In the quiet dawn

In the quiet dawn   It’s three in the morning and I am wide awake! There is no point thinking that I can just roll over and go back to sleep. Husband used to fall asleep the moment his head hit the pillow. But I can’t. The darn female hormone thing! Only solution: let it happen, go with the flow, get up and check out the world. The white cat in the neighbourhood is having a snooze in the middle of the side road. She suddenly springs up to catch some imaginary beasty in the air, pure ecstasy in motion.
Read More

Categories: Marlie Stories and Musings.

The gentle man

The gentle man   My grandfather, Paczona István, had been in the First World War. A large portrait of him hung on the wall of my grandparents’ bedroom. He looked very smart in his uniform standing on a bear skin rug with the mouth of the bear wide open. As a young man, he had travelled from Hungary to other parts of Europe. He brought back exotic perfumes and jewelry all tucked away in secret places of their large wardrobe. He also brought back a painting of the Madonna and Child. This painting was unframed yet regal in its simplicity.
Read More

Categories: Marlie Stories and Musings.

Alice’s flight

Alice’s flight   In the end, it was the unicorn that had saved her, giving her courage to leave it all behind: to open the secret door of the stairwell and fly with winged feet down the twenty stories of High Tower ‒ to freedom. She never looked back from that day to this. It had all begun ‒ well ‒ as all stories do. Long ago and far away, in a land not so different from this one, there lived a poor couple, who had little hope of ever changing their fortune, except for one single treasure. They were
Read More

Categories: Marlie Stories and Musings.

What ifs…

What ifs…   In an article by Matt Williamson dated December 10, 2014 and titled “A Universe of 10 Dimensions”, he postulates: “Beyond the three visible dimensions, (length, width and depth), scientists believe that there may be many more. In fact, the theoretical framework of Superstring Theory posits that the universe exists in ten different dimensions. These different aspects are what govern the universe, the fundamental forces of nature, and all the elementary particles contained within.” Williamson goes on to say: “When someone mentions “different dimensions,” we tend to think of things like parallel universes – alternate realities that exist
Read More

Categories: Marlie Stories and Musings.

In Praise of Grandparents

  In Praise of Grandparents   My grandfather died when I was five, many decades ago. I still remember him as though it were yesterday. I remember him taking me to the vineyards with the horse and cart, to help pick grapes. I remember him by the winter fire, telling me stories of his own boyhood in Hungary. And I remember playing hide-and-seek with him for the last time just before he died. A kind, gentle man with piercing blue eyes, who had loved life. My grandmother survived him by thirty years. She was a strong woman, with character. I
Read More

Categories: Marlie Stories and Musings.

On the brink of new beginnings

  On the brink of new beginnings Chocolates and roses! That’s what the month used to mean. For a while, she had treasured the familiarity of opening the velvet, heart shaped box. She had reenacted the comfort of placing each lush, red rose in the cool crystal vase. She had committed to memory the last poem he had written to her in the last card. All that − until his heart stopped and he was gone. All that − a lifetime ago. The month had come to mean other things for Gaby. February now represented the brink of new beginnings.
Read More

Categories: Marlie Stories and Musings.

Bullying has many faces

Bullying has many faces Childhood memories should be happy ones, recalling a time of kindness and nurturing by people who care. Yet all childhood memories are not like that. For some, they echo hostile words and cruel actions perpetrated by peers or adults. Bullying is not a new phenomenon. Many children suffer in silence, afraid to disclose. Many have adopted severe coping mechanisms to counteract their helplessness: alcohol, drugs, self mutilation, suicide. Schools, community organizations and provincial governments are attempting to address the issue. Finally, bullying is being taken seriously. What becomes of children who have been bullied, when they
Read More

Categories: Marlie Stories and Musings.

The treasured gifts

The treasured gifts At a time long ago, in a land far away, there ruled a gentle king. His subjects worked hard yet were content, because the gentle king was generous in his givings and fair at their trials. Thus, his people held great respect for him, for his queen and for his little princess. Peace reigned in the land for many years ‒ until one fateful day ‒ a fierce army from far away invaded the kingdom. The marauding soldiers devastated the country side, looting the cottages, stealing the livestock, and burning the fields. They chained the young men
Read More

Categories: Marlie Stories and Musings.

Christmas in Hungary

Christmas in Hungary   I was four that year. Mikulás had already come on December 6th, filling my little shoe on the window sill with chocolates and cookies. Now it was Christmas Eve and time for the most special celebration of all. For weeks everyone had been cleaning, cooking and baking. Glorious aromas hung in the air like decorations. Auntie Marika, about thirteen years of age, led me into the musty, dark wardrobe to hide and await the coming events. We both chattered and giggled in nervous anticipation. Then we heard voices outside, singing. “They’re angels!”  She whispered to me.
Read More

Categories: Marlie Stories and Musings.

Do you believe in magic?

Do you believe in magic? She knew about magic: deep magic tucked away behind that secret door, to be opened only at her command. In days gone by, the door was always half ajar inviting her in freely, without hesitation. The rooms behind the secret door had welcomed her whenever she desired to enter, even during waking hours. But these days, access was not as readily available. Locating the door itself had sometimes become a challenge. She had considered that perhaps she needed a special command to call upon it. So, she had tried to close her eyes summoning the
Read More

Categories: Marlie Stories and Musings.