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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#86: Springtime Flowers

March 21st may be considered the first day of Spring by many, but Mother Nature doesn't always agree. Depending on where you live, the daffodils could be showing their sunny faces or still hibernating under frozen soil.

For me, it’s usually a mix. Here you can be wearing shorts one day and shoveling snow the next, but one thing is consistent: as soon as the weather warms up, I’m bursting outside to gulp down that fresh air and watch the world come back to life. This week, regardless of what the weather actually holds, let’s celebrate the season of rebirth and renewal. After all, in our imaginations the sun can always be shining and the birds can always be chirping!

This week's prompts

Set your story at a park during a spring festival.

Spring – 82 stories

Write about a character coming out of a long hibernation (either literal or metaphorical).

Spring – 158 stories

Write a fairy tale about someone who can communicate with woodland creatures.

Kids – 168 stories

Start your story with one character pointing out the first sign of spring to another.

Spring – 107 stories

Write a story where flowers play a central role.

Spring – 278 stories

Stories

“Grace” by Cynthia Brennan

Submitted to Contest #86

Grace By Cynthia Brennan Grace walked in her garden for what was likely the last time. Sunflowers dipped and reached toward her for one final embrace. Hydrangeas in shades of pale blue and pink huddled close to comfort each other at the loss of their dear friend and caretaker. Bright red roses clung to their trestles for support. The usually happy-looking yellow and white daffodils drooped their heads in sadness. Grace was leaving her home of fifty five years today and mo...

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“tattoo” by Illıllı L̴u̴n̴a̴ ̴ V̴i̴x̴r̴n̴ Illıllı

Submitted to Contest #86

Tattoo;It's not a tattoo, exactly.It's permanent, i think, but it's not made of ink, not pressed into skin by needles.The dark swirls, thorns and branches, buds blossoming into flowers; somehow this feels too flimsy to be a tattoo.Like its permanence and fixedness are not mutually inclusive.As a sharp pain flashes behind my eyes, i watch the vine start to spread, darkness spidering all across my skin.Baxter.Baxter was missing. This was not unusual. He had taken to sneaking out the windows and running into the forest in search of squirre...

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“The Shades of Love” by Nicole Davis

Submitted to Contest #86

Gwen’s hands shook as she stood before her locker at school. With a sigh, she plopped her lavender backpack onto the tile floor beside her. Classmates walked by in a sea of indifference with only one jutting from the crowd to join her. “Hey, Gwen! Did I miss it?” Renee’s big brown eyes glittered and her perky disposition told Gwen that she was just as excited as she was trying not to be. “No, Renee. You haven’t missed it.” She smiled before she let out a breath through her pursed lips. Trying to get the nerve up to open the metal door. “Can...

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“A Special Calling” by Christopher Doriott

Submitted to Contest #86

She just stood there, emotionless and figuratively invisible as people acted oblivious to her existence while carrying out their own agendas. Her small fists held out a bouquet of white lilies in an attempt to persuade passersby to purchase the multitude of flowers on her small display stand. Although the park was unusually busy Christian doubted she would even be able to conduct a single sale. The woman seemed to lack any charisma, any personality at all. Then why was he so fixated on her?He had been studying her, perhaps even mesmeri...

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“No Love Can Save You” by Florian Wolf

Submitted to Contest #86

"Really, you don't let us through?" He asked the flowers with a big sigh at the end of the sentence. "Nohoho!" The Flowers answered sternly and waved their sunflower-shaped heads around. This annoying weed is totally playing us. Just let us through to Prince Charming so that she, my annoying sis, can finally go away. "Yeaaah, I can totally understand this!" She reacted to the flowers' answer. "One should have to finish an adventure before finding Prince Charming. I can't imagine just getting the love of your life thrown at you!" She was...

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“Flowers” by Josephine Andersen

Submitted to Contest #86

FlowersAnna locked her front door, got into her van and started up the engine. It was 4 am and dark but she had to get to the flower market early to be in time to choose good quality flowers.The day was overcast with a promise of rain and she huddled into her jacket to keep warm. Her long hair was tucked under a beanie and her jeans a bit ragged at the knees. It was a struggle to look smart when she got up so early. She had not given her appearance attention for some time.At the market, her eye caught some fresh Inca lilies and with a g...

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“Flowers for the year” by Finn Charlton

Submitted to Contest #86

Pink camellias for longing. Pink carnations for remembrance. Heliotrope for devotion. Yarrow for everlasting love. A single rose, deep crimson for mourning, in the centre of it all.I clutch my mismatched bouquet to my breast, take a deep breath and step through the short wooden gate into the graveyard. The smell of spring and freshly cut grass hangs heavy in the air around me, weighing down on my shoulders and my heart. It’s an unseasonably warm day in late February, the complete opposite of my first visit where the earth was blanketed in sn...

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“Flowers” by Gosia Homa

Submitted to Contest #86

TW: murder, suicide, drugs ,,Flowers" Flowers. I always wanted to be as delicate and beautiful as a flower. They're colorful and alive. They’re beautiful and vulnerable and each of them is special. You can give them to someone special and make them happy or you can keep them for yourself to watch how they grow. There's nothing better than the smell that they give.They don’t hurt me like people. I would love to be a flower.I'm sad. I started to comfort myself by taking some substances. It makes me feel like a flower. It makes me forget everyt...

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“Black Rose” by Charlotte S

Submitted to Contest #86

Black RoseBy Charlotte S“Max! Time for dinner!” called Max’s mother from downstairs.“Coming!” called Max from her position on her bed, her feet on the wall and her head hanging off the edge, books piled around her. She flopped off her bed to the side, a cascade of books following shortly after, scattering across the unattractive cow print rug that her mother had insisted on buying. Max gave a couple of them a halfhearted shove towards her bed, before picking herself up and heading towards the door. When she got downstairs, the table was...

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“Daffodils Aren’t For Eating” by Miles Swanson

Submitted to Contest #86

“Okay listen up, most of you know the rules” My uncle Clyde’s voice booms. He used to be an auctioneer so his loud and fast paced voice is perfect for this role. “But I’ll go over it for a couple of the new faces we got here today.” I look around to spot my roommate and friends from college, my niece, a few of my cousins I haven’t seen for a while and other faces who seem familiar but I can’t quite identify. “First, you’ve all been given an envelope with a clue to the items you’ll have to find.” His loud voice wakes me up from my pondering o...

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“Unlucky Flowers” by Melissa Källström

Submitted to Contest #86

Isaac stared at all of the bouquets, unable to make up his mind. They sure did have an enormous selection of flowers around Mother’s Day. Come on, you’re just getting flowers for mom. You do this every year. And he dreaded it every year. Despite all her faults, and, if Isaac was being honest, she did have quite a lot of faults, he loved his mother, though if asked he could never explain why. The reason he loved her was a mystery that always escaped him. Why do I love her if she’s like this? If she doesn’t even like me? Isaac would sit...

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“My Back Yard” by Mike Henry

Submitted to Contest #86

My Back Yard It’s not big but it is manageable and...

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“Wildflowers Do Wither” by Megha Dabral

Submitted to Contest #86

Sara would get irritated when Shawn mistakenly pulled Sara’s hair while playing with it. Shawn would kiss her to apologize and Sara would get more irritated. He had improved on his skills. Merely in 5 minutes, he had adorned almost all of Sara’s lovely hair strands with wildflowers of all colors. Sara was reading her favorite novel lying on her stomach and Shawn was busy playing with her hair. This place by the river side was kind of a hideout. One had to pass through a wide strip of grassland to reach this riverside and once you reached it,...

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“Flower Aura” by Vidhya Raja

Submitted to Contest #86

Flower Aura When words are not enough Flowers celebrate love, comfort in sorrow, congratulations on achievements and friendships. Flower messages have varied over the centuries. Not only do they appear beautiful and appealing to the eyes, they play an important role in our daily life. “When spring comes, forsythias bloom first. And when the forsythias start to wither, magnolias bloom. Then when the magno...

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“Soothing One's Soul” by Mary Burns

Submitted to Contest #86

I love the summer. It’s not just the warm weather that invigorates my soul, but the extended hours of sunlight. These added hours of daylight allow me to take an evening walk that helps soothe my soul. I have learned to cherish this time alone. As I walk along my usual two-mile route through the neighborhood, I take in the sights and sounds of nature that surround me. I especially enjoy the beautiful flower gardens along the way. Flowers, I think, nature’s artwork. They give my such joy. They have raised my spirits during many difficult ti...

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$50

Prize money

797

Contest entries

0

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Mar 26, 2021 EST

Won by Scott Skinner 🏆

Title: Flowering Walrus

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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