Photo: Osnat Halperin-Barlev
Walk with me
Into nature
Where the fresh air
Flows through.
Walk with me
As we shelter
Under skies
Me, and you.
Walk with me
Hand in hand
Muddy boots
Flowers, too.
Let us breathe
And connect
With everything
That is true.
For the Tuesday photo challenge: Connect
Photo: Keith Channing
They had everything.
The Papa Chair. The Mama blanket. The two Cub chairs. The inner tubes: one small, one large. Even tin cans emptied to serve as sand pails in the refilled beach’s rectangle.
What a perfect day!
The lake awaited, wet and cool. The silty mud. The pebbles, the weeds to wade across or pull.
They swam. They flipped. They raced. They flopped.
The hours passed. The contents of the picnic basket made their tummies nice and full.
They rested till the water once more called.
Then one cub disappeared.
“Nicko!” they yelled, frantic with the possibility of the awfulness that might unfold.
“One moment!” the junior responded from the direction of the small structure. “I’m not done.”
Relief was quickly replaced by wonder only to be followed by surprise and whiff of horror.
“Nicko??!!?” the Mama dashed across the small beach to stop what was already well set into motion. “That’s not an outhouse! It’s my changing room! Go in the bushes! Not here!”
Photo: Amitai Asif
“There is no need to die,”
He stretched his long legs
And sighed,
“To experience bliss
In the here
In the now.
We need only
Allow.”
She leaned back
And exhaled
What should have long been
Expelled.
As the breeze kissed
Her cheeks,
She prepared to be
Healed,
In the Eden on Earth
Of Elysian fields.
For Sammi’s Weekend Writing Prompt: Elysian in 56 words
Finally.
She shrugged her pack off and lowered herself so her back rested against a tree, blessing — for the umpteenth time — the waterproofs she’d splurged on several years ago. The purchase had meant giving up puddings for two months, but she’d never regretted the trade-off.
Food was essential, but so was heeding nature’s call for spending time in the outdoors. It was required nourishment for her soul.
In any weather, no matter damp or cold.
Soon she’d make the tent, gather wood, and light a fire to cook her oats on. But first she just sat, filling her lungs with air and her mind with calm contentment.
Raised in the city, she didn’t know how hungry she was for the outdoors until friends invited them to join a camping trip. She was ten.
Her parents hated every minute of it. For her, it had been like finally finding home.
For Crimson’s Creative Challenge #52
Photo: Na’ama Yehuda
Layered cakes of history
Over turquoise water
Topped with jungle hats
And splurged with hidden wonders
Under every gentle splash
And kayak paddle pat.
Info and so on: Ang Thong National Marine Park is a fabulous archipelago of 42 islands in the Gulf of Thailand. It features amazing limestone mountains, jungles, sandy beaches, waterfalls, and hidden sacred lakes. About an hour fast-boat ride from Koh Samui, it is a protected area of about 100 square kilometers of land and sea and is home to an abundance of exotic wildlife and sea creatures (snorkeling is something you’d really wanna do!). Kayaking, diving, and hiking some of the rocky mountains make for a fabulous time. The Blue Lagoon (AKA Emerald Lake) is absolutely mandatory to climb to!) . Usually a day-trip boat charter from Koh Samui or one of the neighboring islands, there are also some rustic bungalows and tents available for overnight stay. Our family did the day trip from Koh Samui last summer, and it was fantastic!
For the Sunday Stills challenge: Parks
Photo: Osnat Halperin-Barlev
“Come on Daddy, let us go
To the great outdoors
And so,
Pack this rock in
And that, too.
I’m all set
And so should you!”
For the Tuesday Photo Challenge: Outdoors
Photo: Na’ama Yehuda
There’s naught much more needed
To fill the heart with song,
Than the Great Outdoors
With loved ones along.
For Sunday Stills: The great outdoors
Photo: Na’ama Yehuda
For those whose backyards
Exist
In novels, history
And lore,
Central Park is a
Greatly
Essential
Outdoors.
For Nancy Merrill’s Photo A Week challenge: The great outdoors
Photo: Smadar Halperin-Epshtein
From shade onto sunlight
From old bricks
To plastered walls,
She gazed out
To the terrace
And a horizon
Pregnant with
Potential
Rainfall.
For Cee’s Black & White Photo Challenge
Photo: Amitai Asif
When your home
Packs away
On your feet
In your bags,
The entire
Wide world
Is your glorious
Backyard.
For the Tuesday Photo Challenge: backyard
History of the Bloomingdale area on Manhattan's Upper West Side
A creative miscellany of mythic fantasies
a weekly flash fiction prompt inspired by google maps
A community for writers to learn, grow, and connect.
To participate in the Ragtag Daily Prompt, create a Pingback to your post, or copy and paste the link to your post into the comments. And while you’re there, why not check out some of the other posts too!
Alternative haven for the Daily Post's mourners!
never judge a girl by her weight
original fiction, rhyme and photography
Taotalk is a forum for the discussion of both the academic and pragmatic aspects of dao and Daoism, with participants expressing themselves on Daoist writings and pragmatics from their unique perspectives. It serves as a community for Daoists, and those interested in Daoism, to gather and talk dao.
A photographer's view of the world - words and images to inspire your travels and your dreams
Life in progress
Straight up with a twist– Because life is too short to be subtle!
A man with dyslexia writing about this and that and everything else!
Better Living Through Beauty, Wisdom and Whimsey
Life in a flash - a weekly writing blog
Aroused by Arête, a meditating logophile
