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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#120: Nostalgia

Do you ever get a warm, fuzzy feeling when eating a favorite childhood meal or meeting up with an old friend? On the other hand, maybe you’ve revisited something you were nostalgic for, only to find it wasn’t quite what you remembered. Or perhaps you’ve found yourself longing for a time before you were even born...

This week’s prompts encourage you to write around the bittersweet feeling of nostalgia, and imagine the different ways your characters might confront memories from the past.

This week's prompts

Write about a character who yearns for something they lost, or never had.

Angst – 111 stories

Start your story with the line ‘Back in my day…’

Adults – 28 stories

Write about two characters’ different perspectives of the same past event.

Middle School – 36 stories

Start your story with a character looking through an old family photo album.

Fluff – 44 stories

Your character has always viewed the past with rose tinted glasses. Write about what happens when they’re finally confronted with the truth.

Angst – 25 stories

Stories

“Sentimental Memories” by Peter Phoenix

Submitted to Contest #120

“Lizzy, come and check this out,” Jake shouted and his voice echoed from the attic. “Be right there, I just need to pack the rest of the food,” replied Lizzy from the kitchen. “Did you find something interesting?” “You bet!” he replied with an excited voice. “A wooden chest full of old family albums, you need to see this.” Jake pulled out the photo book that was on the top, with a gentle blow removed the thin layer of the dust, revealing the caption ‘Summer, 95’. He carefully opened it, taking a peek at the first page. It was a color...

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“MY THANKSGIVING PLEDGE: Thanksgiving, 2021” by Julia Corliss

Submitted to Contest #120

MY DEAR FELLOW AMERICANS, I was fifty-nine years old when my parents died, and I inherited my grandparents’ photo albums, as well as my parents’ photo albums. I still have them at age seventy-five. Most of the people pictured there are dead now. Every once in a while, I pull out one of the albums and remind myself of all the love and memories packed into them. Photography made it possible to capture frozen moments in time that otherwise might’ve slipped into memory’s shadows. I was one of the lucky ones born into a loving family who wanted...

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“Grandma's Prince” by Lisa Neuvelt

Submitted to Contest #120

Grandma’s PrinceZoe and her family had just returned home after her grandfather’s funeral. She got her grandmother settled in a chair. “Sweety,” Grandma Rose said. “Please bring me my bag.” Zoe did so, handing her grandmother a large tote bag.Grandma Rose pulled out a photo album. “Come sit by me,” she said “Let me tell you a story. A fairy tale of a Prince and his Princess.”Zoe quickly grabbed a chair and placed it next to her grandmother’s.Grandma Rose opened the photo album. The first pi...

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“The Room At The Top Of The Stairs” by MW Alabi (pen Name Lareene WJ)

Submitted to Contest #120

In this house, there are not many books. No book shelves. No library cards. But upstairs to the right while searching for something is a dark dusty poorly lit room. Storage? It’s called an attic. A quick view does show old papers, furniture pieces, small piles of clothes, newspapers and knick knacks. I go through a few things. Always on alert for spiders, bugs and the unidentified something. God forbid a mouse or a rat! I gently lift a yellowing shredding window shade to let in some natural light. I lo...

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“Pink” by Jade Perry ™️🐍

Submitted to Contest #120

Pink is her favorite color. It has been since the age of sixteen. She couldn’t exactly tell you why. Why she’d rather have playful pinks instead of bland blues or purposeful purples. Some days, she thinks it’s because it makes her feel youthful and forever rosy. How just by looking at the color, her heart blushes like her teenage self with a crush. Other days, she swears it’s because it makes the simplest things livelier. That it only takes a single coat of watermelon polish to transform broken brittle nails. That no other color can liven de...

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“Tinted Glasses” by Panda Havens

Submitted to Contest #120

It's a sunny day. Barely a cloud in sight. Our character was roaming the streets of Dollenville, a small town which was not that well known to the outside world. The people walking by paid no attention to him. Some even avoided him. He was just too..happy. The town was not the best place in the world. There were barely any laws. People were getting murdered, kidnapped, or robbed around every corner. Yet anytime you striked a conversation with him, he always found a way to look towards the bright side of things. ...

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“Autumn” by Ilexis Pereida

Submitted to Contest #120

Autumn used to be my best season, full of change and excitement, and especially being within your warm embrace. But that’s all changed now, as I still remember the day, a brisk fall morning, with dew still residing on the grass almost as if it were trying to speak to me, warn me for what’s to come. If we only had limited time, I would spend it with you. My days, filled with your laughter, and kind touch. If only these crevice-sized details allowed us to trigger deeper connections upon our days here. I had always considered myself to be a ful...

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“Memories” by Kristin Holland

Submitted to Contest #120

Coffee shops, in my opinion, seem kind of pretentious Almost like the typical popular kid but in hipster form. However, this one was different maybe because of the doe eyed barista or the chestnut colored walls or maybe even the soft jazz that played everyday. Whatever is was I'm glad I had it because it made feel like I belonged for the first time in my life. Just as these thoughts crossed my mind I caught a smell of something familiar. It was the strangest thing, it happened so randomly, so suddenly I almost didn't recognize it. Nothing mo...

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“Waves” by Jelly Bluebird

Submitted to Contest #120

There have been waves crashing, their long tongues layering onto one another. Within their mouths, which opened widely when meeting the shore, the white lace of foam has been concealed. In the air, which moved freely the sand was carried, with the cold, given to the land by the roaming body of water. The ground’s vast body, as long as it stretched, bore existence only to two shelters, one slender and tall, painted with glimmering whiteness by the day, and a singular movement of silent light in the night-time. The other one was a modest woode...

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“I Miss My Peace” by Keith Dale

Submitted to Contest #120

Every Thanksgiving our family near and far gathered to celebrate this American holiday. Pastures and woodlands spread over one hundred and fifty acres. Being from Houston Texas where there was never silence made this a small piece of country heaven. My grandparents lived on a small farm near Ft. Worth Texas. They raised about twelve to fifteen head of polled shorthorn cattle and tended four large vegetable gardens. He grew just about every vegetable and fruit that would grow in that climate. Two gardens were filled with a variety of tomatoes...

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“Now and Then” by Karen Xoxoxo

Submitted to Contest #120

I used to be a teacher, a nurse, a mom. I loved my busy life. Lots of women say that, but really I was literally all these things. Then right before ‘the great lockdown of 2020’, all that ended. I had a heart attack, then another then a stroke on the table. Yeah, I’ve always been an overachiever. On this fateful day, all was well, or so I thought. I had what I thought was severe heartburn the night before but turned out to =be the first heart attack. As I sat up in bed crying with the pain, ...

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“Love Was Easier Then” by Love My Hope7

Submitted to Contest #120

Back in my day, there was no such thing as dating apps; I remember just having a crush on someone and confessing to them. Of course, I also dreamt of putting on a beautiful white dress and walking down the aisle to marry the love of my life. As I grew up, I realized a lot of things about love. When I was a little girl, I watched romantic-themed movies; I liked to see the main characters fall in love and have that special ending. I would always imagine cute scenarios in my mind, always finishing with that special ending. It all star...

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“Serene oblivion” by Nina Pol

Submitted to Contest #120

"Back in my day, we did not need bionics to do these things, I tell ya!" the squeaky voice made Anne jerk out of her daydreaming stance. Wait. Where was she? She did not recognize the place. How did she get here?"And take my word, the world was a better place for it!" continued the voice that she could now assign to a scrawny, wrinkled man.She rubbed her eyes. Her mind felt clouded as if she was looking at the world through a thick, milky glass. She was in some kind of a... bar? It was a very crowded room with dozens of p...

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“The Ironist” by Nix ♞

Submitted to Contest #120

I see someone now I see every day, though he may not know it. I may not know it. That is to say, we are the same, though we may not know it. I see him in the mirror.And yet, I'm not looking into a mirror, but across a street. It's New York. Cars. Buildings. Noise.The man has bags, and bags in bags, all empty with his stuff. He pushes a rickety grocery cart. Step. Step. Step. A part of his ripped shirt swings from his hip and scrapes the sidewalk. Ground Zero behind him. Twin tragedies.A brown banana falls from his pocket. Maybe he was going ...

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“Three is a Guarantee” by Lin Macredie

Submitted to Contest #120

Sequencing timeline photos is essential to a strong social media image. There had been a mix of fun as well as cultural and educational experiences to create a well rounded family vacation. The goal was to project perfection and emphasize family while arousing envy. There were too many shots with only one of the twins. Devin had been camera shy and tended to wander. Her mother-in-law might make some comment about her favoring one twin over the other. There was a nice one from the museum day. There were good candid pics from the cave tour. Th...

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$250

Prize money

244

Contest entries

163

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Nov 19, 2021 EST

Won by Rebecca Loften 🏆

Title: Meditation

Submissions must be between 1,000 - 3,000 words and will be approved and published on Reedsy Prompts within 7 days of the contest closing.

Read the full terms & conditions or check out the FAQ if you have any questions!

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