Felicia Denise's Blog, page 54
December 23, 2017
#SongLyricSunday | “Waterfalls” by TLC
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Song Lyric Sunday is hosted by Helen Vahdati over at This Thing Called Life One Word at a Time and all the rules can be found here.
The theme for Song Lyric Sunday this week is “danger”.
As always, you can go your own way and post a song that has nothing to do with the prompt. We’re all here sharing our love of music and lyrics, and most of all, having a great time!
Helen is teaming up with Simply Marquessa and this week’s SLS theme was inspired by her weekly LyricalFictionFriday theme: “I’m locked and loaded…completely focused…my mind is open…” from the song Dangerous Woman by Ariana Grande.
My playlist hasn’t failed me yet – going to stay with it!
“Waterfalls”
Writer(s): ETHERIDGE MARQUEZ, BROWN PATRICK L, LOPES LISA NICOLE, WADE RICO R, MURRAY RAYMON AMEER
A lonely mother gazing out of her window
Staring at a son that she just can’t touch
If at any time he’s in a jam she’ll be by his side
But he doesn’t realize he hurts her so muchBut all the praying just ain’t helping at all
‘Cause he can’t seem to keep his self out of trouble
So he goes out and he makes his money the best way he knows how
Another body laying cold in the gutter
Listen to me[Chorus:]
Don’t go chasing waterfalls
Please stick to the rivers and the lakes that you’re used to
I know that you’re gonna have it your way or nothing at all
But I think you’re moving too fast
Little precious has a natural obsession
For temptation but he just can’t see
She gives him loving that his body can’t handle
But all he can say is “Baby, it’s good to me.”
One day he goes and takes a glimpse in the mirror
But he doesn’t recognize his own face
His health is fading and he doesn’t know why
Three letters took him to his final resting place
Y’all don’t hear me
[Chorus (2x)]
Come on
I seen a rainbow yesterday
But too many storms have come and gone
Leavin’ a trace of not one God-given ray
Is it because my life is ten shades of gray
I pray all ten fade away
Seldom praise Him for the sunny days
And like His promise is true
Only my faith can undo
The many chances I blew
To bring my life to anew
Clear blue and unconditional skies
Have dried the tears from my eyes
No more lonely cries
My only bleedin’ hope
Is for the folk who can’t cope
With such an endurin’ pain
That it keeps ’em in the pourin’ rain
Who’s to blame
For tootin’ ‘caine into your own vein
What a shame
You shoot and aim for someone else’s brain
You claim the insane
And name this day in time
For fallin’ prey to crime
I say the system got you victim to your own mind
Dreams are hopeless aspirations
In hopes of comin’ true
Believe in yourself
The rest is up to me and you
[Chorus (2x)]
December 22, 2017
The Gift of Christmas
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December 21, 2017
December 20, 2017
“Christmas with You”
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Returning the teakettle to the stove, he stumbled but righted himself before falling face first into the large casserole dish of Marti’s prize-winning cornbread dressing.
Cal placed both hands on the counter to make sure he was steady, then picked up the two mugs of steaming cocoa. He took his time, each step slow and deliberate as he made his way back to Marti in the family room.
The smile she greeted him with made his heart swell just as the sadness in her eyes gripped the same heart.
“Here you go, sugar plum. One hot cocoa, extra cocoa and no marshmallows.”
“Thank you, honey.”
This time the smile she gifted him with was genuine. The bright flecks of gold and amber in her dark brown eyes glowed and never failed to bring a smile to his face.
She was everything to him.
Cal set his own mug on the low table in front of the sofa before easing down next to his wife.
“That hip acting up?”
“Hips, knees, arms, elbows,” he chuckled, “I am joint pain personified.”
Marti sat forward, a worried look on her face.
“Should I get you a pain pill? Or would you like a rubdown with some of that new joint cream?”
Cal pulled her back close to him. “No, pumpkin. I am fine. This is our last night alone during our last Christmas-season here. I’ll not spend it lying around worried about aches and pains. Tomorrow is Christmas Eve, and the tribe is descending upon us. I’m cuddling with my woman while I can.”
Resting her head on his shoulder, Marti sighed. “I can’t believe after all these years, it’s over.”
“What?” Cal pulled away and raised her chin to see her eyes. “What’s over, Marti?”
She gestured around the room with one arm. “This. Our life on the farm.”
“No, Marti. This is not an ending. We’re starting a new chapter, taking a different path, going on an adventure. Call it what you will, but nothing’s over, pudding.”
“Cal, this is where you were born, just like your father… and his father. The cemetery on the other side of the apple orchard holds half of your family. This just seems wrong. I’m still not sure we should leave.”
“Are you kidding? I am grateful we can leave. Farms aren’t selling the way they used to. Cal, Jr. negotiated a great price for us.” He kissed her hand. “We’ve lived a wonderful life here. We’ve raised livestock and farmed just about every vegetable under the sun. We had a dairy farm and even had scenes from two movies filmed in the orchard. I’ve loved every minute. But it’s time for a change.”
“I can’t help but feel like it’s my fault we-,”
“Martha Ann Dempsey! We’ve had this conversation… several times. This is no one’s fault. There is no blame. We have worked side-by-side for fifty-three years, only taking time off when you had the kids, and then to visit them after they left and started families of their own. It’s past time for us to enjoy more of this life we worked so hard to build.”
She took his hand and brought it to her lips, planting a small kiss then holding it against her cheek.
“We have had a good life, haven’t we?”
Cal looked at her, considering her question. The laugh lines around her eyes had multiplied over the years, and the body once lean and robust from long days spent working at his side and taking care of their six children, was now soft and plump. The once dark chestnut hair was now snow white, but still long and thick. He couldn’t even tell a patch had been shaved away where the small bandage now rested over her right ear. All Cal Dempsey could see was the sixteen-year-old beauty who kissed him on the cheek for retrieving her school work after a gust of wind scattered papers everywhere as they walked home from school.
“No, we haven’t had a good life, cupcake, we have a great life, and it’s not over yet. Now drink up. Your cocoa’s getting cold.”
Reaching for their mugs, they drank in silence enjoying each other’s company.
Cal’s mug was almost empty before he spoke again.
“I love this cocoa, but I should have added rum to my cup.”
Marti grinned, shaking her head and cast a side-eye glance at him. “Have I told you lately how much I love you?”
He pursed his lips and looked up at the ceiling as though trying to remember and shook his head.
“No. No… not since lunch. You’re late.”
She giggled like a school girl, set her mug down and snuggled deep into his arms.
“I love you Calvin Thomas Dempsey, and I’m grateful for the life we lived here.”
“Six kids… six college graduates. Few folks can say that. They’re all happy and successful and would do anything for us.”
“There were days I thought I’d pull my hair out. TVs and stereos blaring. Six kids practicing six different instruments. Sibling rivalry. And they each had their own dog! What were we thinking? What a madhouse.” Marti grinned. “But, I’d do it all again.”
“Me too, peanut. Some of our friends went through some bad times, but we were blessed. No major kid rebellions or catastrophes. And despite droughts and floods, and skyrocketing prices, we’ve always made it. We did good, Mrs. Dempsey.”
Marti pressed her lips together stifling a laugh.
“What?”
“What about ’94… when the washing machine exploded?”
Cal slapped his free hand against his forehead.
“I never realized how much water a washing machine held. That was a nightmare.”
Marti smacked his chest.
“Oh please. Between the manufacturer and our homeowner’s insurance, all you had to do was sign your name. I was the one who had to pack up dirty farm clothes and drive seventeen miles to the nearest laundromat.”
“And you did it with a smile!”
“Yes, I did!”
“You also smiled when I fell off the roof in ’96.”
She covered her mouth, hiding her toothy grin.
“Look at you. Over twenty years later, and the memory still amuses you. Shameless woman! Laughing at your husband’s pain.”
“Oh, you know I’d never laugh at your pain… and you only broke your wrist. But the sound you made as you dropped to the ground? That was priceless. I’m sure they heard it in downtown Shoney.”
Narrowing his eyes, Cal stuck his tongue out at his longtime bride.
Marti scoffed at Cal’s silliness and burrowed down into her husband’s side again.
He watched the twinkling lights of the Christmas tree, content.
Cal thought Marti had drifted into an easy sleep when he felt her body tightened against him.
“Honey?”
She fisted his shirt collar as he heard her first soft sobs.
“I’m scared, Cal.”
Wrapping both arms around her, Cal kissed his wife’s forehead.
“I know, sweetie pie, I know.”
Pulling away and sitting up, Marti swiped the errant tears away.
“I know you try to distract me so I won’t think about it, Cal. But what if the doctors are wrong? What if it’s not as easy as they believe? You’ll have lost your family home for nothing.”
Cal sat up, cupping his wife’s face. “Stop, baby. Please?”
“But-,”
He silenced her with a soft kiss.
“But nothing. Marti, we should have left here ten years ago when my knees started giving me problems. But I was pig-headed and stubborn as usual, and you never put up a fuss.”
“I only wanted you to be happy.”
“Make me happy now and stop acting as though you’re ruining my life.”
A lone tear slid down her face. Marti raised her hand to the bandage over her right ear. The biopsy proved the tumor wasn’t malignant, but it was increasing in size. Even with the good news the growth wasn’t cancerous doctors warned that might not always be the case. If it continued its rate of growth, Marti’s headaches would worsen, and she might experience some impairment to the left side of her body due to the pressure the growing mass could cause.
She pulled her husband into a tight hug, whispering in his ear. “I’ll try my love. I promise I’ll try. I know this is our last Christmas here, I just don’t want it to be our last Christmas together.”
He pulled back enough to see her face.
“Woman, I’ve got big plans for us. We’re officially condo owners. This time next month, we’ll be all moved in and you’ll be recuperating from your surgery. Then I’ll have these rotten joints taken care of and by summer, we’ll be professional senior citizens. Cute and annoying as we flash our AARP cards near and far.”
Marti laughed, caressing his cheek. “What am I going to do with you?”
Cal cleared his throat. “I was getting to that.”
“To what?”
“Well, this time tomorrow, it will be you and me… and six kids, three daughters-in-law, two sons-in-law, fourteen grandchildren, and three great-grands. It will be loud and crazy here. A 747 could land in the dining room and we wouldn’t know it.”
“True. So…?”
“So, I was thinking. You could trim a couple of slices off that steer masquerading as a rib roast and make me a snack…”
Marti raised an eyebrow. “Or?”
His devilish grin told her what was coming.
“You could take me in the bedroom and be my snack.”
Her grin matched his as she ran her hand over his chest.
“Calvin, Calvin, Calvin. Don’t you know people our age aren’t supposed to still be having sex? All the magazines say so.”
Cal scoffed as he released her and stood, showing his traitorous joints he was still in charge. He pulled Marti from the sofa and into his arms.
“Those articles are written by soulless thirty-year-olds using apps to find love. They’re all bitter they swiped left when they should have swiped right.”
Marti chuckled as she took his hand, leading him from the room.
“I believe I will take option B, after which you get option A.”
“Woo-hoo! I love the way you think, my little hot tamale.”
“Cal?”
“Yes, muffin?”
“Stop calling me food names.”
Her husband roared with laughter… and was still laughing when he closed the bedroom door.
©2017 Felicia Denise, All Rights Reserved
Wordless Wednesday
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Image from Pixabay
December 19, 2017
Rena Averest – In The Best Interest of the Child – Character Profile
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Olivia Chandler’s latest client is eleven-year-old Rena Averest.
Rena and her parents were involved in a weather-related, multi-car accident. Her mother was killed and her father was severely injured and comatose for several weeks and remains hospitalized indefinitely.
Rena suffered extensive injuries and was also hospitalized for several weeks. When she was well enough to be discharged, the hospital ran into major obstacles. Her mother’s only living relative was an older brother who lived two thousand miles away. Suffering from chronic cystic fibrosis, he was unable to care for Rena and had in fact, even missed his sister’s funeral. Rena has grandparents, and two aunts on her father’s side of the family…and they want absolutely nothing to do with her.
A benevolent judge, taking into account all that Rena is currently dealing with, allows her to be placed temporarily with Courtney and Marissa Bellamy, friends of her parents since college, and Rena’s godparents. Not knowing how her father’s medical situation will resolve itself, the judge feels Rena needs the stability and familiarity of the Bellamy home. The Department of Children’s Services disagrees and take legal action to remove Rena from the Bellamy home and place her in foster care. The presiding judge spurred on by the irony of DCS wanting to remove Rena Averest from a non-relative home only to place her in a non-relative home, stays the case and appoints a child advocate attorney to research the case and protect Rena’s interest.
And that’s exactly what Olivia intends to do.
Rena Irene Averest
Age: 11
DOB: May 6, 2003
Parents: Duncan and Irene (Deceased) Averest
Siblings: None
Favorite color: Yellow
Favorite music: Todrick Hall and all songs Disney-related
Favorite Book: The Story of My Life by Helen Keller
Pets: A turtle named Brutus
BFF: Margie Macy
Wants to be a surgical nurse when she grows up
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“In the Best Interest of the Child”
Amazon US http://bit.ly/BestInt
Amazon UK http://bit.ly/BestIntUK
Amazon CA http://bit.ly/BestIntCA
Amazon AU http://bit.ly/BestIntAU
Goodreads http://bit.ly/BestIntGR
December 18, 2017
Margot Schultz – In The Best Interest of the Child – Character Profile
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Dynamic and vivacious Margot Schultz never met an obstacle she couldn’t overcome… or knock down. Executive assistant/office manager to Olivia Chandler, Margot always seems to know the right amount of charm, wit, and panache to use when dealing with anyone from grumpy judges to cagey Department of Children’s Service employees to Olivia’s peers – some of whom are less-than-ethical.
Early in her career, Margot worked for some of the less than-ethical-crowd. While they could be gods and magicians in the courtroom, pulling out wins from seemingly unwinnable cases, outside the courtroom was another matter. Margot could remember each and every personal errand she’d had to do, each gift she’d had to buy for multiple girlfriends and mistresses, and every lie she’d told to one of her bosses’ wives.
When Margot heard through the courthouse grapevine that the executive secretary of a successful young, female child advocate attorney was retiring for health reasons and had no replacement, she grabbed her resume, took an extended lunch and went in search of Olivia Chandler. Despite her unusual approach, Margot and Olivia clicked immediately.
The two women have worked side by side for ten years. Olivia admired Margot’s work ethic. She encouraged Margot to continue her education when time allowed, and even paid for it, calling it a ‘sound investment.’ Margot would eventually advance from executive legal secretary to executive assistant and office manager.
Margot knows Olivia has no family and was a foster care kid. She doesn’t know the intimate details, but she does know Olivia’s adolescence was bad enough for Olivia to keep herself closed off to most people. Her boss seems to ‘live’ when focused and working on a case for their minor clients. The rest of the time, Olivia just seems to exist.
The divorced office manager is not one of those people who believe a woman needs a man in her life to be complete, but Bruce Bellamy has suddenly appeared in Olivia’s life, and Margot will do her part to keep him there.
Things are going to get interesting.
Margot Rose (Parker) Schultz
Age: She’s not telling – but probably mid to late 40s
Born: New York, New York
Marital Status: Divorced – has adult twin sons who are both Marines
Is two classes away from a Bachelor’s degree in Business Management
Loves to dance and can be found on a dance floor most Saturday nights
Collects souvenirs from the Roaring 20s – always says she would have made a great Flapper
Plays acoustic guitar, but rarely does as it reminds her of her musician ex-husband
Is somewhat estranged from her parents and siblings since she dropped out of college nearly 30 years ago to elope with her now ex-husband
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“In the Best Interest of the Child”
Amazon US http://bit.ly/BestInt
Amazon UK http://bit.ly/BestIntUK
Amazon CA http://bit.ly/BestIntCA
Amazon AU http://bit.ly/BestIntAU
Goodreads http://bit.ly/BestIntGR
Don’t Worry, Be Happy…
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e Happy
December 17, 2017
#SongLyricSunday | Don’t Close Your Eyes Tonight – John Denver
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Song Lyric Sunday is hosted by Helen Vahdati over at This Thing Called Life One Word at a Time and all the rules can be found here.
The theme for Song Lyric Sunday this week is “pretending”.
As always, you can go your own way and post a song that has nothing to do with the prompt. We’re all here sharing our love of music and lyrics, and most of all, having a great time!
Helen is teaming up with Simply Marquessa and this week’s SLS theme was inspired by her weekly #LyricalFictionFriday theme: “I think it’s so sweet…how you let your friends encourage you to try and talk to me…but let me stop you there…” from the song NO by Meghan Trainor.
“Don’t Close Your Eyes Tonight”
Written by Frank John Musker, Richard Kerr
There’s a tenderness that I feel, very real you see. I can feel your body stir, so deep within.
Let it be an act of love tonight, completely. Let me ask of you one thing:
Don’t close your eyes tonight. Just look at me, and see how many times I cried for you.
Don’t close your eyes tonight. Let it be me, not just a fantasy, let it be me tonight.
You can lie so close to someone and still feel all alone.
Although I’ve heard you say you love me so many times.
When you give me love so beautiful and tender, someone else is in your mind.
Don’t close your eyes tonight. Just look at me, and see how many times I cried for you.
Don’t close your eyes tonight. Let it be me, not just a fantasy, let it be me tonight.
Sorry if I cry, feelings run so deep.
Many is the time when I wake up and find I’ve been crying in my sleep.
Look me in the eye, tell me what you see,
I’m the one who loves you, I’m the one who needs you, make this one for me.
Don’t close your eyes tonight. Just look at me, and see how many times I cried for you.
Don’t close your eyes tonight. Let it be me, not just a fantasy, let it be me tonight.
Don’t close your eyes tonight. Just look at me, and see how many times I cried for you.
Don’t close your eyes tonight. Let it be me, not just a fantasy, let it be me tonight.
Disclaimer: I have no copyrights to the song and/or video and/or hyperlinks to songs and/or videos and/or gifs above. No copyright infringement intended.
