Joy Dare - January 8th and 9th

Jan. 8 - Dusky Light, Surprising Reflection, Lovely Shadow
I am grateful for the city lights reflecting on the cloud cover, making them look a dull orangish-red.
I am grateful for the realization that Logan's next birthday will be a special one.
I am grateful for the shadow made by the swirly, decorative trivet on our table.

Jan. 9 - A Gift Held, Passed By, Sat With
I am grateful for my Bible, that fills me up with holy soul food, leaving me satisfied and full of joy.
I am grateful for the frigid wind that passed by my face on my walk. It refreshes, invigorates, and calms me.
I am grateful for sitting with my family, while watching comedian Tim Hawkins and eating dinner.

Day 5

So, today's story is actually a little special. Why? Well, I had decided a while ago that I was not going to try to do any story with time travel in it, but that didn't happen. I thought it would be to complicated, but since this story is short, I didn't come across any weird plot holes or paradoxes, so here it is. My first, and maybe my last :), time traveling story.

                Alexis’ dress was so tight, she thought she might faint. At least she wasn’t having to wear a heavy wig this time. Well, she thought, as soon as I get Ryan, we can go to a time with comfortable clothes.

                She put her money pouch in her drawstring purse, along with her time travelling stone, called a rainbow-snarf stone. It was a rare and special stone that was actually made of many combined gems, precious stones, and other rare metals. Her boyfriend, Ryan, had been lucky to find it.

                Speaking about him, he had gotten lost in a small country around the late 1800s. Alexis and Ryan had to return something back to that time, but had accidentally trespassed on palace grounds. Only Alexis had had time to escape, so now here she was, about to rescue him…again. It had become a game to them, trying to see which one could rescue the other the most. Ryan used to be way ahead of Alexis, having more experience, but she had learned fast. Also, he was trying to be more brave and chivalrous, at least, Alexis thought, that was his excuse. She laughed to herself, but then put on a straight face, as she was now entering the throne room.

                After waiting in line for twenty minutes, it was her turn. Alexis took a deep breath, put on a sweet smile, and stepped forward. She proceeded to curtsy to the queen.

                “Hello dear one. Please state your name and your request,” the queen said kindly.

                “Thank you, my lady. My name is Agatha and I would like to request the ransom of my servant.”

                “Continue.”

                “A servant of mine, a young man, was caught on your property the other night. I believe he is being held as a prisoner, but I have ransom money, if you will accept. I can promise that it will never happen again.”

                “How much?”

                Alexis opened her purse, took out the pouch, and handed it to the queen. She peered inside, then nodded to a guard. He left and returned a few minutes later with a very tired and dirty looking Ryan.

                “Thank you, your majesty,” she curtsied again then stomped over to Ryan, grasped his ear, and dragged him out of the room. Once they were out of sight, she released him. Ryan rubbed his ear.

                “Ouch! I know we were acting but you didn’t have to pinch so hard.”

                Alexis giggled, “I’m sorry.”

 

                Two hours later, they were walking through a meadow, wearing their old clothes and with Ryan all cleaned up.

                “By the way,” Alexis smiled. “You owe me.”

                “What! Again?”

                “Yes sir” she said playfully. “That’s ten for me and only nine for you. You may have started out with more, but it looks like the pupil has surpassed the teacher,” Alexis said with a wink.

                “You know that’s just ‘cause I let you,” Ryan said with an air of fake superiority. “I’m trying to be-“

                “I know, I know,” she cut him off, “Manly and brave.”

                “Exactly!”

                They both laughed and then sighed. “Well, where are we off to next?” Alexis asked.

                “How about Disney World? I’ve wanted a hot dog after that prison gruel, plus we could have some fun,” Ryan suggested.

                “Sounds great,” she replied, then thinking a moment, added, “This will be our first normal date in awhile. Remember last time? We ended running from hostile Indians.”

                “Oh yeah, and the time before that, we got stuck in a rainforest,” he chuckled. Then looking serious, he turned to Alexis. “I’ve been thinking, and I had a question for you. Do you ever wish you had a normal life and boyfriend?”

                Alexis popped up on her toes, giving him a kiss on the cheek, “Never.” She smiled, and then pulled the rainbow-snarf out of her pocket. Ryan whispered, “Disney World, autumn, 2015,” and she threw it on the ground, making a portal.

                The two time-travelers ran hand in hand into the future.

Missed Joy Dare Days

Well, I also happened to miss some days for the Joy Dare so here are for January 6th and 7th:

Jan. 6 - One Thing in Your Bag, Your Fridge, and Your Heart
I am grateful for the pocket dictionary in my purse. It has been helpful and fun to have.
I am grateful for the yogurt that I had for breakfast. It is delicious mixed with stevia and strawberries.
I am grateful for the love of writing that God has instilled in my heart.

Jan.7 - 3 Graces From People You Love
I am grateful for the chocolate smoothie Mom made me for snack this morning. It was thick, like a milkshake, and really good.
I am grateful for Logan helping to answer a question I had about Star Wars.
I am grateful for William and I playing with my face to make funny faces and for it making him laugh.

Day 4

Whoops! I guess it's been a couple days since I have posted. Well, I started school on Monday and am still getting the hang of it. So...maybe not a pin everyday, but as much as possible :).
Here's today's prompt. I really liked this one so I might follow up with more of the story at a later date.

            Esther passed the abandoned library every day, to and from school. It looked foreboding, but she was curious about what it held inside. Did they take all the books or leave them? I wonder if it’s unlocked. If it is, I wonder if anyone will mind me taking a quick peek.

            She would stop and stare at it, and just as she would be about to try the door, she would imagine all the dangers that could be inside. And, boy! could she imagine. Having read enough to make fill her own library, she could think of infinite dangers that might lurk inside.

            So every day, she would shrug, push her glasses back up her nose, and keep walking. I’ll probably never get to go inside it. Well, as it turns out, she was wrong.

            Her entry into the mysterious library, strange enough, started with a mighty wind and rain storm. Nothing to disastrous, but it did make quite a mess of her town. On her routine walk to school the next morning, Esther noticed something odd. Among the usual debris, were torn, dirty book pages.  As she examined one, the thought struck her. Oh my! These must have come from the library. It has been decaying. She quickened her pace and soon arrived at her destination. She gasped.

            Many of the windows were broken, loose pages caught in their jagged edges. Tiles had come off, leving holes in the roof where the wood had rotted. But most surprising was that the door was open. Esther, with her mouth gaping, approached the door and then slowly walked in. It looked as though all the books had purposely jumped off their shelves. She picked one of them up and tried to wipe it off with her sleeve. It was damp and the dirt stuck. She lifted her head and gazed around the room and then sank to her knees. She was shocked that all these books were still here, and now they were quite damaged.

            A tone from her phone jolted her out of her daze. Her friend had texted her, asking why she hadn’t arrived yet. Esther put her phone back in her pocket and tried to run the rest of the way to school. She barely made it, but she had a hard time concentrating. All she could think about was that library.

Joy Dare- Something You're Reading, Making, Seeing

I am grateful for the book The Valley of Vision. It has eloquent prayers for me to echo when I have none of my own.
I am grateful for my cross-stitch project and the patience it is teaching me.
I am grateful for the silhouette of the barren trees against the gold and fruity colored sunset.
(If you can't tell, I'm absolutely obsessed with sunsets! They're just so gorgeous!)

Joy Dare- A Gift Old, New, and Blue

For old: I am grateful for the Gospel which helps me to love, because I am reminded of Christ's love.
For new: I am grateful for the unique, beautiful, stunning sunset I saw this evening.
For blue: I am grateful for my Captain America t-shirt which is super-duper comfy.

Day 3

This is today's story starter:

 

 

The tall, greasy-looking man had backed the small girl against a wall. “I’ve got you now, you nasty thief,” he sneered. “Now give me back what you took, and I won’t hurt you.” He stared at her pale, grimy face, waiting. “C’mon now.”

She slowly pulled out her hand from behind her back, but what she was holding surprised the man. Instead of his stolen goods, he was looking straight into the barrel of a gun.

“You are going to let me leave, with my food, and not follow me,” she commanded.

“B-but” the man said in shock.

“And be quiet!” she shouted. “Now get movin’ if you wanna live.”

The man scowled at her, but lifted his hands and backed away.

After she was sure that he was gone, the nine-year-old thief went on her way.

 

Candy slunk back to her home, which right was an abandoned store, staying in the shadows as much as possible. There was no telling what she might encounter on the streets, and though she had confidence in her gun, she didn’t want to take her chances. In this time of kill of be killed, Candy had learned very quickly how to use her weapon, and never went anywhere without it.