Grandpa left this behind to show us where he left something important buried? Or is it another adventure quest he’d planned for us?"

Rural Delivery: "Grandpa went back to the garage and started the B. The boys came running when they heard the engine roar to life. Theodore grabbed the fishing poles and Oliver grabbed the bait bucket and they climbed onto the tractor and held on tight. Grandpa smiled and they slowly rolled to the road, down a little way, then along the path through the next field and down the hill to the river."

The Flower Kettle: "As it was, the old salt kettle was now nestled in the yard at Grandma's place and it became a planter full of beautiful flowers. A fitting transition for a relic from a time when life was much harsher than it is now. How many hands had toiled over that kettle through the years? Were they the hands of healthy workers engaged in trade or desperate survivalists? Who gathered the wood and fed the fires that kept the kettle hot and the salt-spring water boiling?"

The Bull's Run: "The kids stopped and started blowing their horns and jumping around, thinking the reactions of the animals would be funny. Their mortified parents told them to stop, but not before it was too late. The young bull reared on his hind legs and pulled his halter and rope hard enough to break it free of the slat it was tied to at the end of his stall. Startled and feeling himself break free, he took advantage of his newfound freedom and whipped around in the stall and headed for the roadway next to the barn."

Glowing Green: "Glowing green and yellow lights flashed in the tall grass and then seemingly vanished before reappearing several feet overhead. The fireworks followed lazy paths through the air as though the planet had begun to fall off its axis like a top making its last few spins before toppling."

Snowdrifts: "A cracking sound reached our ears and brought us to a quick halt. I felt the ice give slightly and saw some water trickling through a crack by my right foot. The water seeping through the crack quickly melted a little patch of snow and made a small pool."

Idyllic Afternoon: "The beauty of winter had long since melted away from the countryside. The surface of the little pond that had been frozen months ago calmly reflected images of the trees growing tall along the opposite bank. The stillness of the surface of the water was only interrupted when the boys cast their lines and the bait and bobbers hit the water."

Bonus Preview.

Siren's Speak: "Siren's Speak, the pirate's watchful sentinel, perched quietly on the bow of the rowboat next to Curly Grim. The Scarlet Macaw had been a faithful companion for Curly Grim for nearly ten years on the high seas and the past two years on the banks of Pirate Bird lake."

#read #smile