six minutes until Sunday

today I wrote one story of 390 words for the 38 week challenge under the theme Autumn..

Week four; Autumn  

Forever Autumn  wc 390

“…You always loved this time of year,
Those fallen leaves lie undisturbed now,
Cause you’re not here
Cause you’re not here
Cause you’re not here…”

I hum as the song fades out and the journalist narrator moves the play into its next scene but I don’t hear any more. “My life will be forever Autumn, now you’re not here…” The phrase spins slowly on repeat in my mind. The trees outside are no different now than they are in full summer. The usual drab olive green, just less dust. I watch the rain seep down the bark turning it from white to grey and I lean my forehead on the cold glass; the scene outside blurs. Tomorrow will be better.

The sun peeks up over the tree tops lighting up the brilliant diamonds of frost on the grass then melting their tiny crystalline hearts. I feel the crunch of the white under my feet as I walk through the still frozen shade. The early morning air fogs my breath and reddens my nose and I reluctantly follow my friends into the field for the annual mushroom pick. My heart is not in it. “’Cause you’re not here…” The tune haunts me. I warm up as the morning progresses and we finally head back with baskets full and jackets over our arms.

“We always loved this time of year.” I blurt and cause a silence in the car. The others make busy with seatbelts and shuffling coats. The conversation starts up with the engine and lingers on recipes for soup. I watch the world spin past and do not join in.

The night is crisply clear with no moon; a perfect night for the aurora. I leave them all in the warmth of the conversation around empty bowls and full wine glasses and I wander bare foot across the dark icy grass. I don’t notice the cold. I see enormous gossamer curtains draped across the sky, blowing gently in cosmic winds. They sing a siren song to my heart and I lose track of time and space in the simple joy of watching thousands of kilometres of translucent greens, creamy whites and softest gold, ripple across the sky. A sense of peace settles on me and I know my life will be forever autumn because you’re here. Right here with me.

 I am listening to a vinyl copy of Jeff Wayne's Musical version of  War of The Worlds.
It is probably the only musical I have ever listened to over and over and over and inflicted on my kids on any long trip. They tell me now that it terrified them which saddens me. I did not  know it at the time. I still sing Forever Autumn and they don't mind that one.

I Slept the morning away after ducking down to the supermarket for a special item. I made a very simple dinner and watched Hannibal, the tv show of the early days of the infamous Hannibal Lector from silence of the lambs. I find it interesting there have been so many shows featuring psychopaths in the last decade. Dexter and Hannibal have been interesting. I found myself watching a scene in which a woman claiming to be vegetarian made me react negatively toward that character and I chuckled realising just how much the writers had swayed me to align myself with the psychopath rather than the irritating journalist. I wanted to talk with someone about the techniques being used and why I was worrying about another character unknowingly being manipulated to his extreme detriment. I like when a writer can shift my alignments and engage me emotionally.

I hope my writing will have that affect on my readers.

I did some more art yesterday and none today. I feel very flat today and maybe some art would have been good. OOPs it is already Sunday so I might as well make this a Sunday post.

The main character is trying to get through London and the alien has just appeared above Big Ben.

Maybe I should use this music to prompt some art.

He looked straight into the eyes of his beloved Carrie...and she began to fight her way to the gangplank.

I wont complete the chapter book challenge with a complete draft but I do have some excellent ideas to flesh out.