Losing to Find

It was in your pocket the last time you looked. Or maybe in your bag. On the back seat of the car. Or was it in the trunk? Either way, you certainly remember having seen it somewhere. But how long ago was that? Where was it now? How did it go missing? And why does it bother you so much?

Losing an object sometimes evokes feelings as strong as losing a person, because we have become so accustomed to associating material goods with memories, people, emotions, moments. No matter how small or insignificant these objects may seem, they are intertwined with our lives, to the extent that sometimes they become an integral part of who we are. That is why when we lose them we panic and feel lost ourselves. It is not really because we realise how much we needed that object. It’s not really a matter of need, but rather of want. It’s wanting that object to exist in our lives so that we are reminded of everything and everyone associated with it.

But sometimes, we lose things so that better ones can arrive. It’s like the wilting of a rose so that a fresh one may bloom. There is supposedly a reason for everything that happens. You just have to trust that whatever that reason may be, it is for the best, for your own good. So for your own inner peace and sanity, sometimes you just need to let go and accept the loss. Better things lie ahead if only you choose to believe it.

“Every one of us is losing something precious to us. Lost opportunities, feelings we can never get back again. That’s part of what it means to be alive” – Haruki Murakami

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Making a house a home

“Home is not a place it’s a feeling”. It’s the sense you get that you are exactly where you want to be. With the people you want by your side. To create the memories that will last a lifetime. It’s the starting place of love, hope and dreams. It’s your refuge, your retreat, your safe haven. It’s the place where your heart will always be.

It may take bricks to build a house, but it takes so much more to build a home. Perhaps that is why it becomes all the more important when after roaming around countries and houses, you may finally decide on settling somewhere and begin to think longer-term. You start planning for a future without that sense of insecurity of “who knows where I’ll be by then”; when you’ve found where you want to be and want to build a home there.

We are the ones who create the homes we live in. We fill them with love, with dreams, with memories and the longer-term prospects that a beautiful story can start from right there.

“Life takes you to unexpected places. Love brings you home”.

A siren purr

They found him on the street behind a bush. His faint yet persistent cry acted like a siren call. His eyes had the colour autumn leaves take just before falling off the tree and they radiated a sadness that should not have been there at his age. He was so small he could fit in the very palm of your hand.

It only took a bowl of milk to tame him enough to get close. He needed a petting and a warm hug. Who knows for how long he had been abandoned out there all alone. It wasn’t very cold, but for him it could have well been the middle of winter. Loneliness messes with your senses.

He perched almost immediately in her lap, as if he had found the home he had been dragged away from. Then he started to purr. That soft, constant, vibrating purr that causes a smile to appear on your face and goosebumps to take over your body unconsciously. Because it was a sensation like no other. Knowing that the simplest of things, the minimal of your actions, can cause someone so much happiness.

She soon felt dependent on it. It was the moment she longed for after every day. To sit on the sofa and allow him to settle in his usual – by now – position. And then begin that sweet chime that only a cat can utter.

It’s amazing how such a small thing can take up the most room in your heart.

Because she soon found that she cared more about that feline creature that had so surprisingly yet decisively entered her life, than for some human beings she had known for much longer.

But that was a bit of a problem though. Because for years he had been her companion, her friend, her confidante, her family, her soulmate.

And then one day he left.

As suddenly as he appeared. But far more painfully for her.

On that morning, when his purr ceased to sound, something inside her broke. It is painful losing something you love so much. Especially when he had your entire heart from the moment you saw him. The image of him lying there still could not be erased from her mind. But neither could all the moments spent with him. Those numerous occasions they had experienced together and which she would never change for anything in the world.

His little paws had forever been imprinted on her heart. And that is what she was going to hold on to. That her life had transformed in the most unexpected of ways with his arrival and she had become a better person because of it.

 

Also part of Daily Prompt: Transformation

A parrot in space

Once upon a super moon, there was a young boy who dreamt of being an astronaut. No adult ever paid attention to his dream because it was considered a typical fantasy of any child. But the boy remained resolute and throughout his education worked towards achieving its realization.

Upon completing his studies as an honor student given his thirst and determination to succeed, he was lucky enough to be approached by NASA. And he soon found himself at the doorstep of his dream.

After years of training, as required by protocol, he was called to man the Agency’s mission to Mars. The first of its kind. But the young man did not want to go alone. So he was told he could be an exception and bring along a pet. The young man searched hard for who could accompany him to this long and arduous journey.

Be it fate, or a simple coincidence, when his old lady neighbor found out about his achievement she was so overjoyed that she gave him her pet parrot to take with him to space. His name was Peri. And he had recently lost his girl companion. “He could use some lifting up,” the old lady said.

The parrot had a strong yet elegant appearance. Green from head to toe, his feathers had strips of blue and his tail featured strings of red, yellow, orange and purple, making him as exotic as impressive to look at. At the sight of the young boy, the parrot jolted and yelled “Honey”, “Help!”. The boy panicked and turned to the old lady. She was looking at him calmly with a senile apathy that is common at that age. She smiled and told him not to worry. “Honey was the name of his girl companion. She became sick and we couldn’t get to her in time as it was vacation season and we were away often. That is why he still calls out help. He feels somewhat guilty for her demise”. She paused then said, “I think outer space would be good for him. A change of scenery always works to get your mind off things”. The boy decided to take the parrot.

Years passed before they landed on Mars. All the while, the parrot often screeched the only two words he knew and despotically refused to learn any more – different – words. Once on the red planet, the man suited up and dressed the parrot in a specially made suit too. He proposed the parrot be the first to step on the new planet. It would be an interesting twist, as well as acting as a safety net for the young astronaut. No one could predict what they would find out there. He pushed the parrot out the spacecraft door, but the winged animal would not budge. After a while, the man resigned the effort and extended his right leg to step outside. That is when a flutter was heard and the parrot skid past his head and made a leap onto the alien planet. His webbed feet were the first to make a footprint. The boy smiled and followed.

They weren’t to remain too long outside. Their mission was to collect a sample from the planet’s surface, take pictures and leave. The technology would do the rest. The boy told the parrot not to wander off too far. Three minutes later, he found the parrot mouthing his two words. But he was not alone.

A red creature, around the parrot’s size was standing right opposite it. It had the parrot’s features. A small head, long body, wing-like hands but four sturdy yet stick-like legs. The astronaut tried to approach but with every step forward he made, the alien parrotoid moved back. So he decided to remain in place and take pictures as evidence.  In an instant, though, just as suddenly as it appeared, the alien vanished. And the parrot voluntarily retreated into the spacecraft.

Back on earth, a very long journey later, the parrot was lauded as a hero, just as much as the young astronaut was praised for successfully achieving his mission. But as soon as he was reunited with his old lady owner, the parrot collapsed and passed away in her hands. He had already survived beyond his expected life span.

The young man reported on their Martian encounter, building up excitement and expectations before he revealed the photos. He hadn’t said anything so far. He wanted it to be a surprise when he landed home. But the photographs were not as expected. Peri the parrot was in all of them. The red parrotoid was in none.

As a result, no-one believed the young astronaut. And no matter what he said or how much he tried, there was no way of proving what he saw. He was the only one who would ever know what he and the first ever parrot in space experienced on a planet millions of light years away from ours.

Drafting sorcery

©Claire Fuller

Jack was in a hurry. Rather, he was in a tremendous rush, overtaking other pedestrians like a formula one car drafting its competition. He had only four hours to find all the ingredients on the sorcerer’s list. But where would he find corals from seas with turquoise waters and white sand, leaves from ever-blooming trees, and centuries-old wood bark untouched by fire, along with a line of other equally rare paraphernalia?

It was a seemingly unattainable mission – his only hope of reviving Selina, of waking her up from the coma. He had promised her he wouldn’t let go. Ever.

 

Also part of Friday Fictioneers

Autumn scenes

It’s when the weather changes that you see that different side of people you always suspected was there but never truly saw. It’s when the leaves change from green to yellow-orange-brown; when they fall and they crunch as you walk on them that you feel something peculiar take over the air. It’s that sense that another season arrives and with it other expectations, longings, desires, another form of waiting; waiting for something unknown but exciting simultaneously.

Christine gazed out the window at the autumn carpet that now decorated the palace gardens. The fallen leaves imbued a note of melancholy to the marble arches and fountains that for centuries stood in place. She was waiting for something. Maybe even someone. Perhaps a prince charming on a white stallion. But right now, she would be satisfied with even the slightest of actions out of the ordinary. Any simple gesture showing her that someone cared. Someone in particular.

As the leaves rustled in the wind, she considered it pointless, and turned away from the large window.

That is when it happened though.

The faint crackle of leaves being trodden upon. And then the ticking of pebbles being thrown on the glass.

Christine ran back to the window and looked out, her heart beating fast with excitement.

Right underneath stood, dressed in elegant attire fit for royalty, Diego, the errant boy who for so long had been in love with her. He was too scared of rejection to say anything. And thus, they both continued their daily lives not knowing. Unaware of their feelings for each other. Waiting for something to change, without even trying.

With the coming of autumn though, some hearts become bolder to reveal the love they hide inside.

 

Also part of Daily Prompt: Waiting

Appleopolis

It’s remarkable how the most memorable moments are created when you least expect them. For example, that specific day when Josh woke up with a headache that accompanied him throughout most of the day. He was suffering and felt that the day would be wasted unless he could get rid of this pain that was drumming his head. It was that precise day when his girlfriend had booked tickets for them to visit the new entertainment resort in town.

It was called Appleopolis because it had something very peculiar and particular about it. The main food on offer was apple slices. But not just any apple slices, they were cold, freshly cut, peeled apples with a stain of honey and traces of almonds. What was even more unique about them was that they brought out your other personality. Those traits of your character that you suppressed and kept subdued inside of you.

A few minutes after Josh had savoured these apple slices, he almost forgot about the headache he had and ended up enjoying the day to the utmost. He did not remember when was the last time he had laughed so wholeheartedly; when he truly allowed himself to indulge in the moment; to recharge with experiences; and to simply live the day for what it was – an opportunity to have a good time with a loved one.

By the end of the day, the headache was gone. And Josh was feeling rejuvenated.

Fruit – just like any moment – can be adventurous too, as long as you let yourself loose to experience whatever happens, without plans, without programming, without too many expectations.

 

Also part of Daily Prompt: Subdued

What it takes to feel good

It doesn’t really take a lot to make a person feel special or to lift their mood when they’re not feeling well. Contrary to popular beliefs, the way you feel isn’t affected so much by the material you surround yourself with, but rather the people and their attitudes. To make it clearer: it’s not the technology or the objects you have that will make you feel better. It’s the people you share them with. Those who can make you smile no matter what. Who see you’re not well and ask what they can do to make it all better regardless.

You find the greatest expression of sentiment in the smallest of things. In the slightest gestures that mean a lot. Those small things that demonstrate that the people around you are listening to you and remembering the things you say – what you like and don’t, your dreams and desires, a funny story that can be associated somehow at any random moment.

And it is those small things that have the largest impact. It is what can boost your morale and make you feel good even on the cloudiest and darkest of days.

After all, confidence is often gained from what you don’t see. From the new underwear you put on, to the wink of a loved one when only you are watching, to that song that gives you chills when you listen closely to its lyrics.

It doesn’t take a lot to feel good. All it requires is some attention to the things that matter.

 

Also part of Daily Prompt: Realize

The cure of a smile

A lot of things can be said about a smile. How everyone smiles in the same language. How it is the shortest distance between two people. How it takes more muscles to frown than to smile. How you never know who might be falling in love with you when you smile. How everything seems so much brighter and more positive when you smile, because it radiates happiness, and in essence that is what we truly need in our lives.

Just think how much better your day starts when you wake up with or next to a smile. It’s the most elegant and attractive feature you can wear. It confuses people who expect you to be upset. Yet it is also contagious, because, really, you can’t hold a grudge against a beautiful smile.

And most of all, the people who can make you smile even when you feel like crying; aren’t they the ones you truly want in your life? They are the ones who know the power and cure that lies with this body curve.

A smile is your most powerful weapon. So wear it often and with confidence.

“Let your smile change the world, not the world change your smile”

The value of your worth

“If you find yourself constantly trying to prove your worth to someone, you have already forgotten your value,” she told him as she took a tray of cookies out of the oven. They were still steaming hot. “What you need to do is show people what you can do. To be so good they can’t ignore you”.  He tried to interrupt and say something, but wasn’t fast enough. “Just because some people won’t be able to see your worth, doesn’t mean that your value as a person decreases”. She placed a box of the cookies she had just made in his hand and as she escorted him to the door said, “remember, it is not the people or their words that give value to our lives, it’s the memories and the actions”.

He was left standing outside the door of an elegant brick-red house with a large yard and a white veranda. The trees were providing much needed shade from the hot sun. And he was eager to bite into the cookies that seduced his nostrils from the moment she had opened the oven and allowed him a peek at them.

He had come with one question. How to make himself important. And she had simply replied, “you can’t. You either believe you are or you’re not”.

She had told him what he was unable to understand. That everything you emanate diffuses from within your soul. A smile radiating from your lips increases your face value. Confidence makes you appear decisive, knowledgeable, maybe even respectable. Your behaviour and your sense of determination gives you the image of a stronger person. An elegant attire adds to your sex appeal and your style. But whatever you do, your value will always stem from the way you feel about yourself. From the satisfaction you have with your life, the level of happiness you have reached with the people who surround you, the work you do, the hobbies you keep yourself busy with. Ultimately, like Warren Buffet said, “price is what you pay, value is what you get”. The trick is knowing how to distinguish between the two.

 

Also part of Daily Prompt: Value