An Ambiguous Tale

"The Beauty behind an Ugly Truth" Like gardening a rose and pricking your finger on the thorn Or driving down the highway on a sunny afternoon the day after a storm Like burying a loved one weeks after a young couples first child is born.   How can one thing feel like an eternity but upon looking back make you wish you had used that short amount of time differently.   There are moments that hurt and make you angry and sad followed by ones that heal, fill you with happiness, and feel glad.   Moments that we regret and mistakes that we make are only outdone by the chances we wish we could take.   We preach unity, acceptance, and love but hate those who live and look different or are intolerant of who we find comfort in the arms of.   We are told that we have a choice and it's our duty to choose even though the ones we are told to pick from have despicable reputations or views.   A constant battle between evil and good, darkness and light, with the m...

A Fork In The Road It's a comfortable night at a town's annual end of the summer festival, Jason is out enjoying the festivities before he heads to his first year of college. It's your typical street festival with booths of all kinds of food, small stages of live music, games, rides, and most of all people. As Jason walks alone amongst the crowd of people he feels invisible, a feeling that is all to familiar for him. He wasn't a geek, jock, popular, or the class clown. In his high school Jason simply existed with a small group of friends, going day by day seemingly unnoticed. His friends and family were always enough for Jason, but at times he couldn't help but want for more. Jason participated in all the high schools sports, some times he made the teams other times he was cut. The teams he did make he never saw the field, never had his name in the papers, and never walked down the hallways as a school hero. In his family Jason always...

Dark Eyes It's a warm Saturday afternoon while two boys are riding their bikes through their neighborhood, on their way to swim in an old quarry. Frank and Richy are starting in the eighth grade and have been best friends since grade school. Richy comes from an abusive home while Frank comes from your ordinary happy suburban family. Whenever it was a particularly bad night at Richy's house he would always climb out his window, get on his bike, and spend the night at Franks. The two formed an inseparable bond over the years and now were as close as brothers. The summer heat is lingering around in the opening weeks of the school year, so they boys decide to get one more day of swimming in before the seasons change. As the boys are riding they pass by other friends playing hockey in the street, family friends barbequing, and neighbors out watering the grass of their suburban homes. The route that the boys take lead them to a dirt path easily accessible from one of the ci...

The Funeral A man in a suit sits alone at the back of an old gothic church that is filled with men and women dressed in black. He sits there quietly as the people, whose faces he cannot see, mourn the loss of a dearly beloved friend. The man sits with only his thoughts. He begins to ponder how fragile life can be, all the choices he has made in his own life, all the people he has ever known, and all the things he wish he had done differently.  He is a young man no older than his late twenties, and as he sits lost in his train of thought a stranger joins him in the pew. The stranger says nothing, only silently looks on at the service that is taking place. Finally the stranger makes a remark to the young man.  "Such a shame a life being cut short so young, isn't it?," the Stranger says. The Young Man doesn't reply, only continues to look on at the continuing service.  "How did you know him?," the Stranger inquires.  "I didn...

It's a warm summer night in the woods just outside of the small town of Manassas, Virginia. Four friends, Charlie, Glenn, Frank, and James are playing flashlight tag in the woods behind Charlie's home. Glenn is counting down from five Mississippi on the porch as Charlie, Frank, and James dart into the woods lining the back yard. Charlie breaks off from the other two boys and finds a secluded hiding spot in an old abandoned station wagon. Glenn calls out to his friends. "Ready or not!, Here I come!" Glenn booms into the night. Armed with Charlie's fathers police issued flashlight, Glenn enters the woods to search for his friends. Charlie realizes he is well hidden and is sure he will win the game. Hears the rustling of branches and sticks around him, accompanied by the laughter of his friends. Charlie listens as he hears James and Frank being found and escorted back to the porch by Glenn. Charlie is alone in the silent and dark woods as he hears his friends...

"Underrated" By: Brendan Cadman  Rock bottom is underrated.  There is no where to go but up. Pain is underrated.  It only makes you stronger.  Disappointment is underrated.  It makes satisfaction even greater.  Rejection is underrated.  It makes acceptance even sweeter.  Heartbreak is underrated.  It only makes you love deeper.  Sickness is underrated.  It makes you appreciate your health.  Failure is underrated.  It makes success more satisfying. Struggling is underrated.  It makes easy times even more enjoyable.  Grief is underrated.  It makes happiness more joyful.  Death is underrated.  It makes life more valuable.  Everything in life serves a purpose and has a deeper meaning. Sometimes we can't always see the meaning in that moment but it doesn't mean it's not there....

"Definitions" By: Brendan Cadman He was born a boy. It did not define who he was. He was raised in religion. It did not define who he was. He was a student. It did not define who he was. He was heterosexual. It did not define who he was. He graduated and found a job. It did not define who he was. He worked his whole life and made a living. It did not define who he was. Then he died and when they asked me who he was, I told them. He was a son. It helped define who he was. He was a brother. It helped define who he was. He was a cousin, nephew, uncle, and a grandson. It helped define who he was. He was a traveler and saw the world. It helped define who he was. He was a boyfriend, fiancé, husband, and a father. It helped define who he was. He was a grandfather. It helped define who he was. The places that he went and the things that he saw, the people he knew and the ones...