Debbie Curtin

Author on Reedsy Prompts since Jan, 2021

Stories (69)

69 Stories

1257 karma pts

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“HONESTY IS THE BEST POLICY” by Debbie Curtin

Submitted to Contest #123

HONESTY IS THE BEST POLICY ___________________________________________ This quote is beholding to a few gentlemen, many, many years ago, who are remembered for stating these mindful words. Benjamin Franklin comes to mind first and foremost, as he used them in moments of sound reflection of the meaning. I admired his spirit to honor to our homeland, the United States of America, as he did more than many to pave the way in seeing this great nation come to its fruition of becoming the land of the free and the home of the brave. I needed to refl...

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“GIVING THANKS” by Debbie Curtin

Submitted to Contest #121

The past is but a memory The future is yet to be Today is the present, a gift for you and me Another long day finally ended and by this time I was not in a good mood. The design company I worked for had put in a last-minute request to have their #1 product heavily available over the holidays. And of course, I was the lucky one that was chosen to make a presentation in a part of the country that needed our vision and products in their storefronts. Downtown Croydon was making a comeback and we were on board to help push the product's image o...

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“ALOHA TREASURE” by Debbie Curtin

Submitted to Contest #118

Leaning against the car, I was still quite taken with surprise on finding such a treasure. The golden bracelet I held reflected the sunlight, glimmering with a rainbow of colors, as I kept turning it. There was a name interestingly imbedded across one area around the bracelet with what seemed to be jet black enamel. The lettering was an Old English style design quite common centuries ago. This mystery piece of jewelry was something I had never seen before because of its intricacy but I could tell it was an heirloom due to the aged patina qua...

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“BONES ARE US” by Debbie Curtin

Submitted to Contest #117

I rolled my eyes, shook my head repeatedly, while mouthing a most definite NO, as I held the phone away from my ear. This latest request was over the top and more sinister than anything I've ever encountered to date. Our business was seeing an increase in many things that seem to be popular at this time of year. We had to be mindful and cautious of who was asking for our select items, what certain products they felt were necessary, and the large amount they wanted to purchase. There were only so many morgues across the country where unclaime...

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“YOU CAN'T” by Debbie Curtin

Submitted to Contest #116

"You can't!" This was not a maybe or a soft request. This was a demand. "Don't make me repeat myself!" And of course he did. "YOU CAN NOT!" I said again but louder, stronger and with clenched teeth because I knew who needed a swift kick up the wazoo in a way. Kyle rolled his eyes and tried to play nice. "I get it." he said to his buddy. He knew what Chris was telling him with a nice, yet with a heavy hammer way of making him stay safe. It was a reminder of a time not long go that Kyle tried and failed nearly cutting his leg off. It was a mom...

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“NOW YOU SEE ME” by Debbie Curtin

Submitted to Contest #103

I know that face. Between the three of us we will find out who our cousin is. Stories have a way of becoming a thing of the past, something forgotten by chance or by choice. Photographs, however, don’t lie. I was tasked to go through a huge bundle of random papers and photos and notes from eons ago. It was our grandfather’s box of family treasures, which morphed into my uncle’s hand-me-down collection of stuff. When my sister’s and I were young we didn’t know anything about our grandfather; his school life, work life and life in general. He...

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“DEJA VU ALL OVER AGAIN” by Debbie Curtin

Submitted to Contest #98

I should have taken the hesitation Denise felt all along about this place before we went in and were hoodwinked. But it was so right up my alley in artsy, creative, shenanigans that I was not thinking bad thoughts. What could go wrong? My good friend Denise and I finally got it together, and without further interruption from everyone and their brother, set up a day and time to meet for coffee. This was a thing we would do need to do from time to time as it gave us a moment to catch up on what was going on with family and whatever else we ne...

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“STOP. DROP. AND GO.” by Debbie Curtin

Submitted to Contest #95

     A crowd began to grow. Angry voices were yelling as they passed by their place heading towards the hub of the fracas. People were now demanding answers, in response to a bullhorn shouting orders to cease and desist. A group of police were attempting to maintain order, as other policemen started to filter through the area and into nearby buildings. Pretty soon they’d be at their door. Dylan started swearing, and told Terf that a television crew, with lights, and cameras were at the bridge.    &nbsp...

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“BRIGHT LIFE” by Debbie Curtin

Submitted to Contest #92

What a waste of my life. At one time I had it all; the right girl, a dream to go places, and friends, lots of friends. Or so I thought. And then the lightbulb clicked on but then suddenly it went completely dark and turned off. For it had dawned on me that a friend is someone that sticks up for each other and doesn’t bail on you when things go south. And by that I mean being in the wrong place, with the wrong people, doing a whole lot of wrong stuff. Prison was the end result or in my case, Juvy. I can only kick myself once because then it’...

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“PAYBACK WITH INTEREST” by Debbie Curtin

Submitted to Contest #91

Things had been off the radar for a while after the horrible situation that happened to Monica. Sonya and Trae were the only two trusted with what seemed like such a bizarre story, however it was totally true. No one else would know anything since Monica’s family would be put in harm’s way. There was never any mention in any local police report, newspaper or radio of this man and business owner, who mysteriously disappeared. IRON Press On was suddenly reopened and the business was now, ‘under new ownership’. Monica, Sonya and Trae were the o...

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“GREEN GOLD” by Debbie Curtin

Submitted to Contest #90

I was hoping to leave the office before the weather took a turn for the worst, but the rain drops started to fall as soon as I stepped out the door. Luckily, we had just finished up and left the travel trunks neatly stacked and carefully packed with our work tools. The portfolios within were carefully layered as they contained plenty of necessary papers; linen, tracing, sketching and transfer types. Everything needed for our temporary office down south, including folded drawing tables, were left in place for transport from our Brookline offi...

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“WALK ON” by Debbie Curtin

Submitted to Contest #89

I didn’t see this coming but here we are. Slowly, I rise from the pile of metal, shards of glass and the heat that was so intense my face melted to the bone. But, up I struggle to rise, with knees so broken, I screamed with the effort to adjust my stance as best I could. One hand was blown off, the other shredded around my weapon. “Wow,” is the only word I voiced as I looked around the busted hillside. In one brief moment, all hell broke loose. Vaguely, I remember landing with full force upon an IED, never doubting or questioning my choice. ...

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“THE DAY OF FOOLS” by Debbie Curtin

Submitted to Contest #87

The idea for this surprise game changer happened at a recent conference set in Miami. It was to take place today and coincidentally the date was April 1.  The big drug companies were meeting to discuss the health crisis across the country. They would each be staking a claim to a region to market and sell to individuals, pharmacies, hospitals, etc. Everyone who attended this particular event, came with their best product, which was not so much about their actual product, but more about the approach with their upscale show boat staff and ...

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“ tis the SUGAR SEASON” by Debbie Curtin

Submitted to Contest #86

The signs were here; above freezing during the day, dropping down at night. Another good sign was the amount of snow cover this winter, when it stayed through the season and into spring. The trees were now ready for the sugaring season to begin. We looked to one another and with a wink, I said it first. “Let’s do this!” And just like that our version of sugaring had begun. Preparation was the first thing you just had to do in order on the list. It’s nice when things are put away in the manner of which they would be taken out again. I guess i...

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“YESTERDAY AND TODAY” by Debbie Curtin

Submitted to Contest #85

Today was the long awaited day for this part of the harvest season. The rice would be gathered and hopefully provide enough sustenance for the winter season. The murky stream was soft and clear and remained the perfect setting for their hoped for bounty. The McInnis family remained thankful that this plentiful area was maintained by the elderly gentleman who lived in the home prior to their arrival. Gordon, father of the clan McInnis, had attended to the horses and let them out to pasture on this sunny fall day. The carriage was in need of ...

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Author bio

It's taken years of polish to be a writer and have several published books under my belt. The time spent writing news stories for print and online sites really upped my game advancing that learning curve!