Clara Jennings
Bio
Stories (9/0)
Why do I have to choose?
I don’t know what I want to be when I grow up. Until this year I attended questioned the plan I made when I was twelve, I just finished the third year of a degree in a subject I decided on a decade ago. But I can’t help but feel like it's no longer a perfect plan when the world is filled with possibilities. I feel too multi-faceted to be put into one box, one career plan, one subject to write about, one thing that I am passionate about. I love too many things, want to do more than can fit in one lifetime and that’s okay. I can contain multitudes, even if I can’t do it all I can try and I can write about it in the process.
By Clara Jennings3 years ago in Humans
To The Stars
I sat on my windowsill staring out at the stars. The darkness of the night was minimized by the city lights illuminating the hazy could of smog that floated above the buildings. Even though it was hard to forget that our planet had become too toxic to live on that the air outside was unbreathable from centuries of careless polluting the twinkling glow of the stars shining in the distance reminded me that there was still hope. That there was a goal, something tangible that I could, even just as one lonely girl on a big dying planet to make a difference, to save the world.
By Clara Jennings3 years ago in Fiction
Death in the Ravine
I grew up in a small, lively neighbourhood boarding our city’s river valley. Until I was 12, I lived in a little white bungalow, blocks from the ravine where my parents used to take my little brother and me for walks, or to meet up with other family’s to spend hot afternoons splashing in the creek. I wandered the maze of paths that weaved through the forest of trees, playing with friends when we were old enough to go off on our own, or sometimes alone. I thought walking through the woods was an adventure, that each turn could lead to something unexpected. On nice days the pathways were crowded with people out walking or biking, but other days it felt like I had a whole forest to myself. Filled with possibilities.
By Clara Jennings3 years ago in Criminal
The beauty of embroidery
When I was eighteen my family decided to do a Secret Santa gift exchange for Christmas. I drew my grandmother’s name and immediately was brought back to the memory of that day we spent together. For many years, since I had been old enough to take up embroidery without supervision I had considered trying to take up the hobby again. I had mostly thought about trying to remember what she taught me, and probably have to learn some things myself from the internet, in order to embroider something to a standard decent enough that I could give it to her as a gift, perhaps for her birthday. To show that I had remembered all those years ago when she shared a meaningful part of her life with me. To tell her that I remembered and that I still cherished that memory all these years later. This gift exchange felt like the perfect opportunity to stop procrastinated my plan by saying I would do it next year or next holiday, and actually embroider again.
By Clara Jennings3 years ago in Families
A mother's love
I was lucky enough to grow up surrounded by incredible women. My mother is the youngest of her mother’s six children. Most of my grandmother’s other children moved across the country when they left home, but my mother only moved 3 and a half blocks from her childhood home where her mother still lived. I am my mother’s oldest child and from the time I was born until I was eight she was a stay-at-home mom. My only sibling is my brother who was born 3 years and 23 days after me, and we soon became inseparable. Most of my childhood memories before I started school are of my brother, my mother, my grandmother, and I spending almost every day together. We went to the zoo, to museums, to the art gallery, to the mall, and to the park. My father worked a lot when I was younger but I never felt as though I were lacking a parental figure. My grandmother was such a constant maternal presence in my life. She was already 80 when my brother was born but she was always staying active, physically and as a member of her community. She had six children, eight children, eight great-grandchildren, and 2 great-great-grandchildren. She knew all her neighbours and loved her daily walk around the block. She loved to garden and bake, mostly using the rhubarb from the overgrown plant the took up half her backyard. She went to so many of my dance performances and piano recitals. She was always there. When my parents started to let me walk to her house alone I went as often as I could. She let me watch as much TV as I wanted, which my parents probably weren’t thrilled about since they rarely let me have screen time. She made me crackers and cheese to snack on in breaks from playing with all the dolls and toys she kept for me. She loved watching me play dress up in all the clothes that my aunts, mother, or she used to wear that were overflowing from her multiple closets. She had the biggest laugh that couldn’t help but make you smile. She was who I wanted to spend every day with and who I wanted to be when I grew up.
By Clara Jennings3 years ago in Families
For fellow Geminis
As we approach Gemini season, those born under the sign of the twins stand at the precipice of greatness. Fellow Geminis should remember not to let the overwhelming nature of possibility prevent them from progress. Do not be afraid to seek what you desire. Fear of failure and other people’s opinions may loom over you but cannot define you. It may seem easier to let them prevent you from trying, to give up on dreams that feel impossible or unrealistic, but you will regret never giving your aspirations a chance. Not trying is the only way to guarantee failure. Even if you have to redefine success in relation to your goals, taking small steps ensures progress. Any momentum in the right direction is something to be celebrated.
By Clara Jennings3 years ago in Humans