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ESCAPE

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SATURDAY 3rd APRIL 2021

This is a response to a Flash Fiction prompt from ‘The Daily Post on WordPress’  

Prompt ~ ESCAPE

Describe your ultimate escape plan (and tell us what you’re escaping from.)

ESCAPE

by John Yeo

Life in lockdown has become a pleasant routine

Wear a mask, respect distance, stay safe at home.

Escape to the beaches of Australia is a distant dream.

~

Another update with frightening statistics between 

Dreaming of a future far beyond the present unknown 

Life in lockdown has become a pleasant routine.

~

Memories of past travels fill our days as we scheme

To visit distant shores flying above the ocean foam

Escape to the beaches of Thailand is a far distant dream.

~

Hope springs eternal with a successful jab of vaccine 

Fake news and rumour cloud the post-Covid syndrome

Life in lockdown has become a pleasant routine.

~

Sunshine, sandy beaches, rest, relaxation intervene 

We enjoy the present but look forward again to roam

A visit to the family in Australia is a distant dream.

~

The future begins to look clearer on the crystal screen 

Covid statistics show a pandemic in monochrome 

Escape to the beaches of Australia is a distant dream.

Life in lockdown has become a familiar routine.

~

 © Written by John Yeo ~ All rights reserved.

Unsurprisingly this was always going to be an incredibly easy prompt to respond to, as everyone is currently embroiled in a worldwide pandemic. It is impossible to plan an escape from an ongoing, ever-changing situation. However the poem certainly answers the prompt.

PRIZED POSSESSION

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FRIDAY 5th APRIL 2021

This is a response to a Flash Fiction prompt from ‘The Daily Post on WordPress’  

Prompt ~ PRIZED POSSESSION

Describe an item you were incredibly attached to as a child. What became of it? 

 

PRIZED POSSESSION

by John Yeo

  High adventure, romance, and crime.

~

A uniform array of seats and students,

A desk, an inkwell and a blotter,

A dipping pen with a removable nib,

Blotting paper to soak up the blobs

Inky fingers from leaks and smudges

Nib scratching on an exercise book,

Nibs that got crossed from wearing them in

Tailored to the way you held the pen.

~

Train drivers, firemen and cowboys.

~

Then a competition for all the class,

The prize to win was a modern pen

Blue in colour with a silver nib

With a container made of rubber within

That was filled by a lever with blue black ink.

Write a story, an essay or a poem

Using inspiration and imagination.

I won that pen through determination.

~

Nature, gardens and current affairs.

~

I respected that pen for years to come

My writing improved and my comprehension

A prize with hidden value beyond measure

That allowed me to convey my inner thoughts. 

To all around it was just a cheap pen,

To me it represented a treasure fairly won

A gateway to expressing thought on paper

Writing many stories, essays and poems.

~

Experiences of life, love and growing up.

  ~

© Written by John Yeo ~ All rights reserved.

This prompt was quite easy for me to answer, as I had already answered something like it in a poetry group Margaret and I were both members of seven years ago. I wrote this poem which is based on an actual event that happened during my school days. The fountain pen I won did give me a lot of service over the years. Sadly, I can’t remember exactly what happened to the pen but the main section of this writing prompt is answered within this poem. I think I probably outgrew or lost this wonderful prize that was responsible for inspiring and enabling me to put my thoughts on paper over many years since.

The Germination of Significance from an Insignificant Seed

THE SOCIAL NETWORK 

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THURSDAY 1st APRIL 2021

I’ve decided to switch my attention to another prompt provider, perhaps with more challenging prompts. So far I have completed three months of my New Years resolution to complete a writing prompt every day. A wonderful exercise during lockdown.

This is a response to a Flash Fiction prompt from ‘The Daily Post on WordPress’  

Prompt ~ THE SOCIAL NETWORK . Do you feel like you “get” social media, or do you just use it because that’s where all your friends and family are?

THE SOCIAL NETWORK 

by John Yeo

  The problem with responding to this prompt is the wide-ranging area of the question. I am sure everyone who experiences both the benefits and the negative aspects of social media would have a different view.

  My first introduction to this; at the time, a hazy, mysterious world, was through one of our daughters who was working on an Open University degree and suggested we join Facebook. I think we both have a lot to thank her for, as from that day, we have both embraced the online social media circle in many ways.

 To go back to the first part of the question, I would have to say I certainly do ‘get’ the benefits of social media and also I ‘get’ the prospect of the hidden dangers.

  The main positive factor has always been instant communication with the family wherever in the world they have settled. The sharing of photographs and comments both enables one to literally watch their children growing up in real time.

  A huge benefit to me has been the making of many interesting international friends who have helped me enormously with my writing. 

  Social media has a lot of hidden dangers only counteracted by whatever one reveals to the world of online respondents.

SOCIAL MEDIA

by John Yeo

The question is, ‘Do you ‘get’ Social Media at all?’

It’s the word, ‘get’ that triggers some mild anxiety,

At first the presentation is designed to enthral.

~

The feeling of a timeline on your very own wall,

Communicating with your friends and family,

The question is, ‘Do you ‘get’ Social Media at all?’

~

Friends suddenly appear to test your ultimate recall

Stretching the limits of your personal privacy,

At first the presentation is designed to enthral.

~

Mention a product, start a search, begin to trawl,

Soon your wall contains adverts in a great variety

The question is, ‘Do you ‘get’ Social Media at all?’

~

Your close friends and family reveal their almost all

Reminders appear of many an upcoming birthday,

At first the presentation is designed to enthral.

~

The twists and turns of opinion can often apall

Despite a feeling of fellowship and friendly society,

At first the presentation is designed to enthral,

The question is, ‘Do you ‘get’ Social Media at all?’

~

© Written by John Yeo ~ All rights reserved.