The Pink Journal

Farrago (noun) - a confused mixture; hodgepodge; medley: a farrago of doubts, fears, hopes, and wishes.
Varicolored (adjective) - having various colors; variegated; motley: a varicolored print.

The Wild Garden
The varicolored blooms raise their heads to the sunshine. Reds, yellows, and purples crowd together in clumps of friendly faces. The blooms sun themselves. They fluttered in the breeze bobbing and nodding at each other. Their green limbs worshipped the sun and held them in formation.

The garden gave a happy feeling to the air as much as they fragranced it. Each breeze gave a different wisp of possibility as each flowers fragrance took turns riding the air.

The garden had a long winding path made with stepping stones. Along the walk through the garden, farragoes of groups wildly growing blooms danced in welcome. They almost looked happy to see the visitors that visited there.

The great oak tree in the center of the garden was surrounded by stone benches. It was the anchor of the whole garden. The center of a colorful universe that exists only to give peace.        

Grok (verb used with object) to understand thoroughly and intuitively.
Time Travel (noun) The concept of moving between different points in time in a manner analogous to moving between different points in space, generally using a theoretical invention known as a "time machine". Time travel is a recognized concept in philosophy and fiction, but has a very limited support in theoretical physics, usually only in conjunction with quantum mechanics or Einstein–Rosen bridges.
Quark (noun) Physics. any of the hypothetical particles with spin 1/2, baryon number 1/3, and electric charge 1/3 or -2/3 that, together with their antiparticles, are believed to constitute all the elementary particles classed as baryons and mesons; they are distinguished by their flavors, designated as up (u), down (d), strange (s), charm (c), bottom or beauty (b), and top or truth (t), and their colors, red, green, and blue.

A Means to an End
April sat in her physics class and watched as the colors on the white board blurred. It was the second hour of a three hour lecture on baryons and mesons particles. Quark particles were just as hard to understand as why men do the things that they do. She sat there and sighed.

She wondered what she was thinking when she decided to take this class or even major in physics. She was beginning to regret her decision. She could have been a political science major or even an English literature major. 

She was completely unable to grok the concepts on the white board. She knew that if she tried she could but the problem was that she didn’t want to. She didn’t want any of this. Not anymore.

She smiled and thought there was one thing she did understand and that was time travel. Thanks to Dr. Who and a lot of science fiction she did know a thing or two about that. but without a degree in physics she would never be able to create a time portal to go back and change this horrible decision she had made.

She took a deep breath and refocused. She had a degree to get and a past to change. She just wished there was an easier way.

Brumal (adjective) wintry; winter
Frore (adjective) Archaic. frozen; frosty.
Névé (noun) granular snow accumulated on high mountains and subsequently compacted into glacial ice. a field of such snow. Also called firn, old snow.
Algid (adjective) cold; chilly.


Red Bird
The sun rose over the mountain covered with a neve. The sun glittered like diamonds on the surface until the light glared through the valley.

The pine trees swayed in the algid breeze. The red bird clung to a short branch deep in the center of the tree. It was sheltered for now from the frore winds and the threat of more snow.

Soon spring will come and warm the breeze and start to melt the mountain but until them the red bird must shelter itself the best way it knows how.  

A Lover’s Rant
Word Count: 339
Prompts:
Peccadillo (noun) a very minor or slight sin or offense; a trifling fault.
Lachrymose (adjective) suggestive of or tending to cause tears; mournful.
Forlorn (adjective) desolate or dreary; unhappy or miserable, as in feeling, condition, or appearance.
Friable (adjective) easily crumbled or reduced to powder; crumbly: friable rock.
Ratiocination (noun) the process of logical reasoning.
Indomitable (adjective) that cannot be subdued or overcome, as persons, will, or courage; unconquerable: an indomitable warrior.
Arrogate (verb) to claim unwarrantably or presumptuously; assume or appropriate to oneself without right: to arrogate the right to make decisions.
Sunder (verb) to separate; part; divide; sever.
Extricate (verb) to free or release from entanglement; disengage: to extricate someone from a dangerous situation.
Gravitas (noun) seriousness or sobriety, as of conduct or speech.
Nonagenarian (noun) of the age of 90 years, or between 90 and 100 years old.
Comport (noun) to bear or conduct (oneself); behave
Aspersion (noun) the act of slandering; vilification; defamation; calumniation; derogation
X
From the moment we met, I knew the gods would try to tear us from each other’s arms. It is a cruel fate but I know it was our planned destiny.  At least, that was the initial plan until we moved into action. Until we fought for what is ours. 

This was no peccadillo. This offense by the gods a huge lachrymose plot to render both of us into puddles of despair. They would have us forlorn and living in darkness. We would have been made less from their deed.

However, we are not as friable as they think we are. We are strong and we are made of steel. We will endure and not give into their dastardly plot.

In all of the gods’ ratiocinations, they have forgotten that we are stubborn and unyielding. When we want something, we are indomitable. We cannot be stopped. We will fight until our last breath to get what we want and that includes love.

Yet while they arrogate the decision to pull our hearts apart, to sunder our love, we move against them. We fight their decision and take out lives away from fate and them and do what we want with our hearts.

We extricate our hearts from their plot and make our own path. We are the makers of our destiny and we will fight against all that try to stop us.

Let us have the gravitas of the truth on our side as we fight for what is ours and no one else’s. 

On the day that we die as nonagenarians we will still have our love and it will still be in tact because we believed in it and in ourselves. We will comport ourselves with pride and dignity and we will do it together with hands clasped tightly.

This is no diatribe to cast aspersions on the gods but it is a statement of conviction and believe that all things are possible as long as there are two people willing to fight for their very hearts.         

Lenity (noun – the quality or state of being mild or gentle, as toward others)

The doctor in charge of the ward was known for his lenity. It was a trait that served him well working with the children afflicted with polio.

He would soothe their brow and talk to them softly as they received treatment. For some it was the first time they had ever been treated gently.

He could do nothing else for most of them. They were going to die from the awful disease. There were a few that would come out of the iron lungs that they were in. those would be marked for life as survivors. They would be crippled and some would suffer the side effects of their ordeal again as they became older.

Polio was a cruel disease. The only thing the doctor could do was give comfort and lenity to the afflicted. He had to let nature and medicine do the rest. 

Desideratum (noun - something wanted or needed)

The one that is my heart is my desideratum. He is needed and wanted above all other things. I cannot live without him.

He invades my senses, filling them with his presence. His touch sends me reeling out of control. His voice gives me chills as it says my name. His kisses are sweeter than clover honey. He is more handsome than a god. His sent is leather and spice.

When he is far from me I feel less. I feel wanting. It is only when he is near that I am completely whole.

He is my heart and the ruler of my soul. I cannot bear to live without my desideratum.

Fritter (verb- to squander or disperse waste little by little (usually followed by away))

The Pieces We Leave Behind
We leave pieces of ourselves in our past. I don't mean physical parts of our body like dead skin or hair. I mean spiritual, emotional and potential parts. We fritter away these bits and we leave a trail as we move through life.


We leave victories and failures.
We leave a part of ourselves when we accomplish a goal or when we fail at one. The energy and time along with our determination is the part of us we leave in the past with that goal.  

We leave pieces of our hearts.
Each person that we love keeps a part of us in their heart. It doesn’t make a difference it it’s a lover or just a friend they keep something of us. Even if the relationship doesn’t work out part of us still remain with them. Those bits are the memories we made with them both, good and bad.

We leave dreams and desires.
As we change as a person, our priorities change. Our dreams of the future that we had when we were six don’t apply to the person we are at twenty six. Those dreams get left behind in our past.

The same can be said of our desires. These are more complicated than a mere dream and are more emotionally based. As a child we may desire one thing that seems silly when we are an adult. That desire gets left behind.  

We leave missed opportunities for growth.
We have all longed for the chance to do something over again. It’s a chance that takes a thought from us and breaks it off as part of our trail. We made a choice but what if we had made the other one. Part of ourselves is left in that alternative choice. The time and emotion that it took to make the decision is left behind.


If we were able to look at the trail of parts frittered away as we went through our lives, what would it look like? I think it would look like confetti left over from a parade. The parade is our life and we should just keep marching on.    

Gormandize (verb- to eat greedily or ravenously)

Kindness
The refugees wore rags as they huddled together for warmth. There wasn't much of that in the makeshift shelters that lined the river.

A truck drove into the encampment and the back door opened. Four men and one woman got out.

The men took large crates of supplies from the back. They also took a stack of blankets out.

The woman went from shack to shack counting the residents of each shack. She made her list and she came back to the truck to divide the supplies.

The residents came out only when they smelled the hot soup simmering on a camp stove. They lined up for bowls of soup and bread. There was even some milk for the children.

The five good Samaritans watched as the refugees gormandized the soup and bread. They parceled out a second helping with what was left over.

They divided the supplies and promised to return the following week.

When the truck returned, the refugees were less ravenous but not less grateful for their kindness.

Frisson (a sudden passing sensation of excitement; a shudder of emotion; thrill)

The Stranger
She felt a frisson of delight as his hands ghosted over the thin material of her night dress. It was wrong of her to feel so but she couldn't help it.

Her husband was away for a fortnight and she was lonely. In truth, she was lonely even when her husband was home. They kept separate rooms as was the fashion these days.

The young man kissed her neck. There it was again. His hand was cupping her breast. His other hand was tangled in her hair.

“You should go.” She whispered.

“Do you want me to go?” He whispered against her neck.

His words excited her. His breath caused another frisson. It flamed something inside her she thought was long dead.

“Stay. I may regret this in the morning but for tonight I am yours to take.” She responded. “Take me now.”

He scooped her up in his arms and deposited her in the middle of the bed.

“I shall take you to places you have never been, My Lady.” He promised her.

He gave her all he had to give. In the end, she found that wonder and joy she had found with no one else.

In the morning when she woke, he was gone but he would never be forgotten.

Railbird (noun)  a horse-racing fan who watches races or workouts from the railing along the track.

Lucky Martin leaned on the rail. He squinted at the chestnut gelding as the trainer walked it out of the barn. He hadn't seen that one before and he had seen them all.

Lucky pulled out the racing form and scanned it. He found the horse on the bottom in the listing for the last race.

Lucky raised his eyebrow and pulled a pen out of his jacket pocket and circled the horse's name. The gelding's name was a good sign.

Lucky watched the trainer put the young gelding through his paces. He looked like a fine piece of horse flesh.

Lucky smiled as he made his decision. He went to place a bet on the new gelding for the last race.

Later in the day, Lucky watched each race. He won a little on each race.

Lucky leaned forward during the last race with a smile on his face. He put his largest bet on the new gelding.

The horses were off and running. The gelding worked his way up through the pack. Lucky smiled as the gelding took the lead. The gelding crossed the finish line first.

Lucky jumped to his feet. He had won a substantial amount. It was more than he had won on all the other races.

The odds were tilted against the gelding which made the payout larger than for the other races.

Lucky cashed in. He knew it was lucky that he took his chance on the young gelding. How could he go wrong with a horse named "Lucky's Chance".