A GLASS HALF EMPTY OR HALF FULL

WEDNESDAY 5th MAY 2021 ~ FLASH FICTION 

This is a response to a prompt provided by WordPress

PROMPT ~ The glass?
Is the glass half-full, or half-empty?

A GLASS HALF EMPTY OR HALF FULL

by John Yeo

The Weather forecast is dire;     

 I am sure the weather will get better:

Continual rain will never stop;              

We will probably not get a drop:

~

The crops will fail, we are set to starve;

The predictions are overstated:

Global warming is taking its toll;

We will all eat well and survive on a roll:

~

The world will become a gigantic desert;

Our scientists are all very clever:

 Soil will dry and become sand;

They will find ways to make a stand:

~

The oil will run out, we will grind to a halt;

We will discover new fuels to survive:

The Earth will become dust with millions hungry;

New foods will arrive to feed our young:

~

An asteroid will collide and wipe us out;

We will all take a trip to outer Space:

Our people need to cling to pessimism;

We will all survive on our innate optimism:

~
For every pessimist there’s always an optimist.

~
©  Written by John Yeo ~ All rights reserved.

COMPETITION ENTRY ~ 29th July 2015

Image © John and Margaret

DIALOGUE WITH A DAISY

by John Yeo

 The garden was a mess, there had been an incredible North wind overnight that savagely blew everything to bits. I leaned on my spade and surveyed the damage, branches and leaves had been ripped from our trees and were lying everywhere.
  Then out of nowhere a tiny voice whispered ‘Please don’t tread on me!’
Shaken, as I knew I was totally alone, I wheeled around in surprise.
  ‘I’m down here! Next to your incredibly large foot.’
I looked down to find there was nothing there except Dandelions, Daisies and Grass.
   ‘I can’t see you! If you are real and not a figment of my imagination make yourself visible!’ I declared.
At this point I seriously doubted my sanity.
  ‘Look again! I am the good looking one with the purest white petals and a yellow heart of gold’
Stunned, I was now certain madness loomed and I was headed for hospital, I made to get away from there fast.
   ‘No! Don’t go please, I would love to talk to you about many things. I have been watching you very closely. Why do you work so hard, and worry so much?’
I thought, Why should I be worried about one small insignificant voice claiming to be a natural being.
  ‘What do you mean by petals and a yellow heart? Do you mean to say you are a common Daisy? If so, I can’t tell one of you from another, you all look the same to me!’
The tiny Daisies voice reflected a note of annoyance as it politely stated.
  ‘Less of the common, Big-Feet. We have a unique way of survival that excludes individuality and we are rooted here as one. Funny though, I can never differentiate the different clodhoppers that stomp around and squash our leaves and petals!’
   ‘Listen Daisy, if you actually are a talking flower how did you acquire the language I use, and how do you manage to express yourself? You ask me why I work so hard, I have to say the garden would quickly go to rack and ruin if I stood rooted to the spot like a daisy!’
  ‘My language skills are a result of much study of your people’s thought patterns and I am the result of much floral cross-breeding. We have very friendly relations with your newborn babies and we mingle our minds with them and learn your language as they learn language.’
  ‘That’s amazing!’ I shouted to the array of daisies around my feet,
I was desperately trying to identify which of the numerous daisies was actually responsible for the conversation. I wanted to dig it up and put it in a pot to take indoors and perhaps have many deep inter-species conversations.
 Then I heard a sound that was suspiciously like a giggle coming from the vicinity of my neighbours fence. Then a chuckle was clearly evident leading to an embarrassing roar of laughter, that led to enormous fits of laughter. My face became bright red as I realised the implication of these odious sounds.
 Realisation dawned as I remembered my neighbour was a ventriloquist and very skilled at throwing his voice.

Copyright © Written by John Yeo  ~ All rights reserved

~~

This piece of writing was written as a competition entry to demonstrate aspects of learning on a creative writing course’
I chose to demonstrate Dialogue.

Picture it and Write ~ Decisions? ~ Decisions?

This is the latest Picture it and Write prompt from Ermilia’s blog

https://ermiliablog.wordpress.com/2015/02/22/__picture-it-write-101/

As usual the image is supplied and credited by Ermilia

DECISIONS? ~DECISIONS?

by John Yeo

The garden needs a lot of work and we are at the planning stage. 

“I think if we cut the trees down, we can lay lawns and have a lake for wild-fowl, with flower beds and borders. We can build a summer- house with many arbours and marble statues everywhere. Nature can be modelled, shaped and controlled.” 

“No! Why not have a forest garden and encourage wildlife with deer, squirrels and much birdlife. A natural garden would be best, we don’t need the artificiality of manicured lawns and borders, that is too much like hard work. Nature always wins in the end, whatever we do.”

“We can always concrete the whole area over and build high-rise flats, we could make a lot of money that way. Nature would take a long time to win then!”

“Now you are being silly, I know you don’t like to be overlooked and feel crowded, I see a natural garden, where we keep the trees, and have a woodburning stove. We would have our isolation with privacy to write and create. We will have a vegetable plot with chickens in the middle of our own forest. Nature would be our friend and we would both win then.” 

Yes! We can build a small gallery with workshops and encourage a community of artists and writers. We will build cabins in the yard and sell our work in the gallery shop. Nature would be our partner and our friend.”

As usual the image is supplied and credited by Ermilia

 

Copyright (c) Written by John Yeo ~ All rights reserved