(c) all rights reserved · dverse · poetry · prosery

dVerse — prosery — Starbaby

msjadeli

r/painting - WIP of "Flower Baby of Space" Acrylic. I tend to have sporadic urges(like 6-8hrs) to paint and the process always looks messy.

We look at him through the wrong end of the long telescope of Time.
– from Hummingbird, by D.H. Lawrence

Gerald was born at the seventh hour of the seventh day of the seventh month in the year of the dragon. Unlike his six siblings with blue eyes, Gerald’s glittered like emeralds. He never cried yet hummed strange melodies. Instead of saying, “ma-ma” and “da-da” he spoke sentences with words none could understand. He didn’t sit, crawl, or walk, but sometimes they swore his small body floated above the dirt floor of their cottage.

Gerald’s mother took him to Old Mina who lived near the lake. Her abode smelled of sage, rosehips, chamomile, and cooking cabbage. Brass bells tinkled as she bid them enter. Mina searched Gerald’s body for signs, threw the bones, and stared deep into his knowing eyes.

She said, “We look at him through the wrong end of the long telescope of Time. He was sent from a distant star.”

[144 words]

Image:  “Flower Baby of Space,” by InfiniteCatPower

Kim, writing from North Norfolk, is today’s host of dVerse. Kim says:
Write a very short piece of prose [using the above complete line from a poem] that tells a story, with a beginning, a middle and an end, in any genre of your choice. As it’s flash fiction, we have a limit of 144 words; an additional challenge is to hit 144 exactly.

Published by msjadeli

mother, gardener, retired government worker, observer, reader, learner, bicyclist, woman who runs with the wolves, lover of music!

45 thoughts on “dVerse — prosery — Starbaby”

  4. I too was expecting him to be possessed, but I gasped lightly at the ending. That is magical and beautiful, Lisa! The word-flow is vivid and lovely; and I was immediately immersed from the first sentence, which gives a great foreshadowing to “777” and that the child is from the stars. Amazing! ❤

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  15. I love the way you describe Gerald in the first paragraph, Lisa, and I can see why some of your readers expected him to be possessed. I thought he might be a changeling, a fairy child at first, but I love the idea of him being a child sent from a distant star – Bowie-esque. The quotation sits beautifully. I also love the description of Old Mina’s home – the smells are so evocative – and the tinkling of brass bells. Now I want to visit her too!

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  16. kaykuala
    The sequence of development as depicted is very much like the natural process of development through life. A classic way of presentation, Jade! And they are as adorable as a gem acquired as they are expected. Beautifully rendered Ma’am!

    Hank

    Liked by 1 person

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  19. Oh this is excellent! A tale for the ages. Your description of Old Mina’s house/hut/abode adds credence to the tale. This is truly a wonderful tale and take on the prompt! Enjoyed it so much!

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  20. Oh Lisa this was killer. I love the fantasy of this. Very mysterious, with much more mystery ahead as the child grows. You should turn this into a series and keep us abreast of his progress Through his life. Anyhow I love this!

    Liked by 1 person

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