Shattered Dreams
Posted by Toni Johnson on Sunday Jun 20, 2010Under Toni, country life, creativity, fiction Tags: music lyrics, story telling
A long, long time ago, I can still remember, it was a dark and stormy Monday night as father and daughter were driving down the lonely country road that was taking them home to the place they belonged. The windshield wipers were slapping out a tempo, keeping perfect rhythm with the song playing on the radio. Raindrops were falling on their heads through the open windows of the old farm truck and they had no worries – they were happy.
Rainy days and Monday usually make her sad, but, oh how she loves a rainy night. She loves to hear the thunder and watch the lightning light up the sky – it’s a beautiful sight.
She’s tired. She closes her eyes and sees skies of blue and clouds of white, the colors of the rainbow so pretty in the sky. And she thinks, it’s a wonderful world. She also realizes it’s a small world; after all, she’s met people from Carolina down to Georgia, where she’s smelled the jasmine and magnolia, the East coast girls are hip (she really digs the style they wear), and the West coast has the sunshine and the people there all get so tanned.
She is anxious to get home – Mother’s there expecting her, Grandpa’s waiting, too; lots of folk gathered there and all the friends she knew. As visions of her late Grandma getting run over by a reindeer ran through her mind, a deer appeared in the headlights with a look – startled and scared.
And it was there that it happened – they were on Dead Man’s Curve and there was nowhere to turn. Her father threw his hands up in the air and said “Jesus, take the wheel, take it from my hands!” But he gave up control too late … too late.
They are pulled from the wreckage of their silent reverie – their temporary resting place, and in the arms of an angel they find comfort. They each had dreams. Now, shattered dreams – his for her and her own dreams of bicycles built for two. They dreamed the impossible dream, to reach the unreachable star. But now, on this dark and stormy night, she’ll be forever more, forever young … forever young.
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June 20th, 2010 at 2:54 am
I have a confession to make, Toni: I saw the image and read the title and expected to be heartbroken. It’s not that my heart is of stone or calloused but rather that the way you wove the story was enchantiung to me. I love the way you turned the phrase, over and over again, with the lyrics of famous quotes/lines: it was a dark and stormy Monday night, raindrops were falling on their heads, no worries – they were happy, skies of blue and clouds of white, it’s a wonderful world, it’s a small world; after all, Grandma getting run over by a reindeer, “Jesus, take the wheel,” in the arms of an angel, bicycles built for two, they dreamed the impossible dream, to reach the unreachable star, forever young. How did you do that! This is brilliant. I love it.
June 20th, 2010 at 3:44 am
It’s a story that is every mother’s darkest nightmare! Heartbreakingly sad…almost cliche’. But – you’ve managed to turn it around and add a bit of ironic/iconic humor with your interweaving of popular lyrics.
So very creative…excellent!!!
June 20th, 2010 at 4:42 am
Did they see the midnight train to Georgia, down by the river *LOL* love it!!
June 20th, 2010 at 7:09 am
my gosh! and you remembered all of it – the lyrics.
Such talent!
June 20th, 2010 at 9:08 am
Ginnie had to explane this one to me, I got ‘lost in translation’ now I understand and you did a wonderful thing, amazingly done, you are good (and so is Petra, because she got it….)
June 21st, 2010 at 12:45 pm
yes, quite brilliant, and wonderful, a perfect story for that image and a perfect way to tell a story.
June 22nd, 2010 at 3:58 am
My, my!! How brilliant and clever is this!! Chapeau!
June 22nd, 2010 at 8:28 am
…”do you really want to live forever, forever, forever…”
Well, that was very creative writing, and something I could most definitely sing along to
Bravo Toni…I love this!
June 22nd, 2010 at 5:29 pm
I love this, I just can’t get enough! Well done Toni
June 22nd, 2010 at 11:04 pm
Excellently written! That is really clever. I do assume they got their kicks on Route 66 before their demise, though? I’ll never forget him, Leader of the Pack.
That is really good, Toni!!!!!
June 23rd, 2010 at 4:22 am
*applause*
*more applause*
Brilliant!
June 26th, 2010 at 9:40 am
Such a sad story told so beautifully (and humorously) through song lyrics. Great job!
July 26th, 2010 at 7:34 pm
Wonderful!!