Author’s Statement I started writing this piece as an optional assignment in my seventh grade English class. It was an end of the year assignment. In this piece, I have tried to describe some vivid memories and experiences over the one and a half years during which the COVID-19 virus has put a break on my life. The pandemic has been a turning point in my life. I still have many more experiences to gain in life but I doubt I will ever be able to forget this. A Note from the Editor These poems were submitted to Stone Soup blog as a 40 page collection. I have decided to publish them in weekly installments, breaking them up by the seasons Paridhi established. The artwork I have chosen to accompany each installment was not selected by the author and was originally published in Stone Soup. Part III Summer 2020 Sunflowers By Ethan Hu, 8 (San Diego, CA), published in Stone Soup September 2021 Spending Time Online studies has come with its pros and cons. TV serials have become our savior. Mythological serials such as Ramayana and Mahabharata Have my attention. Various delicacies and a lethargic lifestyle Is what I am leading. Eating popcorn, nachos or anything whenever I feel like. Fitness Looking at the mirror Realization struck. My little belly bulging out. Looking out of place. So I started exercising. It is a bit boring, Exercising all alone, But my mother is always there, Beside me, Urging me to continue And to never stop. Raksha Bandhan Our Hindu festival, Rakhi Is here, A ceremony celebrating The love and bond amongst brothers and sisters. With lockdown not that strict, I am going to my aunt’s new house. We are going to have a grand day, All cousins together, Delicious food, numerous gifts, fun-filled time— What we are looking forward to. A Joke It’s my birthday today. I am now 12. Only another year before I am a teen. When all my cousins came, My mother gifted me an enormous present. A broad smile brightened my face— I hastily unwrapped the gift To find another parcel packed inside, And then another layer, And yet another. After opening 10 parcels wrapped, Inside one another, I finally took out my present— A chocolate. We all had a hearty laugh. COVID After all the fun and frolic, Next day, Came the dreaded news. My cousins had fever, COVID was diagnosed. The venom slowly spread, It trapped each and every member of the family. Prayers, prayers and prayers, They should recover; I hope they do.
Weekly Creativity #212: Write a Letter to an Object or an Abstract Thing where Every Line Starts with “I Remember”
Write a letter to an object (such as a table) or an abstract thing (such as nature) where every line starts with “I remember”.
Flash Contest #45, July 2022: Write a story about glasses that do more than just improve vision—our winners and their work
Our July Flash Contest was based on Prompt #210 (provided by Stone Soup intern Sage Millen), which asked that participants write a story about glasses that did more than just improve vision. As of late, Sage has set a precedent for uniquely specific, wacky prompts that allow writers to focus largely on storytelling. Unsurprisingly, we received a wide breadth of submissions (including one poem), with fleshed out, vivid plots that ranged from the all-too-real consequences brought on by lie-detecting glasses to an exploration of the ramifications of glasses that hide what the wearer wishes not to see to a heartwarming tale brought on by glasses that can resurrect any memory into the physical realm. As always, we thank all who submitted and encourage you to submit again next month! In particular, we congratulate our Winners and our Honorable Mentions, whose work you can appreciate below. Winners “A Memory” by Hayden Carroll, 10 “More, or Less?” by Peri Gordon, 12 “Liar” by Sophie Li, 11 “Memories through the Lenses” by Audrey Ren, 11 “Numb” by Eliana Wang, 13 Honorable Mentions “The Passing Lens” by Natalie Jong, 9 “The Things We Don’t See” by Lui Lung, 13 “A Strange Gift” by Bela Harini Ramesh, 10 “Defining Deeds” by Emily Tang, 13 “Eccentric Eyeglasses” by Melody You, 11 A Memory Hayden Carroll, 10 Feel the frame Dip in the middle, Are you brave enough to put them on? Do it. Do it. Look through the delicate glass, That can be broken with the slightest crack. What do you see? A world, with all your hopes and dreams Trapped inside. Melted candy drops from trees, Instead of sticky sap. Take your newfound treasure off, Before you become, none but A memory. More, or Less? Peri Gordon, 12 “I’m fine! The doctor will tell you the same thing! I’m fine, and you can’t make me go!” I bellow. I picture myself as an enormous bison and try to make myself as heavy as possible as my mom drags me to the car. Why can’t I be like my dog, Pine Cone, and prevent a trip to the doctor by barking, running away, and flashing irresistible puppy eyes? “Amity, I’m going to find out what’s wrong with you whether you like it or not,” replies my mom in an eerily calm voice. “I think this new doctor will be really helpful. He should…bring a very different perspective to the problem.” Yeah, right. That’s what my parents said about the last five doctors who found nothing wrong with me. Nobody understands that the reason I’ve been throwing up every night for months–ever since my ninth birthday–isn’t because of a physical illness. But I force myself into the car, slamming the door closed with all of my strength just for the fun of making Pine Cone bark. Twenty minutes later, the examination begins. I grumble, “How long will this take?” and Dr. Clumer, a squat man with bright green eyes, says, “That depends on you.” I scowl. After twenty more minutes, Dr. Clumer announces that I’m in “optimal physical condition.” But after only ten more, I am told that I need to get glasses. I snort. “I have 20/20 vision! And…you didn’t even test my vision! What do glasses have to do with vomit?” “See for yourself,” replies my crazy new doctor, handing me a pair of thin gold frames with shiny lenses that seem to twinkle. The next thing I know, I find myself clamping my fingers around them, entranced. The gleaming lenses are hard and smooth to the touch, and although it’s silly, I find myself asking, “Are these lenses made of diamonds?” Dr. Clumer laughs in a way that makes my hands tingle–my body’s way of telling me that I’m nervous, whether I like it or not–and replies, “No, dear, they’re made of bovite.” Bovite? I turn to my mom, who shrugs, then looks away, seeming unusually worried. I ask the doctor, “What will the glasses do?” “I wonder…” says Dr. Clumer in a singsong voice, paired with a piercing stare. Is he…mocking me? Testing me? Having officially decided that everything this doctor says is completely unhelpful, I slowly place the glasses onto my narrow nose. The doctor disappears. I spring back in shock, crashing into a desk. “Mom?” I ask in a shaky voice. “Everything okay, sweetie?” She turns to her left. “Does this mean they’re working?” “Mom, who are you talking to?” She continues speaking to the empty space to her left. “Amity can’t see you?” She pauses, as if listening to someone else, then says, “Oh my God.” “What do you mean, ‘Oh my God?’ Who can’t I see? The doctor?” I rip off the glasses, and suddenly, there he is again. My mom approaches, but I back away. “Okay, what just happened?” My mom glances at the doctor, who is apparently too deep in thought to pay any attention to his patients. I double my volume. “WHAT JUST HAPPENED? WHAT. JUST. HAPPENED?” When no one responds, I prepare to break the stupid glasses in half. I start to– “Sweetie, don’t do that,” my mom says, rushing to my side and grabbing the glasses before I can break them. The glasses that make people disappear–but only for me. Who am I, just some kid she can let a mad scientist experiment on? I verbalize this, and Dr. Clumer shakes his head. “I’m not a mad scientist. I’m trying to help you. I know there’s nothing physically wrong with you. You keep throwing up because you’re upset. Disturbed.” “And we need to know why,” my mom interrupts. I roll my eyes. “Yes, we do,” the doctor continues. “But we also need to remedy the problem. These glasses do more than help you see. These glasses help you block out the things you don’t want to see–they can block all five senses, actually.
