Yellowbelly—Six Sentence Story

Early in the morning worried about how he was going to use the assigned word “yellowbelly” in a story Jeremy walked to the ocean as the beach was being raked into a linear pattern perfect in its symmetry until he stepped on it. He saw a bird and considered but then rejected the idea that he might be able to get away with writing a story about a yellowbelly seagull.

Forgetting about the word he wondered where the birds that were coming to shore spent the night, but all they wondered about was whether he brought snacks. Others bored with the sun tossed pieces of bread to the birds who grabbed whatever they could as Jeremy clicked his camera.

Eventually everyone, including the yellowbelly seagulls, realized that the day had indeed begun as expected without their needing to be there at all. It just happened leaving it to those like Jeremy who’d rationalize the joy out of stuff to only step back onto the freshly raked sand and see to his surprise sunrise, birds, beach and even himself as one awesome gift among many others from the Lord for which his thanks was long overdue.

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Denise offers the prompt word “yellowbelly” to be used in this week’s Six Sentence Stories.

Job 37:14
Hearken unto this, O Job: stand still, and consider the wondrous works of God.

Carousel—Six Sentence Story

Sam walked into the ice cream parlor where Betty, the owner with bright blue streaked hair, a splattering of tattoos and a decades-long carousel ride worth of baggage that her clothes thankfully covered, asked him, “What flavor would you like today, Sam?”

In turn he asked, “What flavor is the least popular?”

“You know as well as I do that nobody in his right mind would choose cherry vanilla,” she responded pointing to the nearly empty tub of his favorite ice cream.

“Then to help you reduce your inventory I’ll have two scoops of it,” he said.

While scooping out his order Betty felt that Sam—for his own good—should never ask her to marry him, but believing there were still miracles waiting even for the likes of her, and given the fact that she was rapidly running out of cherry vanilla, held onto the hope that he might do just that.

Eventually she and Sam rejecting the decades-long garbage clinging to both of them were married by a real chaplain to show that their commitment to each other was, like that chaplain, real all of which put the Wonderful in such a good mood that He gave, and they like giddy children received, the Wind and the Fire, the living breath of God.

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Denise offers the prompt word “carousel” for this week’s Six Sentence Story. The notion of God being in a “good mood” I owe to Michael Wilson.

Isaiah 9:6
For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful….

Mark 10:14
…Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God.

Flush—Six Sentence Story

There’s nothing out there that resembles what you’re looking for, Timothy’s inner voice said as he concluded his failed search for intelligent extraterrestrial life-forms wondering—Well, what about non-intelligent life?

There‘s none of that stuff either, the voice answered. Be grateful that there’s life as you used to know it still on Earth.

Well, what about those aliens in their fancy UFOs that beamed me up and experimented on me? he asked.

Yeah, they’re real, but I told you to stop messing with the demonic.

This conversation with his only remaining friend was all Timothy needed to flush away what was left of his feigned composure as he exploded like a supernova into a sequence of big bangs against the padded concrete walls while psych ward orderlies came in to strap him down for further experimentation.

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Denise offers the prompt word “flush” to be used in this week’s Six Sentence Stories.

The Mediterranean Sea and Jaffa Beach in Tel Aviv, Israel

Truck—Six Sentence Story

In the days when Jake felt his mind was running a few bricks short of a full load he was told he would never find his friend lost in the crowd of humanity without the heart to at least look. What made matters worse was Jake no longer remembered what his friend looked like nor what his name was nor why he bothered trying to find him.

Regardless that still small voice kept reminding him that if—yes, if—he were willing to listen and respond promptly as he was directed he would one day find his friend and be able to laugh again. Over the years Jake kept searching even among those unlikeable sorts he ran into wondering why his friend would consider hiding among them.

Eventually the still small voice ever ready with something new to say no longer focused on Jake’s lost friend. By then Jake had more friends than he previously thought were there to find joyfully aware that not a single brick was missing from the load on his truck.

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Denise offers the prompt word “truck” to be used in this week’s Six Sentence Stories.

1 Kings 19:11-12
11 And he said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the Lord. And, behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the Lord; but the Lord was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but the Lord was not in the earthquake:
12 And after the earthquake a fire; but the Lord was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice.

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