Hello, Writers and Dear Readers.

What does dating a mortician, roadkill shoutouts, Shakespeare, tons of talent new to the site and our resident legends, a bad haircut, and over the counter flu meds have in common? The answer needs to be, "Nothing," but in today's video, each of those elements, and a few more, collide into each haiku in our last Challenge of the Week being read, after introducing the new Challenge of the Month, with a bit of pizzazz on this one.

Here's that link.

https://www.theprose.com/challenge/14207

And here's the link to the video on The Prose. Channel. I know for sure I dropped or misread a few words or usernames, but show mercy, if you would. I'll tag some of the writers in the comments, and a few writers new to Prose.

And, to them, from us: Big family home here. Pick a room, and walk downstairs for the feast, whenever you feel like it. Welcome home.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-FIElCwRN3Y

And.

As always.

Thank you for being here.

-The Prose. team

A Light, A Cry, Birth

We Are Brought Into This World

With No Thought In Mind

Blissful Ignorance

Thrown into Adolescence

New Thoughts, New Feelings

A Bright World Turns Dark

Harsh Reality Sets In

Adulthood Begins

You Wished to Be Grown

Now You Watch The Clock In Hope

Tick Tock, Won't Go Back

Regrets Had, Time Lost

Youth Is Fleeting, It Is Gone

A Light, A Cry, Death

A treasure chest rests before me full of all the things I'd long thought gone.

The dollar store barbie dolls fashioned with my own sewings sleep atop one another. The stuffed hand me down animals lay lifelessly on their backs. My first baby doll still wearing the marker makeup I painted on her face so long ago. So many lost childhood items, and yet there's one thing I seek.

I remove each item from the top carefully: toys, 25 cent vending machine jewelry, skates, worn out shoes, fake makeup, dress up clothes, an old tea set, and various other items as I slowly make my way to its depths.

"She has to be here somewhere," I say as I dig deeper into the chest, removing photographs of my grandparents, a framed picture of my once happy family, a bottle of joy, a capsule of peace, and a canister of hope.

"Where could she be, come on." I'm almost at the bottom of the chest when I remove a white dress that belonged to my mother, and I would later use to pretend to be a bride. I raise it up and take in its simplicity and beauty. It's old in its fashion, but the sparkles remain intact along with its long trained veil. Memories flood of a young me, twirling in front of the mirror pretending to be a bride, hoping for a love like the one my parents once shared. I smile when the dress is snatched from my hand followed by a child's laughter.

There she is.

She twirls with the dress as her short, bouncy curls float in the air, and her dimples sink deep into her cheeks. So young, so innocent, so...pure.

"There you are," I say as she stares up at me with her deep green-blue eyes, full of promise and hope.

"Here I am," she giggles, "aren't I the prettiest bride? I'm going to marry the handsomest man and be in movies, and have kids, and have lots of money to buy 25 ponies."

"25 ponies? Don't you think thats a little too much?" I tease.

"No because I'm going to have a big house with a huge stable for the ponies, and lots of puppies. Oh, and a giant pool I can swim in whenever I want."

"Is that so?" I ask.

"Yes! when I'm a grown-up, I'll have everything I ever wanted and more. Maybe I'll even be a famous singer or...or a writer. My teacher says I'm the best writer in class, and I should write more stories."

I smile. I look at her studying every curvature of her face. The untainted skin and eyes full of so much life. Joy that can't be disrupted no matter the chaos. She always finds the good in everything...and everyone. She's everything I used to be...until I lost her.

"Well?" she asks as she fashions her dress in front of the mirror, "what do you want?"

A simple yet deep question. What do I want? I used to know, but somewhere along the journey I lost it. Dreams died. Hopes laid to rest. Pain deepened, and what I wanted didn't matter. I lost it. I lost her. The little girl who had big hopes and dreams, who looked at everything with wonder and possibility, soon replaced by a 30-year-old woman filled with fear and harsh realities.

"Well, I wanted to find you, and I did."

"Me? Why?" she says, crinkling her eyebrows in confusion.

"Because" I say picking up and putting on a familiar red dress that fits perfectly now. I grab the tea set in the corner of the treasure chest and set it on the ground, "I wanted to have a dress up tea party, and thought you'd be the perfect person to have it with. Are you in?"

She squeals with delight as she snatches the baby doll, the barbies and a few stuffed animals to join the party.

I admire her as she pours invisible liquid into the plastic tea cups, oblivious to the world that's falling apart around her. She doesn't have much, yet she has everything she needs, and big dreams for everything she wants.

"Will you tell me a story?" she asks.

"A story? Well, aren't you the best writer in class? Shouldn't you be telling me a story?" I say.

"Please?" she begs with her puppy-dog eyes. Damn, I was good.

"Okay," I say, "how about a story about a girl who loses her favorite dream and goes on an adventure to find it?"

"How does someone lose a dream?" she asks skeptically.

"How about you pour me some tea, and I'll tell you."

Her dimples sink deeply into her cheeks as she excitedly pours the tea, and I begin the story.

"Once upon a time, there was a girl who had a dream..."

.

I drew lines on your arms

the ink followed your skin like a memory

shredded dust made of needles, composed of your life

so I handled it the only way I knew how

tattooing you across my rearranged heart

foolish you truly are, letting your love . flow in someone else’s blood

I have no consent to your pain

I have none

.

I have loved you since the dawn of time,

Though we only met today

And our love is eternal in all directions,

Raising us above the world

Forever more

Animals,

True blessings in a harrowing world

They comfort, inspire, and help humans

When times are dire

Many are innocent,

Some even defenseless

Really, they just want to live their lives,

Growing and building families,

Exactly like humans do

Yet, those same humans

Pillage their homes,

Setting forests ablaze,

Showing the utmost cruelty

All of it an undeserved nightmare

As people, we must join together,

And protect these treasures of the earth

I woke up on an early spring morning and put on my cookie monster onesie. I was turning 28 years old. The sun hadn't long been up, when I received a text to come to the front door. I opened the door and my face became a beautiful reflection of the morning sun. There was a card and a balloon with rose petals encricling them on the doormat. I had never been loved like this before. So simple, yet deeply profound. He woke up early, drove 20 minutes before sunrise, so I could wake up to a day of surprises.

my best memory was first my worst. i spilled red on the canvas and it burst into 3 pieces, each one different from the other. i was taken by my mother who made sure i had enough to get me through the week. i felt weak as my journey with mental health began. i ran through the thoughts going through my head over and over again to make sure they were real. this is what i feel, i said to the doctor as he fed me the wrong pills. my heart spills red on the canvas until it ran blue.

By the time my grandfather moved in, he was in a wheelchair. However, it didn’t stop him from going on daily walks. One time we were strolling past a row of rose bushes when my grandfather motioned for me to stop. I watched as he bent down into the thorny vines and gently lifted a robin off of the ground. Silently, he pressed upon its wing and launched in in the air. I gazed in disbelief as the robin flew towards the sun. I look back on this moment as a lesson in quiet kindness.