Brandon Ellrich's Blog, page 9
November 3, 2022
Peace and Battle
On the ground, fallen leaves;
Vying for their own attention,
Each color makes a sweet collection;
May we, on Thanksgiving Day,
Be thankful for this Fall display;
Even in the chilly weather,
Rejoice! Be at peace together!
Nothing left; the battle ends,
On the ground, fallen men;
Veteran’s Day reminds us all,
Each soldier who answered the call;
May we, on Thanksgiving Day,
Be thankful for the price they paid;
Even in the midst of war,
Rejoice in freedom they’re fighting for!
Copyright © 2022 Brandon Ellrich
This acrostic poem was written in response to W3 Prompt #27: Wea’ve Written Weekly at The Skeptic’s Kaddish, so please visit his page to participate and/or read other responses.
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If you liked this poem, you may also like Fighting.
November 2, 2022
Leaving
“Going somewhere?”
“Maybe.”
“You’ve changed your look.”
“Obviously.”
“You haven’t been getting much nutrition. I can almost see right through you.”
“Stop.”
“Just because all the others are going–”
“Stop. Just…don’t.”
“…Robin left last week.”
“I saw. You know, it won’t be that long.”
“Long enough.”
“Winter only lasts a few months.”
“I’ll be colder here without you.”
“You’ll get used to it.”
“I don’t want to.”
“You’re not completely alone. The hole will be filled for a while.”
“It’s not the same. They’re nuts.”
“Yeah…There will be new ones to replace me.”
“Not the same as you.”
“The wind is picking up.”
“I guess you’ll be leaving.”
“I’m the last one.”
“I noticed.”
“Well…”
“Should I say goodbye?”
“No, you shouldn’t.”
Laura was sitting on the park bench, watching as the last leaf of the large maple tree was dislodged from its branch and floated down to join the others that were colorfully littering the ground.
Copyright © 2022 Brandon Ellrich
Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed this “flash fiction,” please click the like button and leave me a comment. Follow me if you would like to receive updates on new posts whenever they are published too.
If you enjoyed this story, you might also like my story Taken or Bitter-Sweet Love.
The Key and the Garden
Image credit; Mick Haupt @ UnsplashAn old brick wall stood behind the houseTime attempted to bring it down,Bit by bit, cracking here and thereA weathered and gray wooden door Donned a lock awaiting its keyThe key eventually found a sad, but curious girlAnd entrusted itself into her handShe united the key with its lock and opened the doorA magnificent garden revealed itself from the other sideShe ran to tell her mumAnd share this beauty with herBut when her mum gazed through the doorwayNothing but briars and thickets were seen The magic of the garden was for the little girl onlyBut she never knew whyShe kept this treasure in her heartAnd held to this gift over the yearsWhenever she was sad and the woes of life caused her light to fade,She would return to the garden beyond the stone wallDrinking in the beauty and peace held thereinYears later, she left the key in an old desk drawer to await anotherWhose life was in need of a lightCopyright © 2022 Brandon EllrichThis post was written in response to Sadje’s What do you see # 158- October 31, 2022. Please visit her page to participate and/or read other responses.
Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed this poem, please click the like button and leave a comment as well. Follow me if you would like to receive updates whenever new posts are published.
October 31, 2022
American Sentence
David at The Skeptic’s Kaddish sometimes publishes an “American Sentence,” and I always find them interesting, so I wanted to try a couple for myself.
“Burning”I bask in glowing blazes of this burning house that I set aflame.Bitter but vivid memories help when it comes time for her to die.
Copyright © 2022 Brandon Ellrich
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If you liked this, you may also like Six-Word Stories, Vol. 1.
October 30, 2022
Be Afraid
Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed this poem, please click the like button and leave a comment. Follow me if you’d like to receive updates on new posts whenever they’re published. Happy Halloween!
If you liked this poem, you may like Sounds.
October 29, 2022
10,000 Views; 5,000 Visitors
10/27/2022I got this notification on Tuesday and wanted to share it with my blogging community. I have reached over 10,000 views of my website/blog posts and over 5,000 visitors. So far this year, those views have come from 56 different countries. It made me think that although the Internet (especially social media), in some ways, has caused a great disconnect among friends, family and colleagues, the ability to connect with other people around the world is remarkable. I never thought I would be reaching individuals from so many countries, some of which I am barely aware of. I certainly didn’t think I would be in regular contact with individuals from India, Israel, Malaysia, Ireland, Great Britain and Pakistan.
I hope this growth continues and that I connect with more people around the globe. I have enjoyed the connections I have made on WordPress as well as LinkedIn and I appreciate whenever you recommend my writing to someone you know. I have also enjoyed reading such a wide diversity of writing from other bloggers. There are so many talented people out there!
As always, thanks for reading!
Brandon Ellrich
A Witchy Limerick (Almost)
https://homebnc.com/homeimg/2016/08/07-indoor-halloween-decorations-ideas-homebnc.jpgThere once was a clumsy witch,And one day she got an itch,To go to Dracula’s house to get a view,But she lost control and broke right through;When she did she yelled “Son of a–--Goblin!”...?Copyright © 2022 Brandon EllrichThis poem was written in response to Simply 6 Minutes – Welcome to the Challenge: 10/25/2022 at Stine Writing, so please visit their page to participate and/or read other responses.
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October 28, 2022
Caturday, October 28, 2022
Zak-in-theBox!
Thanks for visiting my blog! If you enjoyed this video, please click the like button and leave a comment. Follow me if you would like to receive updates whenever new posts are published.
October 27, 2022
Autumn Winter Wedding
This cadralor was written in response to W3 Prompt #26: Wea’ve Written Weekly at The Skeptic’s Kaddish, so please visit his page to participate and/or read other responses. This one took some thought, and I’m not entirely sure I followed the specific parameters of a true cadralor, but I think I at least came close. Please let me know what you think!
I. HarvestI love the colors you show, Red and brown replace the green;A lovely Harvest glow, Sets a beautiful scene.II. Leaves of ChangeWaltzing up the aisle, Leaves swept up and swirled;Fall stays a little while, Then enters Winter’s girl.III. SnowfallA dress as white as snow, Drapes the trees and hills;Feeling Autumn go, Replaced by Winter’s chill.IV. Young AgainI feel giddy as a child, Catching snowflakes on my tongue;Sledding down for miles, We should ever be so young.V. WeddingI love the colors you show, Waltzing up the aisle;A dress as white as snow, I feel giddy as a child.Copyright © 2022 Brandon Ellrich
[image error]Pexels.com" data-medium-file="https://brandonellrich.files.wordpres..." data-large-file="https://brandonellrich.files.wordpres..." src="https://brandonellrich.files.wordpres..." alt="Image shows a black woman in a white wedding dress, walking among a forested path, the wind blowing her hair across her face." class="wp-image-1946" width="499" height="747" srcset="https://brandonellrich.files.wordpres... 200w, https://brandonellrich.files.wordpres... 499w, https://brandonellrich.files.wordpres... 100w, https://brandonellrich.files.wordpres... 867w" sizes="(max-width: 499px) 100vw, 499px" />Photo by Godisable Jacob on Pexels.comFour stand-alone poems and then a fifth that ties them all together. As you can see, I used the first line of each of the four poems to create the fifth, which is completely different in theme, yet ties them all together.
Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed this poem, please click the like button and leave a comment. Follow me if you would like to receive updates whenever new posts are published.
If you liked this poem, you may also like And So It Goes and Songs of the Forest.
October 26, 2022
Masked
Photo by Ketut Subiyanto on Pexels.com
Detective Rosine met the delivery boy downstairs and went back to his desk. Just as he was unwrapping the tuna melt sandwich, Sandy rapped on the door to his office.
“Yeah,” he said, but she was already opening the door.
“Sorry, Detective,” she said, clearly a bit frazzled, “but there’s a lady out here who is just hysterical and insists on talking with a detective.”
Rosine frowned and gave Sandy a raised eyebrow, asking for more of an explanation.
“Says she was held at gunpoint last night, and the perp asked her to do ‘questionable things,’ but wouldn’t say anything more until she talked to a detective.”
Rosine sighed loudly and nodded as he carelessly folded the wrapping over the sandwich and rose from his chair.
He went to the open door and waited as Sandy escorted the lady inside. Rosine gestured toward a chair and the woman slowly sat down. After discovering her name was Vera and asking for other personal information, he recognized the Russian accent in her answers.
“Now,” he said, “I’d like you to relate to me the events that happened last night. Were you at home?”
“Yes,” Vera said, nodding. “My doorbell rang, and surprised me. I was not expecting someone. I go to the door and open it to see a man in a mask, wearing a hat, holding a gun.”
“Was the man alone?”
“No,” she said. “One other was with him, also with a mask.”
“Did he have a gun as well?”
“No,” she answered, shaking her head, “I do not think so.”
“Did they say anything?”
“They both shouted something at me, but I was frightened and did not understand.”
“What happened next?”
“They wanted…edibles,” she said.
“Edibles?” Rosine repeated.
“Yes, food,” she explained. “Something to eat.”
‘Edibles’ brought to his mind something other than food, but he did not explain his confusion of her broken english.
“I gave them apples, but they were not happy with this,” she related.
Rosine nodded, waiting for her to continue on her own.
“Then they took from me kisses,” she said.
“I see,” he said. “Was that the questionable thing you mentioned?”
She looked at him confusedly.
“You told the other officer that the man asked you to do something questionable,” Rosine prompted.
Vera shifted uncomfortably in the chair and looked down at her fidgeting hands.
“Vera,” Rosine said quietly as he leaned forward, “The men that were at your home? They’re not here. This is a safe place.”
She took a deep breath and nodded. Rosine sat back and waited patiently.
“He…he asked me to…smell his feet,” she finally said.
“Smell his feet?” Rosine repeated, making sure he understood her correctly.
She simply nodded.
Rosine thought for a moment and then asked, “Vera, can you describe these men? How tall were they?”
“About four feet,” she said.
Finally, recognition hit him.
“Kisses–you mean Hershey’s Kisses? The chocolates?” he asked.
“Yes, the silver-wrapped chocolate candies.”
“Trick-or-Treat, smell my feet. Give me something good to eat,” Rosine said in a sing-song voice.
“Yes, this is what they said to me!” she said excitedly, leaning forward. “You know of this? This has happened to others?”
“Vera, last night was Halloween,” Rosine explained.
Her perplexed expression remained unchanged.
“Oh boy,” he muttered.
Copyright © 2022 Brandon Ellrich
Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed this short story, please clickt he like button to let me know, and leave a comment as well. Follow me if you would like to receive updates on new posts whenever they are published.
If you like this one, you may like Dia de los Muertos.
