Hey there! It’s time for Weekend Writing Warriors’ #8sentencesunday!
I’m a little ahead of where I was last week… which, since this has been a rather odd week, I’m grateful for.
Monday, I had the chance to see my lifelong bestie, Eden Mabee. Those chances have been less frequent since she moved out of state, so that was lovely! Besides, life has been especially lifey for her these last months, and I’ve owed her a huge hug or two since January!
Then the weather shifted to spring-into-summer starting Tuesday, and a big part of me just wants to nap in the sun.
And today… today is the twenty-eighth anniversary of the death of my first fiancé, Tim Simmons, who died of cystic fibrosis at the age of 32. I was 25, and thought my life was about over, too. I didn’t know I would meet my husband less than two years later, and have twenty-plus years with him before his death in 2018 of pancreatic cancer.
Maybe I write stories like this because life and death have wound through my intimate life a bit more than they maybe do for some people…
But, whatever the reason, there’s a story to get to. So, let’s get on with it.
I’m at the point of asking for review readers. If you’ve enjoyed this story and would love to offer an honest review in return for an ARC, please let me know! I’d like to have at least five reviewers ready by the time I publish (which, at this point, will likely be mid-to-late May).
Here’s the description for my light shines; shadow falls short story/poetry collection (subject to tweaking in the coming weeks):
Yearning for delicious reading that scatters tiny treasures through your busy life? Add light shines; shadow falls to your collection and enter new realities today!
Five breathtaking bite-sized journeys into other lives. Ten autobiographical poems that sample author Shan Jeniah Burton’s life – from the child of volatile parents to the journey of married life, through joy and grief and beyond, interwoven with five lyrical short stories that range from the fantastical to the almost-like-real-life-but-not-quite:
A woman, two hawks, and her child self…
A graffiti artist’s lilac-scented shame…
A life history told in stained glass…
A life-changing cup of coffee…
A most unusual engagement…
You’ll learn why red is a tricky color, follow the ongoing path of a marriage, and feel the deceptive power of the word, “Yes.”
Each story and poem is a treasure of imagery and sensory delights. Each explores light and shadow in its own unique way.
Savor them one at a time, or feast on them all in one sitting – the choice is all yours. Scroll up and treat yourself today!
And now it’s time for the next installment of “Storm at Song Glass Cabin.” Last week, our dying narrator’s son was begging her to remain alive, telling her there was still so much for her to do. We’ll pick up from there…
I imagine taking his hand. I lead him around Song Glass Cabin the way I did when he was a little boy. I show him my rich life in all its panels, explain how these, and he, are my legacy. That every life leaves Infinity unfinished on the studio table. That this is the nature of life, and of death. I tell him that I am ready, and unafraid.
But it’s all in my imagination. I can’t reach him.
“Storm at Song Glass Cabin” first appeared in Exploits of the Adirondacks, an anthology published by 518 Publishing Company.
It will be included in my upcoming first collection of short stories and poetry, light shines; shadow falls. Stay tuned for details as I wend my way through Amazon’s self-publishing maze. =)
READY FOR MORE #8SENTENCESUNDAY? READ ONE, A FEW, OR ALL!
Shan Jeniah's Lovely Chaos 
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