My Grandfather

My grandfather passed away in April from lung cancer. We all called him Baba, which is an arabic word meaning Dad. Baba was funny, gracious, and always ready to smile. I wish that I could have had conversations with Baba, but it was hard because I only know a few words of arabic and he only knew a few words of english. But I didn't have to talk to him to know that he loved me. I knew from the way he smiled at me. I felt loved when he would get up and walk slowly to the kitchen to bring me a soda. Baba was a good host and made sure anyone in his house had their favorite drink. He aksed questions about my life, which my mother would translate. He wanted to know how I was doing in school, and if I had found a job yet. If I hadn't visited him for a while, he scolded me. "Why haven't I seen you?" he would ask, giving me a hug.

Baba had a wonderful sense of humor. During one visit, he asked me to give him his "teeth". I was a bit confused, because I didn't realize that Baba had dentures. I asked my uncle for help. He walked over and picked something off the shelves behind me. It was a mortar and pestle set, which Baba used to mash up nuts and seeds. His teeth. It still makes me smile.

I miss Baba very much and still find myself expecting to see him. He was a good man and a wonderful grandfather.

Wordsmiths Unlimited Entry

This is an entry for the Wordsmiths Unlimited blog.  The challenge is to write a 500 word story based on this picture:

A DAY OF FUN
By Adail Asmar

The sky is gray. The smell of wet grass overwhelms the popcorn and corn dog in the air. The carnival grounds are almost empty. Only a few stragglers can be seen. Anita straps her three-year-old daughter into the stroller.

"We're going to have so much fun today, Emily!"

Anita lightly touches the side of her large sunglasses to make sure they are secure and pushes the stroller towards the ticket booth. The first ride they go on is the merry-go-round. Anita and Emily share a beautiful pink horse. As the horse goes round and round, Emily's giggles grow louder. Anita feels a lifting of her spirit and soon her laughter joins her daughter's.

They go on all the rides, each one more fun than the last. Soon Emily is hungry and Anita buys them each a hot dog. They sit on a bench eating their dinner. The temperature has dropped and Anita starts to shiver in her tank top and shorts.

Emily notices and asks "Mama cold?".

Anita smiles and answers "A little bit. Mama forgot her jacket".

When the hot dogs are finished, Anita and Emily go back to their car and drive away from the carnival.

They pull into a parking lot and Anita gets out of the car and sits in the backseat next to Emily's car seat. Anita takes Emily out of her car seat and puts her in her lap.

"Sweetie, Mama needs to talk to you. See this pretty building? This is where Mama and Emily are going to live for a while. We're going to sleep here and then we're going to find a new house. "

"Dada too?" Emily asks.

"No, Emily. Dada isn't going to live with us anymore. From now on, it's just going to be Mama and Emily. Ok?"

Emily nods, even though she didn't exactly understand.

Anita takes a deep breath and climbs out of the car, still holding Emily. She gets their bag out of the trunk and walks to the entrance of the Woman's Shelter.

A matronly-looking woman is at the front desk.

"Hello, I'm Rebecca. Can I help you?"

Anita takes off her sunglasses; exposing the black eye her husband has given her the night before.

Rebecca merely nods and says "I see. Follow me please".

They all start walking down a long hallway. Then Rebecca notices the balloon Emily is carrying,

"What a pretty balloon. Where did you get it?"

"The Car-val" Emily answers.

Rebecca turns to Anita.

"You went to the carnival? Why didn't you come here directly?"

"She's never been before and I...I just wanted today to be fun...I couldn't stand it if today was all sad and confusing. She deserves a day of fun and I could finally give it to her". Anita's voice breaks as she tries to hold back tears.

Rebecca squeezes Anita's hand.

"I understand. But don't worry. There'll be many happy days for both of you".

Anita nods and follows Rebecca to her and Emily's new home.

Wordsmithsunlimited Writing Exercise

Hi Everybody,

This is a story I wrote for the current Wordsmithsunlimited writing exercise. Their website is http://wordsmithsunlimited.blogspot.com. The exercise is to write a 500 word story that depicts a dialogue between you and your favorite childhood toy. Here it is. I hope you like it.

Mow: My pink cat, My best friend

The little girl comes in the front door, followed by her Mommy and Daddy. Her brown curly-haired head is barely up to the adults’ knees. Grandma and Grandpa come to say hello to the little girl and exclaim over her leopard print poncho: “So cute! Lovely! Adorable!" The little girl is nonplussed. She had left something behind on her last visit, and wants to see it again very badly. She remembers that it was in the den and goes straight there.

She opens the door, using both hands because it's very heavy. The room is full of glowing sunlight; the warm honey-colored beams create a beautiful pattern on the carpet. There on the floor is a pink cat with blue eyes and a long tail. The little girl rushes over and picks her up.

There are cries of joy and happiness. The adults in the next room smile to hear them. The sounds come again, and this time the adults imagine she’s having a conversation with her friend. How would it go, they wonder?

“Mow, I found you!”

“You’re back!”

The little girl hugs her cat.

“I missed you. I’m so happy to see you!”

“I missed you too. Don’t leave me again”.

The little girl shakes her head, her brown curls bouncing.

“I won’t. I promise.”

“What did you do while you were away?”

“My Daddy and I went out. We had a lot of fun. We ate ice cream!”

“Wow, I love ice cream. What’s your favorite?”

“I like pink ice cream”.

“Me too.”

The little girl lies on the floor with her cat beside her and colors a picture.

“What color should the princess’s dress be?” she asks her cat. “Let’s make it red”.

“Oh yes, that would be pretty”.

“And her hair? Brown or yellow?”

“Let’s color it brown, like yours!”

The little girl and her cat finish the picture and are both very proud of what they’ve accomplished.

“Let’s show Mommy our picture, Mow”.

“Yes, she’ll love it”.

The little girl gets up and races to the kitchen with her picture. She goes up to her Mommy and holds it out, smiling and excited. All the adults tell her how beautiful the picture is. Mommy tries to pick her up, but she squirms and makes a sound of annoyance. Mommy puts her down and the little girl runs off.

“I can’t wait until that child talks,” says Daddy.

The cat is waiting for her in the den.

“Did she like it?”

“Oh yes, she said it was the most prettiest picture ever”.

The little girl and her cat are playing hide and seek when Mommy comes in the room.

“It’s time to go home, sweet pea”.

The little girl grabs her cat and hugs her tight. She’s still holding Mow in the car and even while Mommy is putting on her pajamas. She won’t let go, because she promised.

And when she’s in bed drifting off to dreamland, Mow is there, safe in her arms.

Introduction

Hello Everybody,

I know it's kind of weird to name a public online blog my PRIVATE realm, but that's really how I think of it, as a private place that no one in my family knows about. I feel that writing has a confessional quality to it, an honesty and uninhibitedness that makes it special. Unhibitedness? Please comment and let me know if this is a real word because I like it and I could see myself using it a lot, but ony if it really exists!

Well it's very late (I am a certified night owl) so I'm going to say goodnight and I hope you come back often.