Tags
activities, fiction, homeless, life, photography, poetry, pregnant, snow, writing
I urge people to join in, comment with your paragraph of fiction to accompany the image. It doesn’t have to follow my story or reflect the same themes. It can be a poem or in a different language (provide a translation please :)). Anyone who wants to join in, is welcome. This photograph has been reblogged under Ermisenda on tumblr.
I stuck my tongue out to catch the falling snowflakes. They fell upon my shoulders like dandruff but none landed on my tongue. An incoherent babble grew louder to my left. My attention shifted. An old, scraggly man hidden beneath an overgrown beard was “singing” for money. Living in the city desensitized people from the sights of the homeless. I stopped in mid-stride. He looked so pitiful and guilt constricted my heart. I couldn’t walk away, not this time. I scouted my pockets for a couple of coins and found five dollars. I left it in his hat and he grinned revealing all four of his teeth. My fingers caressed my pregnant stomach as I walked away. Maybe I hadn’t saved the man but with each act of kindness I could strive for a better world for my unborn child.
– Ermisenda Alvarez
Everyone is welcome to use the button, just link them back to the Picture it & write category or Ermiliablog! 🙂 Share your love for Picture it & write on your blog with the image below. Be proud, and stylish 😉 !
Ermilia 
The snowflakes fall
forming a wall
keeping me separate
from all
around me
Glistening and pure,
In their truth
I am sure
despite my
usual uncertainty
Unique and clean
they exist
in a pristine
state
Until corrupted
by their unfortunate
fate
To rest in this
filthy world
we live in
Hey there, thanks for leaving a poem. I really liked how the poem started with clean/pure/pristine imagery to abruptly end with a filthy/corrupted/unfortunate image. It was really effective. I also liked the imagery of a wall created by snowflakes. Awesome work. I hope to see you contribute in the future to Picture it & write posts. 🙂
Nice job! The imagery is well conveyed and I like the wall by snowflakes too! Blessings, Terri
k… so first off I read Ermi’s in the email and the love for the homeless… probably the most original thing I’ve read here in… since when. Love ♥ LOVE ♥ it!
I can’t add much to this… maybe “corrupted by their unfortunate fate” suggests snow is not as pure as we often perceive it.
Enjoyed…made me think of the dirty snow on the side of congested roads compared to the fresh white snow you would see up in the mountains:)
Pingback: Just How It’s Supposed To Be? « What about God?
This one went quick beings that it was something that I well relate to. Here’s my link: http://terri0729.wordpress.com/2011/11/26/just-how-its-supposed-to-be/ Hope you enjoy it! Blessings and love, Terri
Hey Terri. 🙂 Your poem resonated a really strong moral to live by. It’s a real possibility that we too could end up like those unfortunate homeless. I’m not quite sure why I wrote what I did for the image, it’s not my usual style but it’s what the picture inspired me to write. I guess that’s the whole point of Picture it & write? 😀 I’m glad you were able to relate to it and also share with us your lovely work.
Thanks! Yes, that is the point 🙂 Blessings again…
Pingback: Corrupted Purity « Random Thoughts and Musings
“BRR. It is so cold out here.” The woman looked more like an Eskimo than a city dweller. Debbie wore a long jacket, a hat and gloves as she waited at the bus stop. She watched the cars go by and she thought about how warm the cars must be. “I’d like to be able to go to work without having to wait for a bus in the cold.” she muttered to herself irritably.
Another lady joined her at the bus stop. Debbie sneaked a peak at her out of the corners of her eyes and hoped that she hadn’t heard her talking to herself. She didn’t see any sign of the woman staring at her or anything like that. “Good morning. Looking forward to Christmas?” ask the lady.
Debbie sighed and said, “I don’t know if I can afford Christmas this year. This economy has really beat me up if you know what I mean.” Her face blushed but she figured the lady wouldn’t see because her hood kept her face in shadow. “I shouldn’t have said that” she told herself.
The lady smiled at me. “My husband has just been laid off. We are going to have a lean Christmas to this year.” Debbie reminded herself that Christmas was about Jesus and love rather than gifts for the thousandth time that week. “We are going to help serve Christmas dinner at the Salvation Army.” The lady’s eyes seemed to sparkle with anticipation.
“That’s cool. I was planning on going over there for dinner and giving my daughter a picture that I drew. Want to see it?” The lady nodded. Debbie opened a folder that she was carrying and held it out towards the lady. She slanted the folder towards her and held it partially open in the hopes of keeping the picture dry.
The lady’s eyes met Debbie’s eyes and smiled. “Oh, your daughter will probably love it.”
“I sure hope so. I can’t afford to buy anything. So, I thought I’d give her a drawing of the baby Jesus with a heart around him.” The picture had a poorly drawn baby with a rather large head with tiny legs and arms. Below the picture was the words “Jesus and I love you.” “I feel as if I have let her down.”
“I’m sure she doesn’t think that way.” Debbie’s heart ached to believe her but it was so hard to remember. “I remind myself of that constantly.” The tears started streaming down her face.
The lady broke eye contact and seemed to want to say something. She opened her mouth and shut it a few times. “I’m not sure if it is my place to mention this but we have a charity that helps with Christmas gifts.”
“Oh. I don’t know. I’m not big on charity.” Debbie pulled the hood further forwards to hide her face.
This contribution could definitely extend itself and yet you ended it really effectively. I enjoyed reading it. You have used dialogue really well, the conversations felt authentic. Great work! Thanks for contributing and I hope to see more of your work.
I enjoyed the way this touches on how the economy hurts us personally and not just financially. So easy to forget the damage to our hearts while fretting over our bank accounts.
This piece was quite touching. I liked the way you show these two breaking down barriers to finally say meaningful and touching things to one another. And the shame people feel for a failed economic system out of their control is truly heart wrenching. I also enjoyed your quiet uppercut at what Christmas has become…the time of year for retailers to make or break their year…as opposed to other more meaningful purposes whatever they may be.
I know the tune I’m singing but can’t name it, label it. The words are coming at me from somewhere else. The white stuff I can’t tell if that shit’s out there and falling from the sky or if it’s dancing in my eyeballs. There’s an edge to that railing, that fucking random thing a few steps away, and if I walked and fell against it it’d hurt. The rest, it’s all out there, blurry, somewhere else. The pregnant girl she’s frowning but hey that’s five bucks she’s just given me, so I’m singing as I watch her ass going towards the blurry stuff, I’m singing, I’m singing – “Hey pregnant lady, don’t you know that I’ll soon give the five bucks to someone richer than me, and he’ll give it to someone richer than him, and so on up the whole fucking food chain, and that’s the way of the world hey nonny no!”
Haha! I found this awesome. I liked that you took the other perspective, it gives my paragraph a completely different spin. I thought adding the cynical dialogue at the end was a nice touch. This was unprecedented but great. Thanks for contributing this week and exploring my story from a different angle, kvennarad!
There was just a sudden picture in my mind and I let it come out. 🙂
Im. Pressed. Totally didn’t expect this flip around to the homeless person in Ermi’s story! And why wouldn’t they be bitter, have an edge?! Ermi/Elia you just have to love that! With your books being what they are.
🙂
Exactly! It was brilliant. Elia and I were quite excited when we read this. Promote two-sided stories! 😀
LOL..see…now you know why I am scared…enjoyed your piece.
Happy to hold your hand, Tinc.
🙂
😉
😀
sorry…just learned how to use this emoticons…ha ha
*Brings out the camera to take Tinc’s first emoticon steps* We’re so proud! 😀
How funny to find it barely Sunday and feel so incredibly late! Here is Grey Area.
Last week was so amazing! More contributors than ever! I still hope each week for more prose entries. ♥
You’re never late. 😀 Thanks for contributing this week. Yes, last week was fantastic. I hope we get even more this week! I loved this part of your piece ‘When I need to be alone, the city’s streets are my quiet room. ‘ I can relate. In a city, you are alone even though you are surrounded by people. It’s both a positive and a negative. Your work puts a positive spin on it which I liked (it’s often discussed in literature as a negative, or maybe I have just read too many negative works :P). Glad to see you on here, Anne!
Black Friday covered in white snow.
Thanksgiving is gone, greed to go
Get what you really don’t need.
While there are children to feed.
In continents across the globe
will black Friday give them hope?
Be grateful of what you have
and save another child from starving to death.
Do they know it’s christmas time at all?
– Otheus
I apoligise for the negative tone in my poem but this is what came to my mind.
Billboards all over the picture and the snow reminding me of the season of joy and giving.
[squeaks] Yes! I am full of Black Friday white snow love!
Hey Otheus! I loved the contrast of ‘black Friday’ and ‘white snow’ in the opening sentence. You sent a really strong message with ‘do they know it’s Christmas at all?’ It’s a sad truth that these bouts of greed (binge buying) occur while people are starving to death. Don’t apologise for your work. It was powerful and effective, that’s what matters. 🙂 Thanks for contributing and I hope to see you in the future with even more great work!
Amen! Do they?! Great job. Blessings Terri
Otheus…perhaps you have seen this horror but just in case you haven’t:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp=45440233�
I haven’t seen that video yet but I have heard about that Black Friday is full of the Christmas spirit.
This is just horrible. Really shows how much people aim for material happiness rather then emotional happines.
Thanks for showing me this video Tincup!
i made this up yesterday but it’s semi-relevant 😀
I loved the sound of your feet as they pattered,
you dropped, and it splattered
up your legs and over the floor.
It clung to the hairs that dotted your legs,
besotted and frightened, you ran.
Semi-relevant is relevant enough! 😀 Thanks for posting it. I really liked ‘It clung to the hairs that dotted your legs’ – it creates a vivid image. Short and sweet! Thanks for contributing this week Daisyhead, I hope to see some more (from relevant to not-so-relevant!) in the future.
http://masochisticqueen.wordpress.com/2011/11/27/__-picture-it-write-7/#more-564
There’s mine 😀
Thanks for contributing again this week, Eliza! I could see this so clearly ‘My feet had frozen to the path. I watched them move forward, and even if I tried, I’d never be able to catch up to them.’ The way you weaved the chilly atmosphere into the story was great – ‘His iceberg face’. Subtle, implicit and it added a layer of cold cruelty. Well done!
Could use several more edits but enough is enough. I enjoyed this picture…probably broke the rules…more than one paragraph..LOL.
He peered ahead at the young group of kids. Squinting through the falling flakes his vision was blurred, but he could hear them laughing and rejoicing in the change of season. He reflected back to the spring of his being.
He used to experience a sense of awakening, a heightened consciousness, when the winter winds announced their arrival in the city. He remembered the cold crisp gusts grazing his face, whistling past his ears and blowing his healthy long hair back like flames. Upon the first fall of snow, he used to pause on the sidewalk, throw off his gloves and hold his bare hands out away from his body with palms skyward; look up at the falling crystals embracing their refreshing nature on his face. The world was beautiful. He felt immortal. His dreams were near, merely an arm’s length away. He would fire bold glances and flash seductive smiles at the beautiful women walking by. They in turn would acknowledge the compliment and confirm his presence. The bustling city, the cafes, restaurants, and shops, the door men guarding the steel castles, all welcomed his handsome youthful existence.
A cold gust snapped the frail old man back to his winter being. He could no longer see the lively young kids – they were long gone. The frigid wind gathered speed meandering through narrow city steel channels and cut through his clothes penetrating bone. He looked at the towering structures around him – they appeared like forbidding walls to his old expended self. There was no longer any use for him here. He felt alone, sad, vulnerable, used up, unwelcome. All he could think about was getting back to his little warm apartment where he would feel safe, warm, and comfortable. His feet were going numb so he picked up his pace. The ice hard pavement jarred his achy bones and jiggled the saggy skin on his thinning face. A beautiful woman walked by wearing a tight fitting coat and long black boots. He always liked boots. He snuck a peek but she didn’t even know he was there. He plodded along almost invisible — his white hair and pale skin blending in with the falling white.
Winter had arrived with rapid stealth and had caught him by surprise. He had run out of time to reach out and grab those dreams that once seemed so close. He stopped and threw off his gloves and held out his hands palms facing skyward. He looked up at the falling snow and closed his eyes standing there for several minutes. Suddenly, a youthful jolt struck his core. He opened his eyes and starting laughing and shaking his head. He reached into his coat pocket and removed a whiskey flask and took a healthy swig. He put the flask away. He reached into another pocket for a cigar and his lighter. He lit the cigar and took a few puffs. He picked up his gloves and put them on holding the cigar in his mouth. He took another puff and looked back up at the falling snow and said, “You sneaky son of a bitch”.
That’s alright, I only say one paragraph so people aren’t overwhelmed. The more the merrier. 😀 I’m glad you contributed this week and it seems you really got into it! (Don’t worry about editing, we all make mistakes. :D) I really liked this description ‘He plodded along almost invisible — his white hair and pale skin blending in with the falling white.’ That feeling of vitality you wrote about is so amazing, I think you did a good job of describing it too. I hope to see more contributions from you Tincup in the coming weeks. 🙂
I admire you creative writers…I don’t have the patience, imagery, or vocab to write in such manner. I believe you were the author of the orignal pragraph regarding the homeless man. I liked the touch of the pregnant woman. Homeless in the city in the snow…I can’t think of a more rotten condition…and yet as you said we have become desensitized to the condition…and it exists in every major city. Your piece made me think of a vulnerable old man in the city…old people also don’t receive the best love and care in our money driven frenzy.
Thank you for your kind words. 🙂 It’s a real issue and it’s quite disheartening. On Anne’s reply, it can be very hard to only write one paragraph. I’m glad you didn’t Tincup because you wrote a great story. 🙂
I was sad that the man felt unwelcome, and I felt the warmth of the whiskey and the cigar and the gloves in the end.
Telling me to write one paragraph is like telling me to take one candy corn. 🙂
LOL…yes I have seen how words roll fluently off your pen or the tips of your fingers…one paragraph must be torture for you..so you have a candy corn weakness…ha ha…torture for me would be one bite of steak with reduction sauce and only one sip of wine.
Your narration is so touching :’)
My contribution:
The ringing bells and flashing of neon lights made me drunk as I walked down the pavement, out in the icy cold weather. I crossed my arms over my chest to warm myself. School was out and students like me were spending their time doing shopping or just taking a walk. The December festivities were approaching and we all had to buy gifts for our beloved family and friends.
And then it started to snow. I stopped dead, and looked up.
I have never seen such a beautiful sky. Whiteness ruled over the sky; it filled everything, and now it comes down to reach for us, to cover the ground… to cover our past, our miseries, our pain… It soothes us, numbs us…
It comforts our loss, stops our tears;
It strengthens our soul to move on.
Because if we halt, we will freeze to death.
Yay, another contribution! I loved the second half of your piece.The description of snow and it’s purpose was lovely. ‘To cover our past’, ‘it soothes us, numbs us…’ and the final two sentences were really powerful. I liked the turn this story took, from lighthearted shopping to some deep philosophy. Lovely! Always a pleasure to see your work, evilnymphstuff! 🙂
Evilnymph…I experienced a sense of quiet calm reading the second half…isn’t that true???? It seems like when it snows things quiet down and become more peaceful.
I can’t wait for the snow that we are supposed to get here in Vancouver, last year it felt more like a summer or a semi spring than winter. There’s something comforting about it, maybe the way it comes down so gently 🙂
Snow is lovely. I don’t get it here where I live but my encounters with it have always been magical. I have yet to see snow fall. I can’t wait! Thanks for the comment… or was it a sneaky contribution? Either way, thanks! 😀
Pingback: A Taxi to Nowhere (Picture it & write #5) « The Only Joe
Oh taxi driver,
Take me away,
Take me to a better today,
Cart me off
To far from here,
To a land far off,
Far from what is so near.
Day to day,
Stresses bubble and boil,
Problems steadily wind,
More add to the coil,
Day to day, things change,
People leave.
Just like me
They strive to be
Away from here
In a crystal blue land
Far, far away.
So taxi driver,
Take me there today.
Ooo, I loved the different interpretation of the image. This was great ‘Day to day,/Stresses bubble and boil,’ That’s a perfect way to describe stress. ‘Take me to a better today’ – another lovely phrase. When I read this I felt like there should be a tune attached, like a song. Thanks for contributing again, theonlyjoe!