Ode to the Redlip Blenny

Oh strange fish, whose
Phylogeography baffles me so.
How did you traverse the Atlantic?
I thought you were Brazilian –
O. trinitatis, I called you –
But when I tested your DNA, I
Learned that you came from the East!
Everyone was amazed when I told them;
Nobody had anticipated such a result!
Never again will I make the mistake of
Inferring conclusions before obtaining results and
Underestimating the surprises of academia.
Science truly is incredible!


I think an explanation is due here. Apparently, in the final weeks leading up to my Master’s thesis defense, the only thing that was on my mind anymore was the reef fish I had been studying for almost two years. Its common name is the redlip blenny, but I mostly referred to it by its genus name, Ophioblennius. Well, now that my project is done and my thesis has been defended, I thought it fitting to see my fish off with a poem! Enjoy, and thanks for reading!

Sweet Gold

(What If? Exercise: Read the description here.)

The young bear spotted the bee landing on a daisy.

Curious, he followed the striped insect to its hive.

It led him through meadows rich with wildflowers.

Finally, it vanished into a large tree.

The cub sniffed the hive cautiously.

He reached his paw inside.

Out came something sticky.

It tasted sweet.

Delicious gold.

Honey!


This piece is based on What If? Exercise 93: “Ten to One”. The exercise is to write a 55-word story in which the first sentence has ten words, the second has nine, etc., until the last sentence has only one word. The objective is to show that precision and thrift in writing can produce surprisingly powerful results. I hope you enjoy what I’ve written. Thanks for reading!

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River Stones

Water flows freely
Over the still riverbank
Stones gleam in the sun

Tiny ripples dance
All along the water’s edge
See the pebbles shine

Waves sway to and fro
Winding down the twisted stream
Smooth rocks tumble free


My responses to Ronovan WritesWeekly Haiku Challenge #112: River & Stone. This is my first time participating in this challenge, and it’s proven to be a lot of fun! I’d definitely like to participate again! Thanks for the prompt, Ronovan!

My Waiting Game

How long would I wait
To be with you?
I asked myself this question
Before I started playing
This waiting game,
Knowing it would all be a test
Of how much I love you.

How have I waited
So long for you?
It hasn’t been easy at all,
Being so far away,
Longing every day to be
By your side again,
But if I’ve learned anything,
It’s that our love will always
Overcome the pain of distance.

I see your sweet face,
Your kind eyes,
Your gentle smile,
And I feel content.
I listen to your voice,
To your music,
To your laughter,
And I feel at peace.
I talk to you,
Laugh with you,
Share my world with you,
And my heart fills with joy.

The adoration you show me
Brightens my darkest days.
The way you smile at me,
Listen to me,
Encourage me,
Say sweet words to me,
Makes me feel so loved.
Thinking about you,
Dreaming of you,
Caring for you,
Loving you,
Brings me happiness
Like I’ve never known before,
And knowing I’ll be
In your arms again soon
Makes it all worth the wait.

How long would I wait
To be with you?
I know now I can play
The game for years,
Waiting patiently every day
For the chance to be
With you again,
Because I know that
Someday soon,
The wait will be over,
And I’ll finally win.


Happy Birthday to my wonderful boyfriend! Thank you for waiting for me all these years. I promise we’ll be together again soon! I truly love you!

A Day in My Paws

(What If? Exercise: Read the description here.)

I see the way you’re staring, and I know you’re wondering what it’s like to be me, but it’s not so easy to sum up a day in my life, this wonderful life of luxury and tranquility, a life where I get to sleep through most of the day and no one bats an eye, where I wake up at the crack of dawn and sing my heart out for half an hour before I run outside to greet the day, where I spend the early morning chasing birds and butterflies and lizards around until I get tired and collapse on the sunlit porch for hours, where I’m constantly waited on by adoring subjects who will pet me and scratch behind my ears when I rub myself against their legs and who know to rub my belly exactly three times when I lie on my back because four is when I attack, where all I have to do is cry to make someone open the door for me and even wait the whole five minutes until I’m finally ready to come inside, where there’s never a shortage of giant oddly shaped scratching posts and high surfaces and objects to knock over, where I always get to curl up in a warm lap or a soft bed when it gets cold at night, and where I get all the food and comfort and unconditional love I could possibly want, a life so perfect that I could hardly sum it up in a day… except that I just did, and I can tell you it’s the best life in the world.


This story is based on What If? Exercise 90: “The Journey of the Long Sentence”. The exercise is to write a short short story that’s only one sentence long. The objective is to understand how we can shape our writing in a similar manner that our minds function, building a linear order for observations that often consist of many overlapping aspects. I hope you enjoy what I’ve written. Thanks for reading!

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