Monday, October 17, 2011

Spiderweb

I wrote this for my mom's spiderweb spiral challenge.  Enjoy!  


Leanna was playing outside when she saw a black widow dangling from a thread.  She called her mom immediately.  Her mom came out and killed the spider.

And that got Leanna thinking.  Thinking about all the spiders who had been killed.  About all the webs destroyed by kids.  Why nobody cared about spiders.  And how she could help spiders.

Then she fell fast asleep with her dreams of spiders.

The next day she had trouble concentrating.  She failed a math test.  As a reward, she had to pull a card.  She was SO unfocused, she didn't hear the lunch bell.

When recess started, she ran for the door, and slammed it behind her.  And all she wanted to do was sit on a bench.  The bench had armrests with spirals.  The right hand side had a spiral with a web coming off it.  There was a male black widow on the silky clear web.  When Leanna saw it, she began to weep.

She decided to help it not be killed.  She took off her glittery pink jacket and put it over the web and the spider.  Then she went back to class.

After school, she went to the same bench she had been at during recess.  She lifted the jacket she placed on the web, and sure enough, it was still there.  She talked to the spider, asked it questions like, "Do you like being all alone?  Is it pleasant up there?"  But, of course the spider didn't reply.

She told herself it was time to go home.  She covered the web back up and peddled home.

That night when she went to sleep, she dreamed of the spider.  She always did talk to the spider.  Every day, to be precise.  And she loved the spider like a brother.

The End.

A Bottle Tree

I wrote this for my mom's bottle tree challenge on her blog.  Enjoy!  




Clair and her friends Jake and Darlin were walking to school when they passed an old house with a tree with bottles on it.  The kids were admiring it when, to their surprise, an old woman appeared on the sidewalk next to them.

"Hello," she said to the children.  "It sure is pretty, isn't it?"  she asked.



"Yes," Replied Clair.

"What do you think is in those bottles?" asked Darlin.

"I could tell you," said the woman.  "In the bottles, there are spirits.  Can you guess which kind?"

"Bad," Answered Jake proudly.

"Yes, how did you know?"  Asked the woman.



"My mom told me."


"The bottles were put up to keep bad spirits away," said the woman.

"So far it's worked," said Darlin.

"Yes."

"Well, I've got to go.  Goodbye, kids!"

"We best get moving too," said Clair.

"Goodbye!"  the kids all said together.

Wednesday, March 30, 2011

The Secret

This is an unfinished short story Anna is working on right now.  She asked me to post what she has done so far, so here you go!  :)  I'm putting what she forgot to write out in parentheses, but the rest is what she wrote, word for word, with slight spelling and grammar corrections from me.  She wanted me to be her editor.  ;)

Anna's notes on the story:
"Warning, I am a beginner."
"This story is about a little girl named Karinah.  She finds a door in the basement behind a dresser.  She finds a skeleton.  Who is he/she?  What is he/she doing in there?  Read and find out!"


In a house not too far from yours, there is a little girl.  She just moved in.  She had come from a little town in New Jersey.

When she went to her room, there was a dresser in it.  It was the room she had been told she could have.  She unpacked her five boxes and put them away when her mom had called her down for dinner.

"Karinah, come down for dinner!"

"Okay mom, coming!"

"Hey there squirt!"  Said her brother Andrew.

"Don't call me that!"  She said.

"I can do whatever I want!"  He said.

"Mom!  Andrew called me a squirt!"

"Andrew, knock it off!"

"Okay."  And they went down for dinner, glaring at each other angrily.

"Where are your manners?"  Their mother said.  "Quit glaring at each other and eat your dinner!"  She ordered.

Just then, the loud doorbell rang.  "I'll get it!" said Karinah excitedly.  A boy was at the door.  "Hello!"  said Karinah, excited and confused.

"Hi, I'm Andy."

"Hi, I am Karinah."

"I need to warn you."

"Why?"

"A bad man used to live here in your house."

"No!"  She said.

"Yes!  When he moved, I snuck into your house.  You should look behind every piece of furniture to be sure."

"Okay, bye!"  (Karinah returns to the table but is too excited to eat)  "Mom, can I be excused?"

"Yes."

Karinah went to her room and moved the dresser, and there was a crawl space (behind it).  She opened it, but it was dark.  She turned on a light and there was a skeleton!

Her parents had just left for a party (after dinner), so her brother was in charge.  She told him what she found, paid him $10 not to tell (their parents), and (her brother) called the police.

The Sheriff told her the skeleton's name was Josh Carpool.  He also told her that he was a bank owner (he was wearing a suit with a name tag from the bank).  She could picture him working in the bank, a tall 35 year old with black hair, standing in front of the bank.  He was pulling a few plugs on an ATM.  She wanted to solve the mystery herself.