Spreading Love Through Writing Featuring Bonnie Ann Lieberman
You Love Me|EVENING AUTUMN EARTH TONES|"NEARING THE END OF THEIR TIME TOGETHER"|FOOLED BY THE PURITY OF SNOW?|THE DREADED PANIC ATTACK
Editorial by Gabriella
Writing can bring joy and amazing creativity into our lives. I enjoy writing fiction, non-fiction, poetry, short stories, children's stories, and scientific stories. I love reading stories from amazing writers from all over the world. Today, I would like to highlight the amazing work of a beautiful soul, a poet, author, and writer, Bonnie Ann Lieberman. I am very grateful for Bonnie and that she decided to be a writer in Dancing Elephants Press Publications on both Substack and Medium. I love Bonnie’s ability to transport the reader into another world. Her thoughtful words come from the heart. She shares honestly and tells us the way things are from her lens looking at the world. I hope you will enjoy this collection of writing from Bonnie as much as I did when I was reading them.
A recently published children's book by Bonnie and me is available in Lulu Bookstore
YOU LOVE ME
You love me, not
by Bonnie Ann Lieberman
As the clocks spring, the transition from daylight to night sky becomes more pronounced. Wishing upon the first star happens earlier than a week before, adding a touch of magic yet melancholia to the evening. The encroaching darkness has its way of leading us astray, and any lingering sadness within us may last for months.
The lush greenery of wooded paths changes into a breathtaking display of autumnal hues, with the cooler temperatures coaxing out a palette of reds, yellows, oranges, and blues reminiscent of fairy tale illustrations. Frosty touches of ice cause leaves to wither and fall, painting the landscape in faded browns. Soon, the boughs stand bare, save for the weight of heavy white snowflakes that blanket the roads in treacherous ice as temperatures drop below freezing.
Skating in local rinks offers fleeting joy as we cling to the rails to steady ourselves. Sipping hot cocoa provides a slight comfort for those yearning for warmer weather, the vibrant blooms of hyacinths, and the return of dark green grass teeming with chlorophyll. The intense sun gradually melts the snow, drying city sidewalks and creating the perfect conditions for roller skating and leisurely sipping lemonade.
EVENING AUTUMN EARTH TONES
fall back
by Bonnie Ann Lieberman
As the clocks spring, the transition from daylight to night sky becomes more pronounced. Wishing upon the first star happens earlier than a week before, adding a touch of magic yet melancholia to the evening. The encroaching darkness has its way of leading us astray, and any lingering sadness within us may last for months.
The lush greenery of wooded paths changes into a breathtaking display of autumnal hues, with the cooler temperatures coaxing out a palette of reds, yellows, oranges, and blues reminiscent of fairy tale illustrations. Frosty touches of ice cause leaves to wither and fall, painting the landscape in faded browns. Soon, the boughs stand bare, save for the weight of heavy white snowflakes that blanket the roads in treacherous ice as temperatures drop below freezing.
Skating in local rinks offers fleeting joy as we cling to the rails to steady ourselves. Sipping hot cocoa provides a slight comfort for those yearning for warmer weather, the vibrant blooms of hyacinths, and the return of dark green grass teeming with chlorophyll. The intense sun gradually melts the snow, drying city sidewalks and creating the perfect conditions for roller skating and leisurely sipping lemonade.
When we turn the clocks back an hour, the extended daylight brings joy and merriment, while spring warms our hearts with thoughts of romance.
"NEARING THE END OF THEIR TIME TOGETHER"
by Bonnie Ann Lieberman
It's too late to start afresh
She: I will no longer be your woman of the week. I've matured over the last seven months.
He: But your indecisiveness warrants that title. Today, I'm the only one for you. Tomorrow, you'll tell me to leave." Dismissed!" You'll find something that annoys you about me, like forgetting to take my shoes off when I enter your home or turning the heat too high. That is not my criteria of romantic love.
She: Dating men without your pillars of character, muscular face, ironic sense of humor, and admirable work ethic left me wanting only you. After a long work day, I sought only your comforting conversation, affectionate ways, and unmatchable charm, but my problematic flippancy and uncertainty about wanting to settle down chased you away. I live with regrets.
He: My soul is tossed by a turbulent storm, and I struggle to find calm. After endlessly deciphering your enigmatic musings, my tears have blurred the ink on the parchment where you penned an "I'm emotionally unavailable" message. Now, you beg for my presence and want me to leave the farm where I grew up and spend my leisure admiring the beauty of Iowa's agricultural landscape. I have patients here, all needing validation of their worth, and I flourish in helping them find it. I seek stability. You don't fulfill that need.
She: Give me another chance. "The Midwest is too flat," and the people are too polite. Follow me to the West Coast, where the climate is oceanic, with warm winters and cool summers. You'll find serenity there. We'll do moon dances in circles and square dances in the sun. We'll prance from tree to tree at Macarthur Park. And carve our names on every trunk. We'll walk to the rhythm of the famous stars we meet on Hollywood Boulevard. Adventures await us in Venice Beach. From dawn till noon, we'll sunbathe. Then dig our way to China."
He: I won't allow myself to be your losing petal of, "She loves me. She loves me not." Don't talk of a world of unending excitement awaiting when much of what you say is your imagination speaking. You text me as I leave the office and beg me to come to you, knowing I'll grab my "just in case she calls suitcase" and get on the first plane to the crystal island of Marcos Island, Florida,
She: I call and text you daily but sometimes feel ignored. I hate that. You know you want to see me. Please come. I'm an emotional mess.
He: Please, let's forget about your flimsy fantasies. I'm no longer amused by your words or beguiled by your beauty. There is no turning back because I'm moving ahead. I've met a woman whose social skills and romantic desires far surpass what you offer. I'm not a game token. I've passed by and reaped the rewards of honesty. She is my reality, and soon, she will bear my child.
FOOLED BY THE PURITY OF SNOW?
Don’t Be
The days grew short
But the weather, in a sudden twist, had a different plan in store.
She rued the moonlit sky
about to mask the daylight.
A soft breeze blew strands of hair.
Gustier winds brought a brutal, blinding storm.
By 5 p.m., the moon's rays hid the warm sunshine.
One misstep could lead to a dangerous slip on
treacherous icy patches.
Temperatures fall below freezing range.
Tiny flakes drifted on bare boughs of trees,
changing their color from brown to white.
Just days ago, a delight to the eyes and a joy to touch, it is now a potential threat.
Step wisely to home. Slow down. Puddles of water
will turn to invisible ice to throw off her balance.
Causing a nasty fall, perhaps a broken hip.
It is better to miss the evening news than be deceived
by the allure of the sight of crystalline flakes
Black magic, they tease as they illuminate the night
and become powerful pellets.
You're seventy, not seventeen.
It's best to stay indoors,
where it's warm and safe.
-By Bonnie Ann Lieberman
THE DREADED PANIC ATTACK
By Bonnie Ann Lieberman
I experienced panic attacks for years before without understanding what they were. I visited therapists, who insisted I was depressed despite my repeated emphasis that I was a happy person with friends. The random panic attacks that had invaded my life were what led me to be depressed, as I never knew when one would strike, leaving me often afraid. Interestingly enough, by 1996, during a conversation with my internet, I explained the panic attacks and how, before they started, I was not depressed at all. By then, financial circumstances left me quite angry circumstances made me quite angry. She prescribed medication and told me that the attacks were caused by a chemical imbalance in my brain. Since then, I've never had them.
I was ready to change my life, understanding I could not love a man who could not support a family. It would take me two or three years to leave the situation. We had incurred debt before buying the properties while I married him because he was kind. At twenty-three, I believed he intended to finish college and become an accountant. We often paid for courses, but he stopped going and didn't tell me. There was a lack of honesty because my expectations of him were too high.
1999, things were getting so bad that our electricity was turned off for nonpayment. By then, I was teaching full time but giving most of my earnings to my husband, who always told me it would be the last time he'd ask. I didn't want to break up my family.
A year later, I got a notice of foreclosure on the building, then another, and by late 2000, on my home. I can't believe I kept my misery a secret for so long. While plotting to get out of the marriage, I told no one and just started not returning calls to friends with whom I had been so close. They were worry-free, at least financially, and I had nothing. I did not want to embarrass my husband, but I knew it was time to go. Even my kids agreed. He planned to apply for bankruptcy, but I refused. I sold my house to my twenty-one-year-old son, who, thank G-d, was in his last year of college and earning an excellent salary. I filed separation papers, and then we got divorced in 2002. My ex was furious and hurt. I met someone I fell in love with and left Albany to move to the Mid-Hudson area. My kids are happy and prosperous in their careers. My daughter married a wonderful man, and I am a doting grandma of two girls. They are very devoted to their father, which is good. They love Michael, and I love him more!!!!
I realize this e-mail is tinged with melancholy, but we shared much history years ago. We were best friends throughout our coming-of-age years, but then we weren't... Time, distance, and personal shifts in priorities relegated our friendship to memories. You married your high school boyfriend before finishing college. You moved to Long Island, and I dated a lot. Still, I loved the college experience, living ninety minutes from my parents.
People from my past wander in and out. I have one last memory I want to mention before I start cooking dinner and become very sad.
On the hot August morning when your mother drove in from the Island to finalize your move, she and I went to Dunkin Doughnuts. I had never been inside before. I had a lump in my throat because I had been so close to your family for a long time and knew, even though I was sure I'd visit, that my relationship with all of you would change. I started to cry, and she hugged me- I don't think she had ever hugged me before- and we cried together for a few minutes.
Also, I remember just before your sixteenth birthday party, an intruder who had just walked in stole your mother's bag. That was the last time your door was left open, and I suddenly felt the urgency to leave the neighborhood.
I always felt like I was in your shadows- the tall, skinny girl who was a bit shy when you were small and shapely with the gift of cleverness- and even more so when we were a threesome with little Robin- who was even shorter with dimples.
That's all I wanted to say.
Be well.
Thank you for reading our collection of stories from Bonnie,
We hope this collection brought joy and love into your world.
Gabriella
Other works in DEP:
Check out a recent post from
Our latest poetry collection by
, , Santayana Rose, Lynn Potter and Pamela Grant
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Words create magic in our lives. I enjoyed reading this collection of poetry and short stories from Bonnie. Thank you for sharing your world with us.