
The lanes were familiar, the faces not. Time had not been kind to my hometown. The roads seemed bumpier and dustier, the markets crowded and disorderly.
Houses were in a state of disrepair; paint peeling off, gardens growing wild and laundry languishing on lines. In the hope of catching a glimpse of him, I wandered and I wandered.
Lonely as a cloud in a fierce sky, I scudded across the bylanes, shading my eyes. Regretting my foolhardy decision to return in the hope of a reunion.
Despondently, I trudge back to the railway-station, the burden of desolation heavier than my baggage.
As I sit forlornly on a lonely bench, waiting for my train, a familiar voice from the past calls me. I turn to find intense brown gazing at me. As I am engulfed in a tight bear hug, I know I am home.
Written for dVerse prosery. Today’s host, Lillian, says: The line I want you to include in your prose/flash fiction of 144 words or less, sans title, is “I wandered lonely as a cloud”. Remember, you must use the line, word for word. The punctuation may be different….but the words must be there, ordered just as they were by Wordsworth, word for word.
Home is where your people are!!
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So it is.
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‘laundry languishing on lines’ – I love this line! 🧺
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Thanks, Ingrid. 😊
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Oh sweet, this gives me the feeling of being at home. How sweet it often is! Such a stunning piece, Chris. 💖
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Thanks a lot, Lamittan. ❤️
It’s Punam, by the way. 😊
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Oh sweet to know. You both deserve praises for your wonderful writing abilities. Feel most welcome 💖
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🙏🏼❤️
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Excellent combination of nostalgia and hope. Beautiful story Punam
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Thanks a lot, Sadje.
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My pleasure dear friend
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This is so good, I felt it personally…though I didn’t get the happy ending of your story. Such is life 🙂 Much love to you!<3
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Are there ever any happy endings except in stories! 😉
Thanks ever so much. ❤️
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Now and then I hear of a happy ending in real life…so, it Could Happen!!💝
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Of course, it could! 😊
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💖
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How a town, slowly dies, and, it feels, completely, foreign to you.
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Yes, it does happen…
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Thanks, Ingrid. 😊
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Absolutely beautiful response to the prompt. The first line itself is so captivating, “The lanes were familiar, the faces not”…👏👏💯
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Thanks a lot, Komal. Much appreciated.
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Excellent Punam! I’m always impressed when writers break up the prompt line, as you did ❤
-David
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Thanks so much, David. ❤️
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Nice use of the prompt. Sometimes going back feels just like that. Fortunately, your narrator had a happy ending.
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Thanks, Heather. In fiction it is always easy to contrive a happy ending.
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You’re welcome.😊
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You’ve worked with the line so well here….keeping it word for word but changing the punctuation. Works beautifully.
I am smitten with this line: “laundry languishing on lines” I love saying it aloud. The image and the sound – both really really good.
Yup — returning to an old place can be so many things: exhilerating, daunting, and sometimes disappointing.
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I am happy that the line break worked and that you enjoyed the laundry line! Thanks so much for the prompt, I loved writing for it.
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Love it all. Nothing feels like belonging in that moment. Xo
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Indeed, Selma. I appreciate your time here. ❤️
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I turn to find intense brown gazing at me.
As I am engulfed in a tight bear hug,
I know I am home.
A classic close, Punam. A punch-line at the very end to give a happy ending to dispel the despondence of all of the earlier write-up! (it does not rightly matter who or what is ‘brown’)
Hank
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I am glad you agree who or what is “brown”.
Thanks so much, Hank.
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Beautifully penned. And how a town is made up of people we know and hold dear.
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So it is! Thank you so much.
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Brilliant composition of words so well penned, Punam. Finally the love of your life came and you felt nice. Great poem.
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Thanks so much, Kamal.
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Welcome always Punam 💖
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Home is here, home is there, home is everywhere.
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So it is.
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Great slice of life! Going home is impossible for some people but we often find what we are looking for when we search.
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Yes, for some the search does yield desired results.
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A happy ending! I like how deftly you broke the prompt line into two.
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Thanks a lot, Reena.
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I see this prompt took us on similar paths. Wonderfully created, Punan.❤
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So it did! Thanks a lot. ❤️
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Aww the ending felt so good to read! Your prose too is full of beautiful poetic expresssions. I found it very skilful how you changed the punctuation but used the prompt words exactly!
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Beautiful writing, Punam, and I love happy endings.
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Reblogged this on The Reluctant Poet.
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Punam, I adore that ending. I’m so happy for both of them.
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Thanks so much, Li. ❤️
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You’re very welcome ❤
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Exquisite in its language and feelings, dear Punam. This is a beautiful write, my dear friend. ❤️
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Jeff, I am glad you enjoyed this little tale! Thanks so much, my friend.
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You’re most welcome, dear Punam. Always! ❤️
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‘Despondently, I trudge back to the railway-station, the burden of desolation heavier than my baggage.’ Could get it.. Your words filled with the warmth of a home indeed.. Much love.. 🤗💕…
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Much love to you too…❤️🤗😘
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Beautiful expressions
It feels good when one finds home in a person
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So true! Thanks so much, Swati. ❤️
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