Literary/Poetry Awards

“All Forgiven in a Day,” #kindku

storm erupts with feral song
dawn shifts into grey
clouds swell like waves in the sea
pale brume hovering
above the fray, the rainbow—
redeems the silence
all forgiven in a day

©2020 Colleen M. Chesebro

First Place Winner: Twisted Travel, 2018 Carrot Ranch Rodeo

A Visit with Grammy

Jess ran. She couldn’t miss this bus, or Grammy would worry at her late arrival.

She stumbled into the queue as a woman towing a wheeled suitcase pushed past her. Jess swerved to miss it, whacking the woman’s elbow with her own. She stepped out of the way and bumped into the man in front of her.

“Sorry,” Jess muttered.

“Ouch! Who’s there?” asked the woman.

“It wasn’t me,” said the man.

Then, Jess remembered. They couldn’t see or hear her, only feel her ghostly touch. She didn’t need to ride the bus to visit Grammy – she flew.

© 2018 Colleen M. Chesebro

 

indv-events-ff-rodeo25

November 2017

https://carrotranch.com/2017/11/14/winner-of-flash-fiction-rodeo-contest-2/

The Bus Stop

(The Winning Entry)

In 1971, I was a sergeant in the U. S. Air Force, stationed at Korat Air Force Base, Thailand. The Vietnam War raged around me.

Each morning I took the bus to the base. The voices of my military superiors echoed, reminding me to be careful. Saboteurs were everywhere. The Viet Cong traveled freely between the borders. Last week a sergeant had been stabbed on his way home. I trusted no one.

I strolled into the bus stop like I owned it. Crouched in the shadows, was an old man. He stared at me and our eyes locked. He spoke in Thai, “Sawadi ton chaw.”

My fear erupted. I said defiantly in English, “Fuck you, old man!” I gave him “the finger,” my feeble American attempt to intimidate him. The old man stared at me with razor-sharp eyes.

I worked with Thai civilians and knew they would help me. I explained the incident to a group of my friends. The workers exchanged glances as their eyes creased in laughter, saying, “The old man said good morning to you.”

Now, I understood. I knew if I was to survive I had to learn the language and the customs of the people.
“It is Thai custom to show proper respect for our elders,” they chorused. “When you see the old man again, bow and say the same thing to him that he said to you.”

The next morning at 0500 hours, I set out. I was guarded but kept my wits about me. There in the shadowy recesses of the bus stop, crouched the old man.

I approached him with a smile and bowed, saying, “Sawadi ton chaw.”

The old man regarded me with those sharp eyes I had noticed the day before. In the clearest English I had ever heard, he said, “FUCK YOU,” and gave me the finger!

© 2017 Colleen M. Chesebro

***

 

17 Comments on “Literary/Poetry Awards”

  2. I’m so pleased to have met you via Mark’s Inspiring Blogger award! Your blog is so dense…so full of life! I look forward to reading more.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  3. interesting page I am considering starting one just like this, and i really didnt want to put that award free blog sign.. but it gets rather tedious responding to each and every award then running out of nominees lol.
    cheers
    ~B

    Like

    Reply

Thanks for sharing your thoughts.

Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in:

Gravatar
WordPress.com Logo

You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. ( Log Out /  Change )

Google photo

You are commenting using your Google account. ( Log Out /  Change )

Twitter picture

You are commenting using your Twitter account. ( Log Out /  Change )

Facebook photo

You are commenting using your Facebook account. ( Log Out /  Change )

Cancel

Connecting to %s

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Welcome to Word Craft ~ Prose & Poetry

“A good poem is a contribution to reality. The world is never the same once a good poem has been added to it. A good poem helps to change the shape of the universe, helps to extend everyone’s knowledge of himself and the world around him.”

—Dylan Thomas

Google Translate
We’re Listed in the TOP TEN Poetry Blogs at RankedBlogs.com! Thank You for your support.

top poetry blogs

Vote for Word Craft ~ Prose & Poetry at Top Ranked Blogs

Tanka Tuesday Poetry Challenge Rules
Tanka Tuesday Poetry Challenge CheatSheet
Learn About Rhyme Schemes in Syllabic Poetry

Click: What is a Rhyme Scheme?

Tanka Tuesday Poetry Book Store

Enter your email address to follow wordcraftpoetry.com and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 16,187 other followers

Follow Word Craft ~ Prose & Poetry on Twitter
Goodreads
Amazon Associate Disclaimer

Disclaimer: My book review posts contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. I earn a small commission to fund my reading habit if you use the links on my book reviews to make a purchase. You will not be charged extra, and you’ll keep me supplied in books that I can review. It’s a win-win situation for everyone. Thank you.

Visit my author blog on colleenchesebro.com
My Poetic Community
Join us at the Saddle Up Saloon on carrotranch.com to write 99 syllable poetry
Click to Join in the Weekly Flash Fiction Challenge
Check out Marsha Ingrao’s Challenge Host Interview Series
Looking for More Writing/Poetry/Photography Challenges? Click the Image to Find More
Join the Literary Divas Library Group on Facebook
Auroras & Blossoms Poetry Journal – Click for Submissions
UHTS: Click to visit & find the Cattails Journal
This website is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Creative Commons License
This website is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Thanks for stopping by!
Archives You Will Want to Read
Colleen M. Chesebro: Prose-Metrist, Novelist, & Word Witch
Colleen M. Chesebro

Colleen M. Chesebro

Colleen M. Chesebro is an American Poet who loves crafting paranormal fantasy and magical realism, cross-genre flash fiction, syllabic poetry, and creative nonfiction. Colleen sponsors a weekly syllabic poetry challenge, called Tanka Tuesday, on wordcraftpoetry.com where participants learn how to write traditional and current forms of haiku, senryu, haiga, tanka, gogyohka, tanka prose, renga, solo-renga, haibun, cinquain, Etheree, nonet, and shadorma poetry. Colleen's syllabic poetry has appeared in the Auroras & Blossoms Poetry Journal, and in “Hedgerow, a journal of small poems.” She’s won numerous awards from participating in the Carrot Ranch Rodeo, a yearly flash fiction contest sponsored by carrotranch.com. In 2020, she won first place in the Carrot Ranch Folk Tale or Fable category, with her story called “Why Wolf Howls at the Moon.” Colleen is a Sister of the Fey, where she pursues a pagan path through her writing. When she is not writing, she is reading. She also loves gardening and crocheting old-fashioned doilies into works of art.

Personal Links

Verified Services

View Full Profile →

I’ve been awarded the “Hearts As One Drum Beat Award” by Sue Dreamwalker. Click to visit her blog.
Fairies, Myths, & Magic ~ A Summer Celebration NEW RELEASE: Click to learn more
Click the image to read the Heart Stone Chronicles: The Swamp Fairy
Blessed BE!
%d bloggers like this: