Well, Friday Fictioneers is rapidly becoming a habit. There are such wonderful writers out there who take part in this challenge. It’s an honor to be able to work with them on the same material each week, and it’s a privilege to see how wide and far-reaching the creativity can be when so many talented people look at the same photograph and set their imaginations free.
Rochelle Wiseoff-Fields is the hostess of this challenge, and if you’d like to join in the fun, you can find out all about it at her site: http://rochellewisofffields.wordpress.com/2013/01/23/25-january-2013/
Now on to the challenge for this week: The photo is the work of Renee Homan Heath and is copyrighted to her. You will find my story below the photo.
A PLACE THAT KNEW HIM
This weathered boardwalk felt familiar to him. So familiar that his feet tread the boards firmly and deliberately, as if they knew exactly where he was going and what he’d find at the end.
Yes … he definitely felt he was headed for a place he knew – a place that knew him.
He stopped beneath the palm, scanning the white beach, enjoying the way the turquoise waves teasingly caressed it. Yes … familiar ….
Just a dozen more steps now … and he would remember. He knew it. All the memories he’d been futilely chasing since the accident would coalesce at this shoreline.
He would remember!
~ ~ ~
The Happy Wordcrafter 
Great minds think alike! When I saw the picture, I immediately thought of returning memories, too. It’s probably because the beach brings brack memories from my own childhood. Loved your story! 🙂
Thank you so much. My family has great memories of vacations to the ocean as well.
Well told, I think that the memories of touch smell and taste will bring back the rest.
Thank you.
Perfect, just the right kind of place to evoke memories.
Nicely done.
Thank you. And thanks for taking the time to read it and comment.
Interesting. I really enjoyed this. Hope he remembers what he needs to 🙂
Thank you. I’m so glad you found it enjoyable. I enjoyed writing it.
I hope the scene finally jars his memory and they come flooding back to him.
Thanks. And thanks for taking the time to read it.
i like a good mystery. well done. i hope he/she remembers.
Thanks, Rich. Maybe someday I’ll expand on this and find out if he’s successful.
Nice a great introduction for more. Will he remember and what kind of accident did he have? I mean the questions go on and you piqued my interest.
Thank you for those very encouraging words.
I wasn’t sure if it was Alzheimer’s or amnesia. At least the latter holds hope of being overcome!
janet
I was hoping the reference to the accident would make that more clear. If I expand on this later, I’ll be sure I work on that. Thanks for taking the time to read it and comment.
I was probably just reading too quickly. 🙂
Dear Sandra,
I felt like this was an intriguing intro into something more. Well done.
shalom,
Rochelle
Thank you, Rochelle. I was just thinking that, since I have one novel that is set almost exclusively in a coastal area, this little vignette could offer a way to slide into a sequel. Hadn’t thought in those terms when I wrote it, but a couple people have suggested it should lead to something more, so maybe I’ll look into it.
Hi Sandra,
Nice the way you tied up his thoughts in a meaningful way at the end. Ron
Thank you — and thanks for taking the time to read it and comment.
very nice piece of writing here. I can feel his resolve.
Thank you, and thanks for taking the time to read it.
ps: I love the banner on your blog. Is that your own artwork?
Thank you, and, no, it is not my own work. I wish it were. I’m trying to learn to paint with watercolors and acrylics. Hopefully someday. This work is part of a collection I acquired, royalty free, for use on the internet and some print projects. It was considerably larger and a completely different color combination. I used a photo program to get it to the colors I wanted and, of course, re-sized it to fit the blog. I like it. Of course, I tend to get bored, so I change the look of the site about every couple of weeks.
I could sense his relief and hope. Feet that knew where they were going… I liked that. Glad you came back.
I liked your title a lot. A Place that Knew Him. It’s like the place has held his memories for him, and is about to give them back.
Thank you. That’s exactly what it meant to me. I was hoping the reader would get the same thing from it. I appreciate the encouragement.
This is very suspenseful and full of emotion! love it.
Thank you so much for that encouragement.
I couldn’t think of a better place to encounter to know me. My only fear would be that the place that knows me would ask me for the money back I owe it!
It’s an interesting concept, though, isn’t it? It just grabbed my imagination, and I couldn’t let it go.
In search of lost memories and nicely written, a pleasure to read.
Splojo.
Thank you very much. And thanks for taking the time to read it.
I love the idea of the place knowing him and feeling more familiar with it because of that. I hope the ocean will help to heal him.
It is always nice to go somewhere you are known. Good to read your stuff.