Over your shoulder

It's that time of year when we look back at where we've come from, what we've brought with us, who we've got alongside us and slowly turn to face the turning of one year into another.

I'm going to keep this short and sweet because, really, I should be packing for my imminent Christmas and New Year ski trip.

Things I am proud of:

• Finding a wonderful life. OK, that sounds stupid, but the life my husband and I had at the start of the year wasn't our life. Patience was hard, there were bumps in the road. But perseverance won through and we now live in a great place, have made fun, new friends, are working on things we enjoy and have a life we both love. 
• Completing NaNoWriMo. This deserves a whole other post all to itself, but dedicating myself to writing a book taught me how with enough grit, rhythm and routine you can achieve a lot (of words) in a short space of time. 
• M&MRC Does Eastern Europe. There are people on this planet that are there to make your life better (and hopefully you do the same for them). Getting to travel with my partner-in-crime-running-and-therapy-friend-extraordinaire, Maria, through Austria, Croatia, Montenegro and Albania this summer was simply amazing, precious and, as always, too much fun. 
• An expanding family. Technically, I did nothing to help achieve this, but becoming an aunt for the first time on both sides of the family was a real joy. We've yet to meet one of our new nephews in person, but knowing there are new Alonsos and Milsoms in the world is a simple and beautiful happiness. 
• Not giving up. This isn't about me, but my grandma. After living in her own home by herself, she had a stroke recently, at 93. She's now in a nursing home and a shadow of the woman she once was. Although it was hard to see her like that at first, when I thought about her indomitable spirit, I realised there is something in her that just won't give up. I don't know if it's her Viennese constitution, or the fact she's a stubborn mule of a woman, but on some level I think it's marvellous. 
• Working on Trifecta. I joined this writing challenge website as assistant editor in the summer and have loved working with these brilliant ladies on a fantastic writing community and getting to know some truly incredible writers. Check us out: http://www.trifectawritingchallenge.com/

Hope you have a brilliant festive season and that whatever you've got over your shoulder from 2013 brings great memories and smiles. Happy holidays!

In front of Wasserbillig, taken from Germany

Silent Sunday 15-12-13

Silent Sunday 01/12/13

Flash fiction - Himalayan Call

Today is that last day of NaNoWriMo and although I am meeting up later with other writers from Luxembourg, there will be a lightness in my step and typing as I passed the 50,000-word goal a couple of days ago. Hoorah!

So, this morning, I needed another reason to get creative, and what better than a Trifecta write? Don't know what Trifecta is? Get your arse over there right now: www.trifectawritingchallenge.com. Anyway, usually I am behind the scenes, but this weekend it's a community judged 33-word free write. Here's mine:

Himalayan Call

Flames swaddle the village, orange gashes the only colour against the black mountain night. Until later, the tiger steals through, searching, sniffing for charred meat. 

The warning bell tickling in the wind, irrelevant. 

33 words

Click on the bike to read some fabulous writers. Who will you vote for?

Silent Sunday 24-11-13

Flash Fiction - Hello World! Hello...??

Julia is feeling indecisive this week over at Julia's Place so the prompt we're given to write in 100 words or less is: DECISIONS, DECISIONS, DECISIONS.

It was easy to write a story for this week, considering what's happened (see below!)

Hello World! Hello...??

It wasn’t as if they hadn’t planned it. All that practice. All that work. All that preparation. All that excitement. The expectation building until, finally, it overflowed one long day that turned into night that turned into the next day and in the cold, yellow light of morning, at last, he was here.

Their son, gurgling and smiling and wrinkly and cute.

They covered him in love. They covered him in kisses. They covered him in tiny blue blankets. 

But, decisions, decisions, decisions…

They didn’t have a name. 

This week I became an aunt for the second time, but the first time on my side of the family. My little brother became a dad and his son was born. It was all very exciting but boy did they make us wait for his name! Three days later, we eventually got it and I cannot wait to meet Samuel Alfred! 

Please click on the icon to read more entries.

The flag on the floor

It's a picture prompt this week for the 100WCGU writing challenge at Julia's Place. As soon as I saw it, certain words came to my head. They are not my words and I have never written them down before.

They were written by a boy in my GCSE history class in 1995. We were studying the First World War and were given the task of writing a short poem. He read this out loud to the class and I have always remembered it. I can't remember if he gave it a title or not, so I have taken liberty with that.

In the wired and connected world we live in, I am not interested in using his words to connect with him again, so he will remain anonymous. I wonder if he even remembers what he wrote. If he does, and ever stumbles here, let him know those words touched me when I was fifteen and still do today, especially on this day of remembrance.

The Flag on the Floor

When the standing berry gets shot,
We pick it up and march on.
But we didn't today.

We left the flag on the floor.


Read more at Julia's Place HERE