Short
and Sweet #2
by Annette Dammer
Ahhhh! Thanksgiving was
stuffed with people and wild emotions! Or the emotions of wild people! Or maybe
not!
But somewhere along our lifeline, we all have an Uncle Charlie, or a date, or a
crazy dog that really impressed us. Not with their holiday attire, but because
they were wildly original!
Snowball was such a dog. If I threw his snotty, old tennis ball 5,000 times,
he'd chase it every time - curly, tangled hair flying. I could never throw the ball
too far - he never lost it. Snowball always came back with the gummy thing and
popped it back to me. He then stationed himself at my feet - panting loudly until
I threw his ball again. Floppy, funny, and fast, he was a joyous crossbreed
between a Muppet and a dirty dust mop. And he never gave up until I did...
It's been decades since I had Thanksgiving dinner at Snowball's house - but I
think about him every year. Never met another dog like him.
To this day I can hear his toenails scramble around the tight corners and the
smack of his fluffy body hitting plaster just to make a perfect catch. A
And, 20 years later, he still seems very much alive to me. I am sure he's still
playing ball - just behind the Pearly Gates.
Pick a Snowball, or an Uncle Hal, or a kooky date – or someone you observed last
week... How did they speak - or bark? Smell? Cut their turkey? How old, tall,
thin, hairy, whatever were they? Did they eat only sweets? Did they sneak something
before dinner - or pick at the half-carved turkey? Did they have a bit of
strawberry pie on their tie? Were their manners uncomfortable - too smooth or
too stilted - or absent!?
Take a page in your journal and make this character come alive. It's a great
exercise to do while waiting for a friend at the mall or a McDonald's! You can
even make up some details to add to the character - so they go where you want
to lead them!
Then file them for a rainy writing day - they could be a part of your favorite
short story - written by you!
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--Ready, Set, GO! due out Spring, 2003 by Baker Books