Wednesday, November 14, 2007

3WW LXI

Hey guys. 3WW will be taking off November 21st for Thanksgiving, and will return November 28th. If you'd like, feel free to go back and grab three words from a previous week. Remember if you didn't participate that week, then they're new to you :)

I might encourage you also to take this opportunity to visit some of the 3WW participants and read some of their other blog entries. That's what I plan on doing.

Thank you all for participating and helping to make 3WW a pretty cool thing. I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving.



Welcome to Three Word Wednesday. Each week, I will post three (or more) words. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to write something using all of those words. It can be a few lines, a story, a poem, anything.

Leave a comment if you participate. Many fun and interesting people might visit your blog.

This week's words are:
Icy
Pause
Train


"Will Dean be home soon?"

The frail voice startled Donna. She had been on the verge of dozing off to the sound of mindless television droning on in the background.

"Yes, Momma," she said softly.

"I'm worried. The roads are getting icy."

It hadn't snowed there in ten years. Donna didn't know if her mother even comprehended a single word she was saying. But just in case, she thought it better to try and ease her mind.

"Don't worry, Momma. He'll be fine. He'll be here real soon."

Day after day her mother just laid there, staring blankly at the ceiling, or sleeping. But once in awhile, she would say something out of the blue. Mostly they were things that didn't make sense, but sometimes she would speak of something or someone far in her past.

It always broke Donna's heart, but it was especially hard when her mother spoke of Dean, Donna's older brother. He had gone to Vietnam and never came home. Even now as Donna thought of him, she could still see his goofy smile as he boarded a train and waved goodbye that crisp April morning.

"The snow is beautiful, isn't it Dee Dee?" It made Donna glad and broke her heart a little more that her mother still called her Dee Dee. It seemed almost cruel that she still had certain memories, but not much else.

"Yes, Momma. It's perfect."

The mention of snow gave Donna pause. She thought of a particular Christmas when she was seven and Dean was still at home. It had snowed then. Dean had pushed her on a trash can lid "sled" down the hillside. It used to snow a lot. Now the winters were warmer, but somehow left her feeling much colder inside.

Donna pulled a blanket tighter around her, barely noticing that tears had started to trickle down her face. She remembered another snow. The memory was fuzzy, but it seemed like Dean was gone. He had been out. No, on a trip. And the roads had been bad, and her mother had been so worried. That must be-

"Dean! You're home!"

Her mother's voice once again startled Donna back to the present. A haunting chill instantly covered her entire body. She turned quickly to see her mother lying completely still, eyes closed.

"Momma?"

Donna jumped to her feet and ran to the bed.

"Momma!"

Her mother was lying completely still, eyes closed. She was no longer breathing. Just smiling.

"Where've you been? I've looked for you forever and a day. Where've you been? I'm just not myself when you're away..."

74 comments:

  1. Wow I'm first. Wow. I'm never first or on time for anything

    Because of my impending apartment sale--if I ever get it together and the holidays which start this weekend for my family, I will be commenting throughout the week

    This story will be first all week.

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  2. I think I end up offering half a poem
    for 3WW.

    Here is mine:

    icy patch

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  3. More keys for Simon to reflect upon but this time it's bad news. Except... But you'd better look yourselves.

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  4. A page from my diaries

    Cuckoo-Cuckoo Train

    Thanks,
    UL

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  5. Good words this week...

    My haiku for 3WW.

    Sandy

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  6. Thanks for the words Bone.
    For my nautical contribution please click here

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  7. Hi everyone. I was waiting all morning for the prompt and then we had to pause for lunch. I have three short poems for you today. The post is called "Random Thoughts".

    Rose

    xo

    P.S. Good luck with the sale Pia. All my comments on your blog are spammed. :(

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  8. here is my offering

    http://a-mus-ing.blogspot.com/2007/11/train-wreck.html

    Christy

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  9. Mine is up. Smedley's adventures continue.

    --Gay

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  10. Mine is done.

    I'll be around to read everyone else's, though I don't anticipate getting to them until later this afternoon/tonight.

    :)

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  11. Great words! I amazed myself by not actually ending up writing about train travel, something I love with an intense, fiery passion. But the words don't always go where you expect them to, do they? :)

    Here's mine for this week: The Earth Below

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  12. Thanks for the prompt! Here's my Wednesday thing...

    Tanka to the Past

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  13. Hi Everyone! Cool words to work with this week! Here's mine:

    haiku

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  14. its done...as always Ill be back...:) tell Guppy hi from Cappy ;)

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  15. Hi! Here's my link. Better late than never.
    The Dare

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  16. Oops! That last link doesn't work.
    Here's another, hopefully a good one.

    The Dare

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  17. A week and a half ago I happened across your blog... and the 3WW concept inspired a post on my blog. In case you're curious, here it is:

    http://r8chel.wordpress.com/2007/11/03/three-by-three/

    Sometime maybe I'll actually follow the rules. :)

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  18. Here's mine -it's my excerpt from my nanowrimo project

    Sleepless nights

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  19. Short, maybe not as clear as I intended it, but: In Man's Footsteps

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  20. Oops, guess I wanted everyone to just go back and start over. The correct link is In Man's Footsteps.

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  21. Battled against the Big Brother atmosphere (at work) and produced a piece untitled.

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  22. Hi here's mine this week - ta Bone!

    http://scrunchydumpling.blogspot.com/2007/11/three-word-wednesday_15.html

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  23. I'm glad that there's a new Pia--can always use company :) As this can cause some confusion I will use PiaSavage

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  24. Here's one for the cosmologists and mathematicians amongst us:

    KALI YUGA TIME

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  25. Alright, I'm a day late but here is mine (and it's not a haiku this time!).

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  26. Here I am again, posting on a Thursday.

    I can't wait to get around and see what you all came up with this week.

    Thank you all for participating and helping make 3WW a pretty cool thing.

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  27. Lately your writing amazes me.

    This is wonderful:
    Now the winters were warmer, but somehow left her feeling much colder inside.

    Dementia is so hard. To set the story within the framework of memories of a brother/son who died in Viet Nam was wonderful

    Love this: It seemed almost cruel that she still had certain memories, but not much else.

    Aging and dementia was my field, and you portrayed it so gently--Bone beautiful

    Hope to have a death like that when I'm old--it's the perfect one

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  28. You know, there is a part of me that gets mad at you every week when you do this to me. You make it so that I am incapable of expressing what your writing says and does through words. It's both a gift and a curse I fear.

    Even now as Donna thought of him, she could still see his goofy smile as he boarded a train and waved goodbye that crisp April morning.

    I don't know why, out of all the simply amazing lines in this story, that's the one that calls to me. I think it's because of the people we've loved and lost, it's not the "big" moments we miss so much, but the little things like their goofy grin.

    And now that I've gone all sappy, I'll try to lighten the mood and tell you it's probably a good thing you posted on a Thursday: if you'd done it yesterday, that would have been three posts in a row, and well, I wouldn't want blogger to

    a)decide someone had hacked into your system and cancel your account because of it, or
    b)be overloaded by the amount of work you were posting and decide to cut you off ;-)

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  29. I wouldn't have believed it possible to both love and hate something so completely.

    Your writing here is astounding. Heartbreakingly so. I was shocked and appalled at the ending. It made me miserable inside. Again, you brought tears to my eyes that threatened to turn into sobs.

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  30. Hey Bone, perfect tone for your story. I've just returned from week with the old folks at home, and the feeling in the air is the subdued sadness you've captured. well done, thanks.

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  31. Bone, what a sad story! Beautifully written but SO sad..

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  32. my contribution here
    :
    http://raysofthoughts.blogspot.com/2007/11/wait.html

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  33. Hi,
    This is my first week participating. I really enjoyed it. Here: poem

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  34. Pia: Thank you for the very kind words. Never thought about a "perfect death," but I guess that would be one.

    TC: You know, there is a part of me that gets mad at you every week when you do this to me.

    Um, you're welcome? :) Yeah, you're right, if I posted 3 or 4 days in a row, Blogger would probably shut down my account.

    Avery Laine: Thank you. Though I'm not sure what to think. TC is partly mad at me. Nnow you've got some sort of a love/hate thing going on :)

    Richard: Thank you. Subdued sadness is a perfect phrase for the situation.

    Truefaith: Thanks for the comment.

    Sunshine & Bun Bun: Welcome to 3WW! Thanks for participating.

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  35. The very kind words weren't jargon. They were truth

    Unfortunately I have thought about death too much--both because it was my field and I lost my parents etc

    That is the dream death--passing "in sleep" and finding a loved one just before

    I did give it up as a profession as I do so hate thinking about death
    That was a major problem in the grief counseling, death and dying field

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  36. Beautiful story Bone. One of your best ever. Haunting and true for so many families.

    Rose

    xo

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  37. I am glad Donna's mom found peace atlast, caring for someone who lives in the past, unaware of the present world can be painful and so much heartache...poor Donna! And to live like Donna's mom, even worse. I hope I would never have to depend on anyone for care, when it's time to go, I just wanna close my eyes and be gone. But hey, it's not in my hands, is it?

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  38. Your many fine phrases gently walk us through an experience which many will face, one way or another. This is a fine piece, albeit not without a tear and a catch in the heart place.

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  39. Pia's first--I may be last, lol. Mine's up: http://sagecoveredhills.blogspot.com/2007/11/3-ww-new-years-day-1987.html

    Bone, your's had a nice home feel to it.

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  40. Bone, speaking of icy, your story gave me chills...very powerful.

    I'm a believer.

    S.

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  41. Moving story Bone, sad sad reality.

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  42. Hi Bone -- your story crawled inside my heart, inside my bones. I love it and am wiping tears from my eyes as I type. I felt like I was in the room with Donna and Momma -- and Dean too. And I'm so glad that Momma and Dean reunited finally. Beautiful.
    :)

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  43. Here's mine finally. Tom from TOP has been helping me with links so I'm going to try it. Wish me luck!

    here

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  44. Darn! It's not working! This is so annoying! Why aren't there directions somewhere on how to do this? I even went to the help section but couldn't find anything about it. At least nothing I could understand! Why am I only one who doesn't know how?

    I'll keep trying, though!

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  45. Bone, your story is so sad, but it also gives hope. Maybe she really does see Dean again. The language and dialogue is very natural. A classic!

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  46. Here we go again:

    here

    I've been so busy trying to get this damn thing to work that I haven't even read the other posts yet. Tomorrow morning I'll sit with a cup of coffee (and maybe put some Bailey's in it!) and enjoy poetry for breakfast.

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  47. Bone, my dad had Alzheimers and my friends mother now has dementia, so I read this with all emotions turned off... but I can feel your story anyway. One of your best.

    (And I am a blonde; redhead wannabe.)

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  48. Rose: Wow, thank you.

    UL: I'm not sure who it's worse on, the person lying there, or the person who has to watch it happen. Terrible either way.

    Tumblewords: Thank you. That was a beautiful comment :)

    Sage: Ah, looks like someone came after you. Maybe you'll be next to last.

    Sandy: Thanks. I literally got chills writing it at the end.

    Jujee: Thank you.

    Clare: One of the best things about writing is when your story moves someone. Thank you so much.

    Linda: LOL I'm so glad you finally got the link to work. I was rooting for ya :)

    Christine: Thank you for the nice words.

    Marcia: I can only imagine it is one of the toughest things one could go thru.

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  49. That was rather sad, but only because you wrote it so well.

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  50. Time stands still for some. Then release.

    Thinking...

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  51. how sad, how very very said. Glad she got to see Dean again. :*)

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  52. GirlFPS: Thank you.

    Gautami: You say thinking a lot after my posts. I hope that's a good thing :)

    Tagster: Thanks for the comment.

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  53. Bone, you chose a great song this week.

    Your ending to this story was heartwrenching.

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  54. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  55. Great Idea Bone! This is my first visit to your site and I will be back. I hope you like my contribution My contribution

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  56. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  57. Slow Train Coming.


    First post ever! Love the idea of this blog, keep it up.

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  58. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

    Bone, your story last week was very moving. It was a real gem.

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  59. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

    Bone, your story last week was very moving. It was a real gem.

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  60. A Very Happy Thanksgiving, Bone and to all!

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  61. Here's my late offering called "Abandoned Trestle" Thanks to everyone for the get well wishes this past week. Hope everyone had a nice Thanksgiving.

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  62. My first attempt at reading all the 3WW posts and I cry at yours, Bone. Your story was really sad this time. I guess I remember my mammaw when she was dying. She was talking out of her head about things I didn't quite understand during that time. Nice post. Keep up the good work.

    Hope your Thanksgiving was a good one.

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  63. Bone,

    your story was beautifully sad and touching. It was a powerful piece of writing that brought tears to my eyes. It reminded me of my grandfather's last few years. Very real.

    Christy

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