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Write about a child who carries on their parent’s work or legacy in some form.

Posted in Teens on Oct 26, 2022

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✍️ 40 stories

Flour and fire

Winner of Contest #111 🏆

CW: alcoholism, domestic violence Flour is highly flammable, but maybe you know that. I remember once, when I was a teenager, someone at tailgate party tossed a cup of flour into the air over the fire we'd built. It went "WHOOSH" and lit the sky for miles up, or so it seemed. Thank God there was no wind. It was epic. I had had a few tokes and I was trying to articulate to my friend Clarisse how my mother worked with flour every day, making it into things, and yet, watching it become NOTHING was so much more spectacular. Claris...

215 likes 73 comments 73
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The Collector

Shortlisted for Contest #111 ⭐️

I’m surrounded by his things. That’s what he’s left behind, things. Well, things and me, I suppose. There weren’t a lot of people at the service. Some neighbors, a couple of old friends, a smattering of relatives. Small but respectable. At least that’s what I told myself when the last of the guests arrived. It wasn’t at all like when Mom died, when the church was packed, standing room only. She had the advantage of dying young, young enough that the sheer tragedy of it compelled people, her people, to converge in their grief. I guess th...

40 likes 21 comments 21
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The Sum Total of a Legacy

Submitted to Contest #111

TW: Sexual ViolenceNo Divided by Yes“Don’t be rude, Kimmy. Give him a kiss.” Mum puts her hands on her hips and makes an angry-parent noise.Uncle Brian looms in the doorway, his bulky frame blocking the sunlight. His gut sags over his belt and wriggling chest hairs escape from under his shirt.“A kiss, Kimmy,” he says. “You heard your mother, don’t be rude.” He smells of sausages and shame.He puckers his lips. They’re thick and fat, like two pink slugs. Mum pushes on my back, her nails poking through my t-shirt.“Kimmy,” she hisses, and I...

31 likes 21 comments 21
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Eumonia's Monody

Shortlisted for Contest #111 ⭐️

There is another knock at the door downstairs, but I only play louder. I let the smooth, shrill notes of the violin fill the loft of my little flat as I run my bow across the strings. G, A, E, D, G sharp . . . Closing my eyes, the second movement of my work-in-progress comes together in a string of melodies— The door rattles again, and I squeak out an accidental B flat, derailing my rhythm. An irritated sigh passes my lips as I stand, glaring over the loft railing at the door. I know who it is, of course. I’d open the door, and my darling br...

24 likes 10 comments 10
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Miss May

Submitted to Contest #111

I jerked my right elbow to remove his hand from my left breast. “Nope. Not tonight,” I told him, pulling my book closer to my nose. A shield to prevent further attacks. Adam rolled over onto his back with a huff, then gave me that wounded puppy look that, much like an evening on red wine, makes me want to laugh, then cry. Five years married and he wasn’t showing any signs of slowing down. I suppose I should count myself lucky. But then he hadn’t had to go through what I went through today. Unless they had started a ‘bring your kid to w...

16 likes 7 comments 7
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The Search for Effective Family Communication

Submitted to Contest #111

My name is Jack and I can honestly say that my life with my wife Karen in our small town in Michigan has been quite ordinary, at least until recently. My day job is selling agricultural equipment. I am also a part-time, volunteer fireman in town. My fire fighter duties are probably relevant to the story that I am about to tell you but more on this as I continue. We are the parents of twin boys, Brad and Chad. Like many twins and from the very beginning, their twinness set them apart from other kids and led to a series of misunderstandings. H...

16 likes 8 comments 8
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Blue Legacy

Submitted to Contest #111

Sweat was starting to collect on my shirt collar. My hands had a slight tremor. My legs were restless, my breathing shallow. My first time and my nerves were having their way with me. I was in his neighborhood now, eyes unblinking, parked about 60 feet from the front door. I watched in silence as the garage door opened, sat motionless as he pulled his new Escalade, the one with the recent scratches above the left rear passenger windo...

16 likes 3 comments 3
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Following in Underground Footsteps

Submitted to Contest #111

Following in Underground Footsteps    by Elizabeth Fenley “Prodigal”           Both of my mothers know I am a criminal. An Enemy of The Capitol. If caught, I will be executed. One of my sisters knows, but the youngest has embraced The Capitol Doctrine. She and her husband raise their children to accept propaganda as the truth. “Athena” We agreed not to talk about it, my mothers and I. Too dangerous. I walk with one foot on each side of the divide between The Capitol a...

15 likes 2 comments 2
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Failing To Fall Further From The Tree

Submitted to Contest #111

(Content Warning: Violence, Domestic Violence, trauma)  “So, are you going to do it or not?” Michael asked me, quivering.  “Give me a day to think about it, please,” I replied. “One more day, but then I need an answer. Okay?” “Okay.” That extra day was nothing more than procrastination. I had to make my decision, whether I wanted it or not. Every time I thought about it, I thought about them too. How could they be gone and still stalking my thoughts every day? Now, I am sat here, still undecided. My day is gone. Mic...

14 likes 3 comments 3
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Little Half Breed Girl

Submitted to Contest #111

Sunrise over the mountains, I slept on top at Kicking Horse Pass. My first morning in the mountains where my people came to pray and find their way through life. A connection and test of skills to survive with a supermarket and convenience stores and take out. Grateful that I woke every morning before sunrise just as I did with my late grandpa when I was a little girl. I was his Sawed Off Half Breed, always lighter skinned and streaks of colour in my brown hair, a little girl with freckles. The only one with freckles in her family, is this w...

14 likes 1 comment 1
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Haunted

Submitted to Contest #111

As I slump into my seat, the cold plastic chair transforms into rich mahogany. The plastic utensils, without sharp edges – “to keep us safe” – melt into stainless-steel forks and knives. As I stare at my white paper cup, with my blue and white pills to keep it company, the cup slowly changes into a sparkling crystal glass, red wine swirling within.“Anna,” the man across from me says, voice slicing through the silence. I jolt to attention and my knee hits the table, spilling red wine over the rim. It snakes down the side of the glass, spreadi...

14 likes 0 comments 0
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CAREER OVER EMPATHY

Submitted to Contest #111

Title:      CAREER OVER EMPATHY ‘’I wouldn’t even lie; I was particularly disappointed with your dad. Chief Clifford was his best friend, yet he allowed his only son, only child die because of a mere medical report. He had all the power to save that young boy, yet he watched him die all because he was following a useless medical ethic’’ Rose pauses in her feelings, almost dropping a tear. She glanced at her daughter; Zendaya who was seemingly uninterested in her story. ‘’That young man was only a victim of ...

13 likes 0 comments 0
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The Strongest Memory

Submitted to Contest #111

The gladiolus blooms were the softest colours imaginable. Pinks and peaches. The brightness of the sunflowers provided a contrast that made Alma pause her breath and she stood a moment to admire the bouquet. Candice really had a knack for arranging. Alma only hoped she could match it.  As she started carefully moving the buckets of fresh cut flowers into the small cooler, Candice came in through the back door. "Oh wow, Joe has been here already?" She asked, bending down to sniff the sprays of lavender. "Mmmm. Best part of the day." "Yea...

13 likes 0 comments 0
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The Head of The Table

Submitted to Contest #111

Eddie's father was gone almost six months now. It was hard to believe it was that long since he died. It was hard to believe that the man who had so firmly guided the family had left them almost six months ago. And, it was hard to believe his mother had absorbed this latest blow. Eddie's father was once a giant, although certainly not in size -- he didn't top 5’5” but his authority was never questioned. His word was the law and his approval represented the pinnacle of success. He wasn't an easy man to please. Eddie had endured plenty of sp...

12 likes 0 comments 0
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Annie's Legacy

Submitted to Contest #111

The funeral home was crowded with people Annie has never met, let alone seen before. She wonders who all these people are and why they are here. She decides to stay close to Uncle Brett for protection and reassurance.   It smelled like death and the sweet smells of flowers. It makes her stomach nauseated. There are big flower arrangements on both sides of the coffins that her Mom and Dad were lying in. Some people were crying softly, and some were just carrying on in conversation as if nothing ever happened. Annie stands beside h...

12 likes 4 comments 4
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