Presenting... Imawriter!

mamma llama

Sun, Apr 26 2020, 6:07 pm

Do you write professionally?
Do you not write "professionally", but write well?
Do you love to write, even though you don't think you write well?
Do you have a passion for grammar/vocabulary/literature?
Do you want new reading material, that you won't find anywhere else?

If you answered yes to one of the above questions, this is the thread for you!
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Okay, now that I've pumped this thing up, let's get down to the details...!

This thread is a place where you can post any writing that "comes to you". It can be a poem, a story, even just a really good sentence that you have to post, because it's just geshmak. When posting a writing, you have the option to post this symbol: ChillPill

- that signifies that you do not wish to be critiqued. If you do not post that symbol, it means that you are open to advice and suggestions.

This thread is also a place where grammar/vocab fanatics can become editors. If you see a technical error, or something that you feel could be phrased better, post your correction IN A RESPECTFUL WAY, to help the writer without insulting her.

Lastly, this thread is a place where you can read original writings that may spark another writing idea, or may just be an enjoyable thing to read when you want to relax. In other words, this thread is for all imamothers!

Now, to get your juices flowing, let's start off with a prompt: As you buckle your seatbelt, you watch something flutter to your lap.
(You can write a story, paragraph, poem, etc... And you can use the idea, and/or include the sentence in your writing.)

thunderstorm

Sun, Apr 26 2020, 6:40 pm

The Artist Within Me

Today I took some acrylic paint
Set up a canvas and took a brush in hand
I began to create a picture
One that I could understand

First it was just a bunch of strokes
In various colors and hues
Then beautiful colored fruit popped up
Sitting in a bowl of different shades of blues

My instinct was to show off my work
And I sent the photo of my painting to my dad
He then sent me a photo of a drawing
the only one that he had

It was signed with my name and dated March 14 , 1998 on a yellowing sheet
And there was a beautiful drawing of my father , drawn to perfection and neat

Every person I showed the drawing to recognized my father at first glance
I kept looking at it over and over whenever I had a chance

I never realized what an artist I was or how well I was able to draw
But that pencil drawing from over 20 years ago is so real and so raw

There was this very real talent within me
That I did not recognize
Only today I discovered that
And it made me realize

That sometimes we have gifts that are deep within ourselves
But we forget about them and they gather dust on their shelves

I finally took that talent out , and wiped her clean today
I brought out my ability to draw and paint
And expressed myself in a new way

It took a very old drawing to discover my gifts that I’ve been granted
And now I am embracing that which Hashem gave me , I feel so enchanted

The last twenty years I’ve been too busy to stop and appreciate
But now I have the opportunity for some introspection and it’s never too late

I didn’t allow all of my talents to be used to the max
I was too busy running a household and in those areas I was lax

But now that I have some more time on my hands
And I don’t have to deal with too many daily demands

I will take the time to acknowledge the talents and gifts I was granted by the One Above
Who gave them to me , for me to use with joy and with love

Thank you Hashem for making me aware of that today
Im so grateful for all you’ve given me and will try to remember that each day.

Ima Piano

Sun, Apr 26 2020, 6:42 pm

A phone is an item to use for text and call
Yet a phone is just a phone, really that's all.
It may seem to know things more than me & you
Cuz it has a search engine but you have a brain too.
You may get distracted by the routine which you lead,
The phone is on vibrate & you rush to obey its heed.
Yet as life moves on and you move on with your day,
The headache remains a pounding one caused by the phone in many ways
If you text me and do not get a reply ,
Not always do I have an answer why.
I can be reached on my landline, if you need it please request
If its urgent just give me a ring dont take the time to text
Im not saying I'm giving it up yet there are times that I need a break
From my phone, yes my phone and there is no typo or mistake
#PracticeSocialDistance Smile

mommyfish

Sun, Apr 26 2020, 6:44 pm

I posted this on a different thread but gonna post here also. Some backstory to this poem.... my daughter was given a horrible medical diagnosis when I was pregnant with her. The daily nissim we see are unbelievable. Definitely open to critique.

FOR THIS, I PRAYED (a terrible twos poem)

They say it is a stage,
That passes with the age,
That it’s a two year olds right
As she giggles with delight
Cuz this once angelic daughter
Poured a cup of her bath water
All over me.

I hug her with affection
And I have a recollection
That for this, I prayed

They say it is a phase
But my eyes begin to glaze
When this trouble-making child
Gets a little bit too wild
And jumps around the cart
In the local store or mart
And I try to put a stop
But it’s getting hard to shop
Cuz although she’s very teeny
She’s a miniature Houdini.
And I can’t keep up.

It’s a personal reminder
That I really shouldn’t mind her,
Because for this, I prayed.

They say it passes by
In the swift blink of an eye
But this little one’s quite clever
And each day feels like forever
With the crayon on the walls
And the never ending falls
And the third dinner I’ve cooked
Finds its way to every nook
And when nighttime comes around
She just doesn’t settle down
Till the wee hours.

As she starts to relax
And I’m ready to collapse
I say, “for this, I prayed.”

They say it gets much better
But my two year old trendsetter
Decides she wants to wear
Clips and headbands in her hair
And the red pants and pink sweater
I debate if I should let her
It’s the height of current style
And I can’t help but smile
At her opinions.

And she looks like a clown
As we walk around the town
But for this, I prayed

When her face and hands are sticky
When the floor becomes quite icky
And she gets in the way
Of her bigger sisters play
And I try to settle fights
And she looks a sorry sight
When she removes her bib
And climbs out of her crib
When she dances through the heap
Of the stuff I tried to sweep
When her bowl becomes a crown
And I feel like I might drown
From exhaustion.

When she runs away while dressing
I marvel at my blessing
Because for this, I prayed.

Though my little daughters actions
Can serve as a distraction
And sometimes I forget
But I try hard to reset
And I thank the One Above
For this child that I love.
Infinitely.

After all, for this, I prayed.

mommyfish

Sun, Apr 26 2020, 6:50 pm

Another article - corona related

Glancing through my emails, I notice one from google photos. “Your memories from this week last year,” is the title. I get these emails from time to time but usually don’t bother opening them. This time I did. My girls beaming faces look back at me, all dolled up in their Yom Tov finery. The coordinating outfits with matching headbands and the perfect shade of pink socks to tie everything together. They look adorable. What preceded that picture was countless shopping trips (starting in January!) First to find the dresses, then the shoes, the socks, the headbands. Making myself crazy so my kids should look just right.
Was that really only a year ago?
This year is SO different.
Shortly before Purim, I was doing some errands and passed by a local kids clothing store. I walked in to browse and ended up walking out with cute, affordable shabbos robes for my girls. Busy with my Purim business and not having a second to breathe, I figured I’d take care of my pesach shopping once Purim was over. The stores weren’t going anywhere and new merchandise kept arriving. My girls would be princesses, just like every other Yom Tov.
And then, the world turned upside down.
And who can think of matching bows and socks when people you know and love are struggling for a breath of air?
On Erev pesach I dress my girls in their shabbos robes, warning them to keep it clean because it’s pretty much all we have for three days. I hunt through their collection of headbands and bows, finding something that looks decent enough in their hair. I dig up some socks from boxes that I had in storage and my sister in law gives me some of her girls old shells; maybe it’ll match. And you know what? My girls are princesses.

Boca00

Sun, Apr 26 2020, 7:45 pm

As you buckle your seatbelt, you watch something flutter to your lap. You gasp. The false eyelashes you so carefully applied to your left eyelid are now sitting on your lap, eerily fluttering like a spider.
You followed that YouTube tutorial so carefully, how could it have separated so quickly?! Well, you figure, better now than during the Zoom date. You tug on the eyelashes pasted on your right eye, but somehow those refuse to budge.
You figure your date, being a guy, will care more about you being prompt than symmetrical. You give up on your eyelashes, and enter your Zoom meeting ID.
Your finger quivers over the "Join with Video" prompt, hesitating for just a second, before you take a deep breath and bravely press the button.
The screen flickers to life, and a nervous guy fills your screen, adjusting his Ferragamo tie. As you return the nervous smile, you notice other profiles have joined your meeting. Your helicopter parents. Your nosy little brother. Your married know-it-all sister. And your gossipy next door neighbor.
He doesn't seem to have noticed yet. What do you do?

thriver

Sun, Apr 26 2020, 10:00 pm

I’ll post the pre-published version (that’s what I could find):

On Life and Laundry

I remember
Looking at my oldest
As a newborn
In the neonatal ICU
He had so many wires
All hooked up

When he was finally
Able to wear something
More than just a diaper
And we were able to dress him
In a beautiful tiny
Preemie stretchy
And my husband
Did the baby’s laundry
For the first time
He held the tiny stretchy
And we felt so blessed
And we relished
Washing and folding
The laundry

Now here I am
Nine years
Three children
Later
Thirty years old
Eight rounds of chemo
One mastectomy
Twenty something rounds of radiation
Later
And the help is no longer
What it was
What I needed
Could not function
Without
This past year
And the laundry is piling
And I can’t keep up
And it is hard
And it is not easy
And my strength is not what it once was

And I cry a little more easily
And it is overwhelming
But I try to remember
How blessed I am
To be alive
To be here
Functioning
And doing my family’s laundry

amother

Chartreuse

Sun, Apr 26 2020, 10:13 pm

Oohh I love writing. I actually have a blog
I started writing this specific thing 3 weeks ago but for some reason I’ve been having terrible writers block and the words are just not coming out well.
I will post what I have written so far. Feel free to help me change it around.
I barely know any grammar so dear grammar police please be kind🙏🏻

So many are hurting right now
The world has turned upside down
Corona the beast has arrived to town
The wreck and havoc it's causing
Has the fear in us rising

Lives are being lost
Jobs are shrinking
Parties, gatherings, weddings are being canceled
And this all has got me thinking

If you would know a month ago
That this is the last time for a while that you will be
Packing your kids lunches
Waving to them as the school bus pulls away
Getting dressed and rushing out the door to your 9-5
Sipping coffee in the Starbucks cafe
Walking freely into any retail store
Or taking a stroll in the mall
Heading to the gym
Visiting your frail grandparents
Having a family fun night with all your siblings
Watching a great movie in the theater with friends

Would you choose to take a moment to stop an appreciate it all?
Now we have the time to stop and see what blessings we have in our daily lives
Suddenly, we all want to go back to work
We wont complain about packing lunches for our kids
The yellow bus is all of sudden very much missed
By adults and kids Wink

Having the chance to lounge in Starbucks seems like a luxury these days
And visiting frail grandparents is an opportunity we would all jump at

Now, for the things that feel like a daunting task
Getting Frustrated that the person who annoys you will be coming to visit
Or that it is your turn again to keep your lonely mom company
Having to help your neighbor with carrying the groceries
Being mad that the food at the restaurant didnt live up to your expectations
Or that the nail tech used the wrong color

When you read all of the above while sitting home in isolation
They seem like little things you would not care about
Or things you wish you can be doing right now!

Wanting that frustrating person to come visit you
Wishing you can run to your mom and just give her a huge bear hug
Carrying as many heavy groceries as you possibly can for a person in need
You would not care about the quality of the food in a restaurant, now you just wish you can go to one!
Or having an ugly color nail polish, (who cares?!)

Let's take this time to really think and focus
With what mindset we will all come out of this
When COVID season is over
It is the little things that matter the most
And the big things that matter the least

I am grateful for this isolation
It has made me come to the realization
That watching my kids play and fight
Making big messes
Having crying fits
Spilling 2 gallons of juice
Little fingerprints on my window pane
Mashed potatoes on chairs
And squeezing all the bottles of body wash in the tub
I used to get frustrated at all these things
But now I look at it from a different lens
And I cant help but laugh along with them

Yes, kids LOVE making messes!
That is part of learning and growing up
Remember you were once a kid to
And made the same messes, had the same fights
Jumped on beds
Emptied drawers
Sneaked candy
While your mom tried to juggle it all

Let’s take this time to appreciate it all
Be grateful for everything we have
Complain less
Because if your are healthy and locked indoors
It is still the greatest blessing of all!

Remember, your worse day is someone else’s DREAM life
Be thankful even in the storms!