If You Were Here...#10
Post Card #10
Greetings! Hope the weather is fine where you are! Over here, it’s like this:
When my son was ten years old, we were living in a temporary rental home that my husband and I hated (the 2008-10 housing crisis was a stressful time). But one positive about that neighborhood was that it was very family-friendly, with walking paths, parks, and playgrounds – the perfect area to safely teach our son how to ride his bike and finally ditch the training wheels.
The first day he really got his wheels moving, though, was a horrible day for me.
After years of avoiding this memory, I tackled it in the form of a “flash” creative non-fiction piece. Writing this was a challenge, both creatively (compressing the story into a brisk, evocative 1,000-words-or-less format) and emotionally – it was not easy to relive that spring morning when I thought I’d lost my son.
I submitted my essay to several publications, and after three rejections (which allowed me to revise/improve it), I’m proud to say that BarBar Literary Magazine agreed to publish it today! Please read it and leave a comment or drop me an email – I’d love to hear what you think.
At first, I smiled as my kid got his feet moving in a steadier rhythm, his bike no longer wobbling, and I had to jog to keep pace. As he pulled away from me, my blush of pride rose to a flush of panic. He zoomed up the sidewalk as it curved left and, despite my pleas to wait for Mommy, he left me behind.
That’s the view from here - more soon!
This is brilliant…..the writing! Your words are palpable, could feel every nuanced emotion…..guttural fear, doomsday scenarios playing out in your mind, relief, guilt…..all of it. Loved it! Loved your last one too, I meant to sit down and gather my thoughts and write you a note and as you now very well know, I didn’t. I will though, soon, but until then I want you know this is all kinds of brilliantly articulated. The last one too.