Halloween Hobos

Halloween Hobos

We went door-to-door

down neighborhood streets.

Walked among witches

and ghosts made of sheets.

We were rewarded

with all kinds of sweets

as long as we called out,

"trick or treat."

Happy Halloween! Do you have a special Halloween memory?

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Enter the Forest

Enter the Forest

Enter the forest.

What do you see?

Miles and miles

of twisted trees.

What do you hear?

Howls and screeches

that sound too near.

What do you feel?

The presence of something

that's not quite real.

Leave the forest

or do you?

Thanks to Elissa Field for this week's Wordsmith Studio Creative Prompt-Wicked Wording This Way Comes. Do you have a poem, short story or book you like to read every Halloween?

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Life at a Glance

Life at a Glance

Fly by,

zip past.

Do you give 
everything a glance?

Don't engage,

hurry up.

Take a peek.

Do you see enough?

Rush, race,

skim, scan.

Do you live life
as fast as you can?

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Modern Curses

Too many keyboards/keypads

Too much sitting

AND way too many selfies

Thanks to Sarah Turnbull for this week's Wordsmith Studio Creative Prompt-Curses. What is your favorite story that involves a curse?

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Collaborative Story

Jessica quickened her pace. The cool air encouraged the increased speed. I'm surprised more people aren't out. She stumbled on a tree root, took a step off the trail to regain her balance,and came face-to-face with a hole in the rocks. It looks like a dog's head.

Thanks to Kasie Whitener for this Wordsmith Studio Creative Prompt-A Dark and Stormy Night. The challenge is to contribute to a scary story. I started it, now it's up to you to help finish it by contributing a few lines in the comments. What happens next?

*********

Here are a couple of other collaborative projects I'm involved with:

Slavic Arts Festival and Reading: A Celebration of Eastern European Culture

The Beauty of the Everyday 

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Artist Profile

Thanks to The Arts Council of Johnson County for featuring me in an Artist Profile on its smART blog.

http://www.artsjoco.org/artists/artist-profile-michelle-pond/

Thanks to Sharon Rodriguez, Judith Towse Roberts and Maria Vasquez Boyd for permission to use their photographs.

The Arts Council of Johnson County is an advocate for the arts and is dedicated to the enrichment of the community through the Arts. Learn more about the Council and its mission here.

Related Link

The Beauty of the Everyday Exhibition

Pastels

Pastels

These colors are shy.

Don't burst on the scene,

loud and brash.

Instead, they speak in whispers.

Give us a hint of what

they have to offer.

Make us take the time

to get to know them

before they reveal all.

Links

Slavic Arts Festival and Reading: A Celebration of Eastern European Culture

The Beauty of the Everyday

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The Phantom of the Opera

from Amazon.com via Google Images

The Phantom of the Opera

Before Andrew Lloyd Webber

wrote The Music of the Night,

a silent phantom

gave me a fright.

Even on a small screen

in black and white

the face was startling:

a damaged nose,

high cheek bones,

eyes that glowed.

A scream rose 

in my throat

and I cried out,

"Mom!"

Thanks to J.lynn Sheridan for this week's Wordsmith Studio Creative Prompt-Shivers. When I was a child, there was a program on Saturday called Silents, Please, that showed silent movies. It introduced me to the work of Lon Chaney and the character of the Phantom. Little did I know that years later this story would be set to music and become a worldwide sensation. Yes, I did go to see the play.

What are your early memories of fright night films and scary stories?

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September Roses

September Roses

I am startled,

taken by surprise

when in late September

I see two roses open.

I can't believe my eyes.

I had no idea

they were in season 

when the air 

begins to cool,

when tree leaves

start to match

the color of

their blooms.

I may pass them by

when they are out

earlier in the year,

but in the fall, I'll linger

anytime a rose appears.

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