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Shirley Belk
Bio
Mother, Nana, Sister, Cousin, & Aunt who recently retired. RN (Nursing Instructor) who loves to write stories to heal herself and reflect on all the silver linings she has been blessed with :)
Stories (178/0)
No I's allowed
Our expert/master apparel used to have bold colors and a rhythm that marked our own style. We could be both neat and show care. Maybe even better care because we seemed to be a happy lot back then. Women had overcome much of the bondage of the past. The 1980's! A new era...
By Shirley Belk2 days ago in History
Midsummer's Matriarch
The matriarch of this Jasminian* (daughters of the original Jasmine from the Seven Daughters of Eve) clan was turning seventy on the day of the Solstice. It was going to be a huge event for their family, but only their women had been invited or called forth. It was more than a birthday celebration or even a Midsummer's festival. It would be a bonding.
By Shirley Belkabout a month ago in Fiction
A Bridge Among the Flowers. Top Story - June 2024.
To my dear and beautiful granddaughter, I've needed to write this letter to you for a long time now. I just didn't have the words. I'm not sure if I even do now. But this is my feeble attempt. Forgive me if I don't use the proper pronoun or gender when I am referring to the "you" that I know and love. I'm new at this and still very confused in my "Boomer-ness." I think you already know that I am having a difficult time wrapping my head around these concepts. But it doesn't minimize my love and adoration for you.
By Shirley Belkabout a month ago in Pride
Peppermint & Rain
Why do you insist on waking me so early? Why 3 a.m. every single time? It could at least be 4 a.m., or an occasional 5 a.m.! Better yet, let's try for 6 a.m. I just don't get it. If you are going to bother me like this, over and over, couldn't or shouldn't you be a bit more considerate?
By Shirley Belk2 months ago in Fiction
Unchain Us, Please
Objective: Write a story that includes, at some point, the sentence, "I did what I had to do." Regrets? I have many, of course. But I have no time to feel indebted to them...the regrets. They can be quite demanding of a person's soul and purpose, after all. I don't mind paying my dues, but I won't be cheated out of living. I simply won't allow that.
By Shirley Belk2 months ago in Poets
Dinosaurs Don't Inspire Me
I'm sorry, Vocal. I just couldn't do it. I couldn't get inspired to write a poem about dinosaurs. I just didn't have it in me. Maybe because I've always been a bit freaked out about them? And the fact that they never captured my imagination didn't help, either. Is that okay?
By Shirley Belk2 months ago in Poets
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