Jamieson Wolf's Blog, page 66

Climb the Mountain – A Poem

Life is filled

with peaks and

valleys. I sometimes

wish there was

a way to

look out at

what is to

come, what hills

I will have

to climb and

what waits for

me at the

top of those

peaks, those mountains

towering over the

lower points. But

when I look

back at what

I’ve accomplished, at

the valleys I’ve

already waded across

and the hills

that I’ve had

to climb, I

wonder if I

would have done

anything differently. If

climbing those mountains

would have meant

so much to

me if I

had known what

was coming? As

I stand atop

the highest mountain

that I have

ever been on,

I realize that

it doesn’t matter.

In life, there

are peaks and

valleys, mountains and

swamps, fields and

meadows, oceans and

lakes and more.

All that maters

is that I

keep going, keep

fighting, keep

dreaming. That I

keep on living

life to the

fullest, whether I’m

in a valley

or standing on

top of the

world. All that

matters is that

I keep going,

I keep climbing,

That I keep

breathing and finding

joy in the

smallest of things.

Wish Cake – A Short Story

This is my newest Pay It Forward 2015 offering. It’s for the lovely and talented Dana who herself is full of magic. :)

*    *   *

They would come to her at night.

She would wake from sleep and see them in her bedroom: glowing balls of light that pulsed in tune to the voices inside of them.

“I wish for true love.”

“I wish to be smarter.”

“I wish for the courage to fight my fears.”

Dana wondered what to do with them. The wishes floated around her apartment like sparkling balloons. She wasn’t annoyed by them, but their constant shining made her listless. Dana wanted to do something for these people.

It was Billy, her partner, who finally had the idea. “Why don’t you use them in a recipe?”

She looked at him, surprise written on her face. “I can’t use someone else’s wishes in a batch of cookies or a cake. That would be wrong.”

“Then what are you going to do with them? As it is, we’ll have to gather them up and keep them in the spare room.”

As the days went by and there apartment filled with more glowing wishes, Dana began to wonder if Billy’s idea would work. She wondered what would happen if someone ingested someone else’s wishes.

Dana called her friend Jessie and explained the situation. She was quiet for a moment and then said “I’ll be right over.”

Ten minutes later, Jessie was knocking at the door. As soon as Dana opened it, Jessie wrapped Dana up in a hug. “Let’s see these wishes.”

Bringing her into the spare room, Dana was again filled with a sense of wonder and delight. She was always awed by the wishing spheres. They were while there was no one in the room to hear them, but as soon as Jessie and Dana came in, they started speaking:

“I wish I could lose a few pounds.”

“I wish that my book could be published.”

“I wish for my own home.”

Jessie wandered around the room, touching the spheres with gentle care. They moved like balloons through the air and would grow brighter where they were touched. Jessie took them all in, the hundreds of wishes, some no bigger than a marble, others no bigger than a baseball. They all floated around the room as if Dana had her own solar system.

“Honey, this is beyond cool.”

“I know, right? I just wish I knew what to do with them.”

“Well, what did Billy say?”

“He said I should use them into a recipe. I would feel really weird doing that with someone else’s wish.”

“Well they came to you for a reason, Dana. Maybe you’re supposed to use them that way. You achieved your deepest wish when you were able to open up your bakery. So maybe you need to work your magic with these.” She gestured to the spheres with her right hand, letting it sweep across the room.

Dana let out a snort. “I can’t do magic.”

“Honey, listen to yourself. Of course you are. No one who bakes bread, cakes and cookies like you can be called anything but magical.”

“I’m just a baker.”

“No, it’s more than that, you don’t bake. You make the soul happy with your creations.” She gestured around the room again. “Why not use the wishes to make your creations even more magical?”

Dana reached out and touched one of the spheres. It spoke, vibrating with light and she listened to the sound of other voices from other spheres speaking their wishes aloud.

“I wish to control minds.”

“I wish for friendly encounters and happy experiences.”

“I wish for a full night’s sleep.”

Looking at all of the wishes, Dana wondered if it could be that simple. “Maybe I should make my own wish?”

“Why not?” Jessie said. “It couldn’t hurt. I’m going to stop in later for something sticky and sweet okay?” She hugged Dana hard. “Don’t worry about this. It’ll sort itself out. You just have to believe.”

After Jessie left, Dana started to get ready for the day. Billy had breakfast waiting for her when she got out of the shower.

He gave her a cup of coffee and kissed her softly. “Hey hot stuff. Big day today?”

“Not so bad, just a few orders to finish and a few new treats to make. Have to get started on the day’s batches of bread and cakes. You know, the usual.”

“Have you figured out what to do wish the wish balloons?”

“Not yet. Jessie agrees with you that I should try to put them in a recipe somehow.”

“See, I’m clearly brilliant.”

“I knew that already.” She took a sip of her coffee. “I just wish I knew what to do.”

At those words, the spheres started to flow out of the spare room and began to swirl around Dana in the kitchen. They all pulsed with light and the kitchen was filled with a chorus of voices.

“I wish to hear from friends I’ve not seen since childhood.”

“I wish to have more financial freedom.”

“I wish for intense close connections.”

“I wish for happiness in my life.”

“I wish I could love myself more.”

“I wish I was rich and famous.”

Dana and Billy looked at the swirling spheres with growing awe. The both stood in the centre of the mail storm, motionless and quiet, the humming of the spheres growing louder as they got closer.

The wish sphere’s surrounded Dana and began swirling around her, faster and faster as a sphere, larger than the rest, appeared in her hands. A voice spoke from inside of it; her voice: “I just wish I knew what to do.”

The sphere in Dana’s hands opened, as if something was pushing back a lid. Then the wish sphere’s around her began to grow smaller and smaller, shrinking in size, until the air was filled with a fine dust. It looked as if the air was filled with sparkles or wonder dust.

As Dana watched, the glittering dust began to slide into the sphere she was holding it, filling it with other people’s wishes given form. As the dust flew into the sphere, a soft musical tinkling filled the air along with the sounds of people’s voices.

“I wish for a long life.”

“I wish I was thinner.”

“I wish I was smarter.”

The music filled the air with what sounded like the tinkling of stars. It intensified in volume, growing louder, until all the wish dust filled the large sphere she was holding. When the last grain of wishes had settled in the sphere, a loud sound like a gong filled the air and then everything went quiet.

Dana and Billy regarded the sphere with wonder. It was glowing slightly and gave off a faint light that made Dana think of fireflies at night time. The air was still now and Dana and Billy just looked at the orb, taking it all in.

“What happened?” Dana asked.

“You made a wish.” Billy said.

“Obviously. But what do I do with it?”

“I’m going to follow my hunch here.” He walked over and dipped a finger in the sphere. He took his finger out and it was covered in sparkles. “Bottoms up.” He said, putting the fingertip to his tongue. “I thought so.”

“What’s it taste like?”

“Like sugar, but lighter. Stevia maybe? Try some.”

Holding the sphere carefully, Dana did so. The wishes tasted softly sweet and filled her with an instant lightness, as if her spirit was filled with brightness. She was reminded of every great thing that had ever happened to her, along with a few memories that had yet to happen.

“You have to do something with this.” Billy said. “You have to share this with others. I think that’s why it was given to you.”

“I know just what I’m going to do.”

*

Jessie met her at the bakery an hour later. Dana had already made a huge batch of cake batter by then and was starting to fill cupcake trays with the batter.

“I came as soon as I could. You said you decided what to do with the wishes?”

“Yep, I’m going to spread the magic around so that others can experience it. Hopefully, the people who made the wishes will have their wishes answered this way.”

She motioned to the sphere of wishing dust. “It keeps refilling itself, so we can make more. I don’t know why any of this is happening.”

“Magic doesn’t need an explanation.”

Jessie threw herself into making up more trays. They were opening the bakery a couple of hours, so they had time to get a few batches done and cooled before people started arriving. Dana finished them off with icing, some in gold and some in silver. Each of them were topped with an edible star decoration.

Dana and Jessie stood back to look at the first batch. “They’re gorgeous.” Jessie said.

“Ah, but the proof is in the eating.”

She handed a cupcake to Jessie and took one for herself. She was filled with an immediate sense of joy and her spirit was filled with light. Jessie seemed to be having the same reaction. “Oh my goodness, these are amazing. What are you going to all them?”

Dana had thought of a great name on the way over to the shop. “I’m going to call them Wish Cakes.” She looked at the clock. “Time to open the doors. Let’s see what others make of them.”

Customers started rolling in. They always came back every day to see what was on special. Today, the Wish Cakes stood front and centre. One woman approached the counter and looked at the pastries on offer, but her eyes were drawn towards the Wish Cakes.

“Those look lovely.”

“They’re a new creation.” Dana said. “Want to try one?” She thought of when she had made her own wish and was struck with an idea. “You have to make a wish before you bite into it. You don’t have to say it out loud if you don’t want to.”

“Don’t mind if I do.” She chose a silver topped cupcake and closed her eyes, saying her wish internally, then bit into the cupcake. The woman seemed to glow for a moment, as if she were sparkling. Opening her eyes, she regarded Dana with a wide eyed smile.

“Well, my dear! However did you do it?”

“What did you wish for?”

“I wished my joints would hurt less, terrible arthritis you know. Some days I can barely get up. Now, here I am pain free for the first time in years! Oh, these cupcakes are truly magical! How did you do it?”

“It’s magic.” Dana replied.

The woman laughed. “Well whatever they are, I want a dozen.”

As word of her Wish Cakes spread, her fame as a baker grew. Dana knew that she owed her thanks to the thousands of others that continued to believe in magic and would wish upon stars. To thank them, Dana would stand with Billy on their balcony and watch the stars.

She knew when someone made a wish on a star as it seemed to glow brighter than all the rest in the sky. When she talked to Jessie about it while they were making more cupcakes and other creations, wondering why the Wish Cakes worked the way they did, Jessie’s always had the same answer.

“Magic doesn’t need an explanation. Magic just is.”

Lawless by Michelle St. James – A Book Review

Angelica Rossi is broken.

Determined to bring order to the Syndicate, she has been working for months to clean up the business her father’s people ran. Working tirelessly, spending every waking hour working, she has been trying to clean up the mess left behind by her father.

Keeping herself busy is the only way to keep the ache in her chest at a minimum. Since Nico’s death, she has done whatever she could to get on with her life. It is only at night when she falls into sleep that the gut wrenching ache returns.

She can still see his face, can still smell his scent, can still feel his hands on her body. Angelica knows he will always be a part of her. All that she can focus on is remaking her father empire and getting revenge on the people who had ruined her life and taken Nico from her.

One night, things change when she wakes and finds Nico in her room. At first, she wonders if he’s a spirit, but as his scent fills the room, Angelica knows it’s him, knows that he’s real and there are secrets he has to share.

Before she can process that he’s back, before she can deal with the anger she feels towards him, her house in under fire. Everything that Angelica holds dear is in danger. A hit has been put on her head and her brothers. They fight back and escape but know that their fight isn’t over.

They have to cut off the head of the snake that is Raneiro. Angelica is faced with a choice, however. Is it more important to live a life worth living or get revenge?

Only time will tell…

Once again, my meagre plot summary doesn’t do a book justice. It does nothing to capture the urgency, the passion, the danger that this book holds. There are books you merely read and then there are books like Lawless that you live through, every word thrumming right through you.

I was wowed by this book. I had no idea how Michelle would follow up Fearless but Lawless is by far the best book in the trilogy. That has a lot to do with Angelica’s character development. She goes from a woman along for the ride, fighting alongside Nico to a woman who has taken charge of her own life and knows what she wants and needs to do.

No longer is she a woman who is afraid of where her life is going. Instead, she chooses the direction with Nico by her side. She has to work hard to heal her heart and herself. Angelica has to make some important decisions in Lawless and those decision deepen her character development.

More than that though, the passion has been ramped up high and set on high. I thought that Ruthless and Fearless were hot reads, but they don’t even hold a candle to Lawless. The passion between Angelic and Nico is so intense, so absolutely all consuming, that it sets the book aflame.

I loved everything about this book. The story, the passion, the secondary characters. I loved it so much that I immediately wanted to go back to the beginning of Ruthless and start Angelica and Nico all over again.

Spice up your life with Lawless, the thrilling conclusion to the Mob Boss trilogy! Michelle always impresses me with her novels but The Mob Boss trilogy has a special place in my heart.

You don’t just read this book, you live it.

Shatter the Dark – A Poem

We are alone

behind our eyes.

Solitary inside ourselves,

the darkness is

total until we

breathe life into

thought and dreams,

until we shape

letters into syllables

and syllables into

so many words.

We shatter the

darkness that we

find inside of

ourselves until the

darkness becomes fragmented

and filled with

cracks. Through all

of those cracks,

we can see

light shining, waiting

to pour from

us in art,

in words, in

music, speech or

song. They are

the lights which

chase the darkness

away. When the

light shines strongly

enough, others will

be drawn to

it, others who

are filled with

their own kind

of light, so that

we are no

longer alone.

Timeless – A Poem

Every time I look upon you,

it is like the first time.

When I wake,

I see the halo

that surrounds your head.

It twinkles like gold stars

and the stars rain down

upon you, surrounding me

as I lean in to kiss you.

Every time I kiss you,

it is like the first time,

filling me up with light

that makes me feel as if

I am filled with wishes

waiting to be granted

when your lips touch mine.

Every time you take my hand,

the same thrill runs up my arm,

and it pulses as our energies

entwine and combine,

filling me with light

that is brighter than

the light I carried when alone.

Every day with you

is like the first day.

Every moment with you

is like the first moment,

filled with anticipation,

infused with a wish that

entices the air with

stars and light

to grow brighter

and more vibrant.

You are timeless to me,

and though the love between us

is young, it feels like a love

that has spanned the ages,

stretching across time to grow

only when we found each other.

It’s as if a seed was planted,

biding its time,

waiting to stretch

across the sky to fill it with stars

and stardust.

When we met,

that star was given the life

that it needed.

Now we are following

that glorious star as we

continue to grow and love

each other more every day,

throughout time and space.

Heart Music – A Poem

I was coming into

the lobby of my

building when one of

my neighbours stopped me.

“How are you?”

She asked with genuine

warmth. The smile on

her face was like

the sun on a

dark and dreary day.

“I’m doing fabulously.”

I said. She laughed

and the sound was

like wind chimes singing.

“I have to ask you. I was passing by your apartment the other night and heard the most beautiful music. What were you listening to?”

I ran through the

music I kept on

my phone, thinking she

might have heard some

of that. She shook

her head with each

song that I played.

“No, it wasn’t that. It was more melodious more ethereal. Much more happy.”

She reached down to

touch one of my

legs. I heard music

playing in the air.

It was loud and

very harsh, like glass

being broken on pavement.

The string section was

all screeches and scratches

that sounded like knives.

“No, that’s not it either.”

She touched my head

and the music that

filled the air sounded

as if it belonged to

a dramatic movie, full

of cellos and sweeping

movements. She looked at

me with her head

tilted to the side.

“You’re some sort of creative person aren’t you?”

“I’m a writer. How did you know?”

“Because only a creative person lives with that kind of music inside them.”

She went to touch my

chest I reached

out and held her

hands gently in mine.

“What are you doing? How are you making that music?”

“Why, you’re the one making the music. Every part of the body has its own symphony, if you’re quiet enough to listen for it.”

She slipped her hands

out of my grasp

and placed them on

my chest near my

heart. The air was

filled with the most

beautiful music. Full of

harps and strings and

melodious wind instruments It

was at once beautiful

and mysterious as it

was like nothing I’d

ever heard before.

“There you are. That’s what I was hearing. What were you doing last night?”

“I spent last night with my partner.”

I told her and she

smiled at me kindly.

“We weren’t doing anything in particular. It was just enough that I was with him.”

“That’s heart music.”

She said. I looked

at her quizzically.

“What do you mean?”

“When the heart is most happy, that is when its song is the purest.”

She went to go into

the elevator, but looked

back at me, smiling.

“You keep letting your heart sing, you hear me?”

I nodded and my

thoughts turned to him.

Already, I could hear

my heart starting to

sing.

Across the Sky – A Poem

You came among us

already shining bright.

Slowly and with care,

you helped to encourage,

to shape and to define.

Now as you move on,

we are brighter and

more vibrant than before

because of you. We are

the galaxy and you are

the comet, heading towards

your future. You leave

a trail of stardust

behind you so that

we can chart your path

across the sky.

Dancing with the Flame – A Poem

* This is for Dianne Hartstock and is my newest offering for Pay It Forward 2015. I hope you like it Dianne!

To me, she

has always danced

to her own

beat

to her own

rhythm.

More than that,

through the kindness

of her spirit

that shines through

in electric beauty,

she inspires me.

When I read

what she has

written, it is

so real that

I can almost

picture the images

coming to life,

sprouting forth like

fire to alight

upon the page

causing her words

to glow brilliantly.

She doesn’t merely

write but instead

dances with the

page. I long

to be so

free with my

words, so limitless.

I long to

evoke such beauty.

She shines like

a Princess of Words,

bright with the

joy of life

and filled with

so much passion

that it makes

the pages she

covers with her

words throb with

desire and wanting.

She makes me

want to write

more, to write

better and most

of all, to

dance and revel

in the freedom

of movement. My

hands itch to

slide across the

page and see

what stories I

can give light

to and what

will be chased

away in the

shadows.

Beautiful Outside As Well As In – A Poem

I was sitting

in the middle

of the bus.

There was a

woman waiting to

get off and

she called out

to the driver

“I pulled the bell for the wrong stop. I’m going to Shepard’s of Good Hope. Can you let me off at two stops down?”

While she waited,

she turned to

me and smiled.

“I used to be able to walk a lot. I was an athlete. Now I can’t walk three blocks.”

I didn’t know

what to say

but words came

out of my

mouth anyways, as

if being spoken

by someone else.

“The body changes. Sometimes there is nothing we can do but live with our memories but then make new ones.”

She looked at

me with kind

eyes and gave

me another smile.

“I want to live beyond my memories. I want to be beautiful again like I remember being.”

I closed my

book and gave

her a smile

of my own.

“You’re still beautiful.”

“No, I’m not.”

She said, letting

out a laugh.

“Sure you are.”

I told her.

“Beauty comes in all shapes and sizes. I think you’re beautiful.”

She blinked as

if in shock.

“Do you really think so?”

I looked at

her: she had

greying hair that

was escaping her

bun, a pale

face from too

much time indoors.

She was wearing

jogging pants with

flip flops and held

onto a purple

coat. She had

obviously seen better

times, easier ones.

But it was

when she smiled

that she seemed

to transform. It

took years off

her face and

I saw a

little of what

she used to

look like.

“Yes. I do. You have a light inside you that shines brightly.”

She put a

hand to her

hair and smiled

again and I

watched as the

light within her

grew beyond the

body and poured

out of her.

The bus stopped

and she looked

back at me

before stepping out

of the bus.

The light had

faded and I

looked at her,

a woman who

now looked younger

than her years.

“Thank you. I could probably walk a whole mile today. That’s the first time someone has paid me a compliment in ages.”

She stepped off

the bus, a

trail of light

following close behind

her like fairy

dust or dreams

made real.

A Seed of Light – A Poem

When I think of you,

I smile and something

miraculous happens. I am

filled with a light

that starts in the

centre of my chest.

It begins as a

small seed, one that

you planted there. As

it grows inside of

me, I begin to smile

and that smile releases

joy into me, filling

me with such bliss

at the mere thought

of you. It combines

with the light that

I carry inside myself

for you until I

can see nothing but

your face, shining and

gorgeous like the sun.

Until I can hear

nothing but your

voice, soft like the

wind. My love for

you spills out of

my body, as it

is impossible to contain.

When I think of

you, my entire outlook

on life changes, my

spirit becomes brilliant with

the love I carry

for you