The Word Worker

Tag: Moments

  • The Proposal

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    wordworkerrussell
    in ,

    “Who’s that trip-trapping over my bridge?” “Connor!” Emily leaned over the rail, her voice hushed but quivering with laughter. “What do you think you’re doing? They’ll kick us out!” “Not if the bridge troll eats them first!” Connor growled, then coughed as his vocal cords protested. He ducked out from under the boards and hopped…

  • The Beach

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    by

    wordworkerrussell
    in ,

    “Saul, wait!” Lily laughed breathlessly as her bare feet slung sand behind her. “I lost my sandals and the sand is on fire!” “Not as hot as the boardwalk,” her brother yelped, dancing on his toes from sand to board and back again. “Hurry up, it’s too hot to be out of the water!” “Well,…

  • Dry

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    by

    wordworkerrussell
    in ,

    Color surrounded her, the brilliant yellows and reds and greens of summer in the garden. The sky glared blue overhead, and she glared back at its near cloudless face. Her hand closed around the nearest white spray, twisting involuntarily, the crushed petals releasing their nauseatingly sweet scent as they fell from her fingers. She took…

  • Bride and Groom

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    wordworkerrussell
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    “We are gathered here tonight in the sight of the moon and the trees to join together Nob and Hob in trolly matrimony. Have you both come here freely and without reservation to give yourselves to each other in marriage?” “Yes, your stoniness!” “Where else would I be but with my Nobikins?” “I told you,…

  • It’s Not a School Day

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    wordworkerrussell
    in ,

    We have officially started our homeschool summer. No more assignments. No more schedules. No more educational obligations. It’s wonderful and relaxing, and we are having so much fun! When chores are finished the kids drag out my old violin lesson music and open the organ to pick out the little simple songs on the keyboard.…

  • First Chill

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    wordworkerrussell
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    The hay was in. The last two bales perched like strange giant eggs at the edge of the field nearest the house, securely wrapped in their white rain guards. Not that the sky gave any reason to believe the guards were necessary; the colors of the mountain grasses shone in brilliant contrast under the cloudless…

  • Hard

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    wordworkerrussell
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    We like to think that hard only happens in stories, that hard is a thing of the past. But it isn’t. We like to think that the ultimate achievement would be to eradicate hard from our memory. But it wouldn’t. A young woman breathes deeply through the pain of her muscles contracting. Her skin stretches…

  • The Corner

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    wordworkerrussell
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    It wasn’t beautiful, the corner of Cedar and Walnut. In fact, whatever planner decided to name the streets after trees must of have had some twisted sense of humor. No forest could have less to do with the dirty, dingy gray of metal and concrete. Despite uninviting appearances, the bench at the corner was always…

  • December 1st

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    wordworkerrussell
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    It’s the countdown to Christmas. Time to decorate the house, finish all the gifts, watch all the movies, listen to all the music, and cook all the food. At least, that’s the plan. The Christmas tub was stored on the porch through all weathers this year instead of making it back to storage where it…

  • The Bells

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    wordworkerrussell
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    They rang out across the water, a symphony of sound in chiming echoes down the brick-lined canal. The bells of Bruges, incongruously peeling out disco music to peal against medieval facades, held me captive. Even the cafe goers across the canal left their sedate mugs and tables to dance with abandon. Invisible behind those ancient…