Madison Sanders Writes

Today's writing prompt is to write about work. Work meant something very different to the older generation. To them, work meant getting up early and working a job that usually required hard physical labor. They worked on the farm taking care of animals before the sun came up each morning. They tilled the garden months in advance to prepare the soil for the seeds.  The women worked, too. They took care of the home and the children, which was a full-time job that demanded their attention at all times. Women also picked the vegetables in the garden and prepared them for canning. That is hard work!  When I was a little girl, I'd help my Granny silk corn from the garden. That meant I would have to take a brush and go over and over the corn until all the fine "hair" was gone. The "hair" was thin yellow strands that you definitely didn't want to eat. Then, Granny would cut all the kernels off the ear of corn. We'd do that over and over until every e

Today's prompt is to write about disappointment. I've been disappointed about things and people many times in my life, but I'm going to share a story that marked me. I was in middle school. It was the time when everyone was invited for sleepovers. I invited one of my friends over and I was SO excited! My mom bought me a new comforter that day. It was light blue with little white daisies. I made sure my room was clean. I wanted everything to be perfect for my friend! After awhile I started asking my mom, "I wonder when Lily(name is changed) will be here? I can't wait for Lily to get here! We're going to have so much fun!" I waited and waited. I never got a phone call. "Maybe Lily's mom is just running late." I couldn't think of another reason why she wasn't here yet. The darkness outside my window let me know it would soon be nighttime. Still no Lily. I crawled into my bed and tucked my clean sheets around me. "I bet

Today's prompt is to cut the fluff. There isn't a specific topic to write about. The only rule is to not use that or very and try not to use adverbs. Ponderings of the Heart If wisdom is better than silver or gold, how much do I have? Are my actions that of a wise person or a fool? Do I keep silent or do I fall into the trap set before me? Am I walking the narrow path, the one less traveled? Have I gotten lazy? Have I strayed from the course I know is right? I say I am generous, but am I withholding things I can give? Do my words fall on deaf ears, yet I still talk and talk, never really helping the person?  I read a passage that says, "He who offends loves strife." Who have I offended today? Even if I didn't realize it, do I love stirring up trouble? I must be thoughtful in the words I choose. It is more important than ever to walk humbly before the Lord.  Do I thirst for knowledge and understanding as much as I do material things?  I can't

Today’s prompt is to write the end of my novel. I am free from the wheelchair and walker. I am walking everywhere, better than ever before. My steps are steady. It’s not a struggle. I am independent, able to take care of myself. Pain is a distant memory. My days are filled with exciting adventures and fulfilling projects. I used to wonder what it would be like to stand tall again. Now I am doing it. Unashamed and unfraid. My latter truly is greater than my past. Nothing holds me back. The sky is the limit to what I can accomplish. I can say without a doubt that my pain didn’t stop me. It propelled me forward. It launched me into what I am doing today. I spend my days sharing my story with people from all over the world. My struggles, my fears…all of it. I share it not from a place of pity, but a place of victory. I share from a place of victory now. I have climbed the mountain of sickness and overcome it. I have climbed the mountain of physical pain and ove

Fear. I thought I had faced this unwelcome enemy many times before, but on August 3, 2017, I was dealt a blow that knocked the breath out of me. That was the day my mom was diagnosed with stage one breast cancer. This was a fear I had never known before. It didn’t make sense. The diagnosis came out of nowhere, like a predator lying in wait to strike its prey at the moment it is least expected. Cancer is an enemy you can’t see. One minute my mom was healthy, able to do her job and whatever else she wanted to do.  The next minute she was a cancer patient. Her calendar quickly filled up with doctor’s appointments. I didn’t know what to make of this. I was usually the one who needed to see a doctor. Mama was NEVER sick! The most serious thing she’d ever had since I was alive was kidney stones. Well-meaning people started talking about her dying the very same day she was diagnosed. I wasn’t even thinking about that.   I was still dealing with the fact that she was sick, n

I wrote this yesterday, but my Internet was out until just now.  Today’s prompt is about sharing a confession. Boy, do I have a story for you! It was a sunny day and our science class was going outside to do an experiment. We needed to find leaves around the playground. I think the lesson was something about how reflection works. Ms. Merritt handed each of us a magnifying glass. “Class, if you hold the mangnifying glass over the leaf, with the sun directly piercing through the middle of the glass, it will burn a hole in the leaf.” We were so excited to do this! I crouched down on the pavement, careful to follow Ms. Merritt’s instructions. Soon, I saw smoke coming from the leaf. It was no longer a vibrant green leaf. Now, it had a hole in the center with black char around it. I did it! Ms. Merritt let us take the magnifying glasses home. When Granny picked Eli and I up from school, my mind was still on the science experiment. Just before I got out of the old C

Today's prompt says to write about about an important cause. A cause that's important to me is unity. We aren't unified, and this is the time it is most needed. Martin Luther King said, ".... I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character..." I have a dream that one day we will be unified. Not fighting to prove who is better, stronger, or smarter, but seeing that we are stronger together. I have a dream that one day we will see the bigger picture. The one that shows that everyone has value. We have so many schisms, so many divisions. We have broken each other down, but we need to build each other up. I have a dream that humanity will be whole. To do that we must put aside our differences. We must stop fighting amongst ourselves and with ourselves. Our true enemy is not a person. It is the whole system of the way the world operates. Thin

Today's prompt requires me to borrow the voice of one of my favorite authors, which would be Denise Hildreth. She crept down the hallway, careful not to wake the kids. As she cracked the door, her heart swelled with pride. "I played a part in creating these awesome little humans," she said, smiling. The day started out like any other day. Working in the rose garden as the sun bathed the surroundings in a glorious light. Jeanne was thankful for these quiet moments before the whole world woke up.  It's when she liked to talk to God the most. "God? Can you hear me? I know it's been awhile since we've talked. I need your help. I don't know if I can be a mayor's wife. Many days I don't even feel like I am a good wife period. If this is really what you want Paul to do - what you want our family to do - please give me a sense of peace. Let me know this is really the right thing." Jeanne finished pruning her roses and clip