Suspicious Package (Part 1)

Ding Dong!  The doorbell rings.  Upper-class suburbia, where the neighborhood is quiet and quaint, everyone speaks to each other and neighbors walk their dog early in the mornings.


 “Sheila, can you get the door!  I’m in the shower!”

“Alright!”  Sheila is the soccer mom and on the PTA board. She is outgoing and an loving wife who loves her family and have given everything so everyone has what they need.

"Who could possibly be at the door eight o’clock in the morning?" She looks through the peek hole.

“Who is it?” No response. Just silence.

Slowly, Sheila cracks the door open but no one was there. She looked around and all she saw was her neighbor, Ron, across the street getting into this car.  She waves at him and as she close the door she looks down.
There was an 8x11 yellow bubble envelope addressed to her husband, John.

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“Hmm, what could this possibly be?” Tempted to open it, she resist and says to herself.
She thought, "This package could be fragile or maybe something from his job."  So she left it as is and closed the door.

“John! Did you order something?”

John comes out of the bedroom dressed and ready for work.  John is a prosecutor for the DA office and is well known in his community as a man of great integrity and real justice.

“No? I don't think I did?” He paused.
“WAIT! This could be something from my office that I have asked my secretary to send me.”

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Sheila hands John the package.  Pondering what this is could be.
John opens up the envelope, and suddenly, he saw a flash of light, felt a sharp pain and then lights when out.

“JOHN! JOHN!” Sheila waves her hand in front of his face.

“John! Aren't you going to open it?” She asked very intrigued.

John snaps out of a moment of daydreaming and begin to think. "Nah! A bomb? Why would anyone want to kill me?"
 He began to reflect back on previous cases. "Well, there was this one time. No! It is probably some information for this current case I am working."

“John! Snap out of it! What is the matter?” She says irritably.

“I'm sorry sweetheart!  You know how I am early in the morning and I haven't had my first cup of coffee.” John smiles nervously.

He began to open the envelope when the sound of pitter pat of little feet came down the stairs.  It was their eight year old daughter, Kayla.

The Moment

Woman: Ahh! Jeff, when I hear his name I get flutters of nervousness in my stomach. When I see his face I become like this high school girl with the biggest crush on the most popular boy at school. When I hear his voice, my heart trembles with excitement. Who do you say this man is? Well, he is someone I’ve known for quite some time. I remember the first time we met, he went to shake my hand and for a split second it was like time froze and I locked eyes with his, and everything in me became calm and peaceful and the world faded away.  I’m in love with this man and he doesn’t know it yet. But he will know very soon. I can’t keep silent anymore.

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Man: Monica. Monica. Oh, I love the sound of her name. I always find ways to bring her name up in conversation. Even if I am watching sports with the guys, I have to bring her up. When I see her face, I am just undone by her mesmerizing beauty. Oh, when she smiles, WOW! Everything in my entire being just lights up with so much life. When she speaks, man, I am revived again and again with hope. She consumes my thoughts probably 50% of the time. Ok, more like 95% of the time. I can’t help it, like Usher said,  “I got it bad!”  Does she know how I feel? Nope, see we’ve been friends for so long and I don’t want to mess that up? You ask, how can I mess that up? Good question. I guess you really can’t, there is no fear in loving someone, right?  Fear and love can not be within the same place. So I guess love wins.  My heart, each day, gravitate towards her, and I can’t fight it anymore, I must tell her.

Moment Begins....

“Hey Monica!”

“Hey Jeff!”

Every Friday afternoon, since college days, they’ve met up for lunch to play catch up from the rest of the week.

“What are your plans this weekend?” Monica asked.

“Well...I have a meeting early on Saturday but in the evening I am free, why?”

“Hot date!” Monica holding her breath because her birthday was on Saturday.

“No date! Just a meeting with someone.” Jeff said. What Monica doesn’t know is that, every Saturday for six months, he’s been taking saxophone lessons. He knows that she absolutely loves that instrument so he wanted to surprise her with her favorite song from Kenny G, “The Moment” on her birthday.

“Oh, Ok.” Monica sighed in relief.

“I haven’t forgotten your birthday.”

“I know you better not, it will be at Ashanti’s house this year. You know how she loves to do things big!  That’s my girl. She loves me.”

“I know, I will be there tomorrow night at 7 p.m. sharp.”

Jeff and Monica continued to talk about about the rest of their week while sharing an fudge brownie with ice cream.

                         Saturday, Seven O’Clock Evening Time.

 Ashanti’s decorated the house with an artsy retro theme. Guess began to arrive. Monica is upstairs in Ashanti’s room, waiting to make an grand entrance with the new dress she bought. Pacing back and forth, contemplating and thinking about Jeff.

“Monica, are you o.k.?” Ashanti looked concerned. She saw that Monica was biting her nails which was always an indication of her worrying.         

“Yeah, Jeff is going to be here. And I think tonight I am going to tell him how I feel. I just can’t take it anymore. I am putting my heart out there tonight.”

“It’s about flippin time! I am getting tired of this back and forth thing. I’ve been telling you to tell him for months now. Only way to really find true love is to put your heart out there and see what happens. “

Ashanti checked her watched.

“Look girl, are you going to stay in here or are you going to come down stairs? Everyone is here to see the birthday girl.”

“I’m coming. Just give me a minute.”

“Alright, see you in a few.”

Monica checked her dress, her make-up and her hair before heading downstairs.

         Meanwhile, Jeff is sitting in his car with his friend, Matt, sweating bullets and having an in depth conversation about what he is going to say to her.

“Jeff, seriously dude. We’ve been in this car for at least twenty minutes. What is the problem?  We’re late.”

“I’m nervous man! I don’t know what to do. I love her so much. What if she doesn’t feel the same way? What if she just sees me as a friend and nothing else? Then I will feel dumb.”

“Dude, you are not going to know anything sitting in this car. You’ve spent months debating over this and its time you do something about it. What if she actually feel the exact same way and you just didn’t know?”

“You are right?” Jeff took a big swig of water and wiped his mouth on his sleeve.

“Of course I am! Now, let’s get out of this car. I’ve been so engulfed in your love life that I haven’t had one of my own! I’ve been trying to hook up with Ashanti for a while.”

“You have, I didn’t know that. Why didn’t say anything?”

“Don’t worry about me right now, you take care of you. Ready?”

“Alright, I need a minute. You go ahead.”

Matt gets out of the car shaking his head, looking back at Jeff mumbling as he head enters the house.

Jeff takes a deep breath. “You can do this Jeff, get it together.” He reaches into the backseat of his car and grabbed the saxophone case and walks toward the house.
   
    An hour has passed since the party has started. Monica is mingling with all her friends, co-workers, and family. In the midst of conversations with others, she is thinking about Jeff and periodically looking towards the door each time the doorbell rang. When it wasn’t him, her heart slowly deflated with disappointment. Jeff was already in the house, he snuck upstairs while she was talking to Ashanti. Jeff and Ashanti made an arrangement. He was to come downstairs after hearing the birthday song.

The lights dimmed and people began to sing happy birthday. Ashanti brought out her lemon cake with candles on it for her to blow out. There was a pause and then a thud coming from the stairway. Jeff had tripped coming down the stairs. He evidently twisted his ankle so he limped his way over to Monica.

Monica’s eyes grew big and her face was obviously holding back laughter because it was such a serious moment.
He stood in front of her with a saxophone and trying to speak but began to choke on his words.

Nervously he utters, “Hey Monica..... happy birthday! This song is for you."

Jeff plays this song so beautifully. No one made a sound. The silence was deafening and yet so majestic that no one wanted to breathe.

 As Monica her the melodies of this song, she knew she had to tell him. Tears well up in her eyes and her heart felt like it was coming out of her chest for beating so fast.

Jeff finished the song and there was a slight pause.

Jeff was getting ready to say something when Monica got up and hugged him for what seemed like eternity. And without hesitation, thought or reservation, she kissed him passionately on his lips and said, “I love you!”

He looked relieved saying, “I love you too!!” He caressed her face and gazed into her eyes.

 Lost in each other, the crowd fades, their hearts pump at an exotic rate, and kisses were exchanged without a moment to breathe.

This was the moment they both been waiting for.

Stranger is a Foreign Land Part 2

Part 2

(Pictures: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news-Photo by:Phil Hart; http://www.consciousnessis.net-Painting by Mary)

My mouth feels like the Sahara desert right now. I need to find some water. I know in this paradise, there have to be some.

Daniel looks around and to the left of the ‘dancing tree’ there was a little creek. As he walked closer, he saw this liquid substance that mimic water however, the color wasn’t clear like water. The substance was more like a fluorescent blue with a sweet aroma.

Hmmm?! Daniel thought. I wonder how safe this water is.

Well, I have a hell of thirsty to so I am about to find out. Daniel takes a deep breath. He cups his hand to dip into this water-like substance and he drinks it.

Wow! I am very surprise, it taste pretty sweet.

As soon as he said that, a unfamiliar sensation began to consume his body. Without notice, he felt lighter than a feather as if gravity didn’t have a hold of him. He looked down and realize he was floating a foot off the ground.

WHOA! What is this? The more Daniel struggled to get down, the higher he began to ascend in the air. I am floating. NO WAY! The strange manifestation lasted for about five minutes and then he slowly descended back to the ground.

“Wow! I actually really enjoyed that. I want to do that again.” Like a little child who just discovered a brand new toy, he turned to go back to the creek to drink some more; however, it was gone.

Daniel descended onto another unknown territory. This new land were inhabited by strange looking creatures. These creatures were very intriguing and unlike anything he has ever seen on Earth. He now knew, he was no longer on planet Earth but somewhere else, but where?

One creature had the head of an eagle but the body of an lion with the wings of a butterfly. He was startled at first, but again, his nature of curiosity overtook him. 

I wonder if it will let me come near it. He walked closer to it and this creature opened its mouth as if to yawn.

“ What are you doing?” the creature spoke.

He heard a voice but didn’t know where it was coming from.

Unnerved, Daniel yelled.“Who said that?”

“I did, you are looking right at me!” the creature said.

Daniel thought to himself, I know I am delusional now! A creature is talking to me! “Yes, I am talking to you. And yes, you can comprehend everything I am saying.”

“Ok, if this is real. And you are talking to me. Do you have a name?”

“You can call me Felix.” the creature said.

“Felix? What kind of name is that for such a creature as you.”

“Look, it’s short for a long name that I prefer not to say at the moment. Besides, you are just as much an alien as you think I am.”

“How do you know?”

“I just know. Soon enough, you will understand. He will explain it to you.”

“He? He who?”

Before the creature responded, he paused as if he heard something coming from afar.

“Daniel, I have to go but just enjoy the rest of your time here. This is your home. You will see me again.”

The creature began to run off in the distance and flew into the air with ease.

Daniel was even more puzzled than he was before. He thought, MY HOME?!? This place, whatever it is, is not my home!!! I have to find a way out of here!

Stranger in Foreign Land Part 1

 

Stranger in a Foreign Land {Part 1}

Written By: Tonya Parham (Jan. 2012)

(pictures by: sanslogic.org 'foreign planet', ayushveda.com 'loss consciousness)

Daniel Stroms is the name. Now, I am about to tell you a story about a life shifting reality that happened to me. I am not the only one out there who have experienced this but I guess I am the only one writing about it. My occupation use to be a professor at Harvard University in biology and theology. I know, two interesting subjects. I use to be one who knew it all. Knowledge was my key to power, status, and success. However, one day, all of that drastically changed by one encounter I had with someone of a different kind. Or I wasn’t that different from them. Most people probably won’t believe this story but I am not here to persuade you to believe me. I am writing this to share what changed my life, the rest is up to you to figure out. So here it goes....

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The sun is setting over the coast of California. The spray of the ocean against my face is so refreshing due to experiencing a hot summer day. The waves swells up to about ten feet in height. Good wave to go surfing. Birds swarming around the sea diving for fish like bees in a beehive. I sit and watch, gitty as a child mesmerized and in awe about my surroundings. Suddenly, a sharp pain protrudes the right side of my head. A warm substance began to flow down my face like water. I touched my head and the substance was red, apparently blood. The sun became even more dim, my sight really foggy and then the lights goes out....

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“What the.....??” Thinking to myself. My head is throbbing. I kinda feel whoozing, confused and a little disoriented. What happened? Wait a minute, last thing I remember was journaling in front of the ocean. Where am I? Daniel looks around this conspicuous land and it doesn’t seem familiar at all. “Ahh, my head really hurts!” He paused. “Wait a minute, that’s weird. As soon as the pain was there--the pain left just as quickly.” Puzzled he continues to wonder around the place. 

 My thoughts are suddenly crystal clear. Hey! What’s going on with my eyes? Daniel wears prescription glasses due to being near sighted;however, putting his glasses on made his eye sight blurred. I can see. I have perfect vision now. This is strange, what is happening to me?

Curious as a mouse he explored and discovered to his left what looked like flowers but he wasn’t sure. Daniel majored in biology and had his fair share of studying different types of animals and even plant life. However, these so-called ‘flowers’ were more like a hybrid. He describes them as a cross between lilies and orchids. And the colors were nothing he has ever seen before. He could describe it has purple but to the nth degree and more transparent and also blue but not quite blue. When you look up, there were no horizon just this permanent brightness. The sky didn’t begin anywhere nor did it end, it was this eternal ribbon of just Northern lights. Where is the sun? All this light but no sun. The sun has to be around here somewhere. All his knowledge, degrees, or theories couldn’t prepare him for what he was seeing and experiencing. Daniel was use to explaining things to students, but now he was stumped. He just didn’t know the answer and for him that was quite unsettling, yet peaked his interest even more.

I walked over to a what looked like a tree. This plant life had a trunk with the color of roses and the branches were moving. How is this possible? No wind, and yet the branches are moving almost like their dancing to a song that only they can hear. He walked up closer to the tree and pressed his ear against it. He doesn’t know what compelled him to do that. “That’s IMPOSSIBLE!” Baffled by what he was hearing. “NO WAY! This tree or whatever it is...is humming! Humming a melody or a song or something!” “I think my mind is playing tricks on me. Or maybe I actually have a severe head injure and all of this is just an hallucination.”

None of this makes any sense. This can’t be real. I wanted to scream but couldn’t. I wanted to shriek in terror but calmness overtook me. Fear or angst were unwelcome guest in this place and weren’t even allowed to make an appearance. Just a sweet euphoric sense of just everything is o.k., I had nothing to fear, and that everything I was experiencing was good.

“You know what the only way to explain this is that I am dead and I am in heaven” Daniel scratches his head and rubs his face. “Yep! Exactly it...maybe I fell off the cliff and just smashed my head against a rock and I drowned insistently.” “Or maybe I’ve been abducted by aliens...I knew it. I tried to tell my colleagues they exist but everyone thought I was luny.” Explanation after explanation formed in his mind to try to comfort him; however, the more he tried, the more perplexed he became. As much as these things were be possibilities--something on the inside of him told it just doesn’t fit. So what was the explanation if there was one?

TO BE CONTINUED....

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Follow the Fuzzy

Should I or shouldn't I write  a short story?  I don't know if I can, what about the organization of it? What will be my inspiration? How can I do this?  These are the question that I pondered about in my head for years.  I've always had the passion to write, however, story-telling always intimidated me for some reason. The thought of sitting in front of a computer or writing in a note book--the fear of just staring of a blank page with....the sound of hollow wind and no words tend to paralyze me.

Today that changed.  I am currently taking a literature class for my major and it requires that we write everyday.  Most people can't stand the reading nor the writing.  However, I enjoy it.  I get the chance to read other people's stories and study how author's are inspired.  Which in point, inspired me to write a short story.

A strong unction began to overwhelm me to write a story.  About what I wondered. I thought about the people I see riding the bus everyday.  What are their stories before they get on the bus?  What are their lives  like everyday or maybe on one particular day? I took a scenario that I see quite often on the bus, a single mother with a children.  Where was she going or coming from? Is she truly a single mother or maybe divorced or maybe widowed or maybe the father wasn't able to take the kids to daycare on that day? How does she handle being a mother? How does she handle daily life circumstances? What does she do for a living? Is she employed? Question I began to wonder.  These question began to take me on a rabbit trail of imagination.  However, in the midst of this--a moment of hestitation reared its head and a moment of examining where this inspiration was coming from and why I was doing it.  Instead, I ignored those distractions to follow this trail of a whole new world of creativity. In less than an hour, I wrote a two page short story.  To mean, this was a great achievement.

What is the point of this?  My conclusion states this: simply follow the fuzzy.  If I didn't continue down this road of unction, I might have missed the wave of creativity that was beckoning me to come ride it freely.  I was navigated on a adventure that I get to explore even further. Complication comes in when you question or doubt yourself--don't analysis, just allow yourself to let go.  Fall into the waves and see where it takes you.  This might be a wave you've been waiting for for quite some time...and those artificial man-made waves don't compare to the real thing. Living is simple, its with ease, and its very delightful. Follow the fuzzy.