11 Comments
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Desma Sheerer's avatar

I love the last line. Beautiful.

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Ross Conner's avatar

Super compelling! Very “Area X,” which is my highest compliment.

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FranB's avatar

I loved this Emma. Beautifully written.

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K.M. Bennett's avatar

So wonderful. I can't tell if it is happy or sad. Maybe both. 🐰

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Shawn Brooks's avatar

Nice! Great blend of forest whimsy and darkness.

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Shiver&Quill's avatar

An excellent read, really enjoyed this

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Anthony Lee Phillips's avatar

I love this story so much. Your descriptions are so visceral, and I love the softness of the twist...

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Emma 🦇's avatar

Thanks Anthony, I'm glad you enjoyed it.

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K.Lynn Grey's avatar

Love this :)

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Carol Preece's avatar

Absolutely beautiful (and some might say, disturbing at the same time). This is a bit maudlin, but my wish, once I am cremated, is to be scattered in the depths of a woodland, to be claimed by the earth. The illustration perfectly encapsulates the story and I will definitely be reading this again. I am not so affected by the 'noise' of the world in the sense of voices, traffic etc, (I am retired, after many years working in education) but I do find the 'noise' from the news about the world we live in (via the TV, radio and internet) makes me sad, angry and very rarely joyful. I have to retreat into silence and reading, which is how I came across your writing. Thank you for evoking in me, all sorts of thoughts and feelings that I was not expecting.

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Emma 🦇's avatar

Hello Carol, thank you so much for such a heartfelt message. Knowing you enjoyed the story and that it had such an emotional response from you is so wonderful and is really all I wanted from sharing some of my work online. Just having one reader connect in such a way with something I’ve written is so lovely. ☺️

I also completely understand and I don’t think it’s maudlin, I can see the appeal of going back to the earth once we depart.

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