• About
  • Home
  • Flash Fiction
  • Flash Poesy
  • Excerpt – The Child of Heaven
  • Excerpt – The Child of Passion
  • Excerpt – The Lost Child
  • Fellow Writers
  • Publications/Credits
  • Excerpt – Ripples on the Pond
  • One Million Project – Thriller Anthology
  • Contact
  • Home
  • Blog

sebnemsanders

~ ripples

sebnemsanders

Tag Archives: spring

Survival

03 Friday Aug 2018

Posted by SebnemSanders in Flash Fiction, Uncategorized

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

adaptation, ancient traditions, continuation, crop rotation, developers, evolution, Flash Fiction, fleeting, flora and fauna, harmony, immortality, industry, nature, resilience, spring, survival, threats, tradition, transience, virgin soil

taslica-antik-kent

 

 

I wandered into the field along the dirt road to explore the flora and the fauna. A kaleidoscope of spring flowers, dotted with herds of cattle, sheep, horses, and donkeys. The hyper goats and their babies preferred the rocky terrain, on its edge, climbing and leaping from the heights, and feasting on fresh herbs and blooms. The aroma of sage, rosemary, and oregano filled the air. No humans around, though. It seemed the fauna had the scene for their own amusement.

I was not to complain, as I trod on the young grass, taking care not to harm the beauties of early spring along my path.

Settled on a rock, I watched the vibrant scene as the animals shared nature’s bounty. I took photos, viewed them on my camera, and shot some more to capture the ambiance. At the end of the field, the dirt road snaked towards the village on the hills, after passing through a closed gate. The farmers had herded their livestock into the meadow for grazing till sunset.

In this part of the world, Spring is brief, fleeting like our youth. Hot summer sun burns the grass. The only plants that survive are the trees and thorny bushes. Flowers fade and the green becomes yellow.

I left the meadow with the villagers who came to gather their animals and lead them into the sheds. They offered me coffee at the coffee shop where men smoked and played backgammon. They were dressed in their all year round outfits, jackets worn over shirts, and trousers   The sound of rolling dice against the wooden board mixed with the background noise from the TV on the wall. Noisy, but not disturbing. Not that these people cared about what was happening in the world or in the country. Their world was their village. They had lived that way for centuries, despite devastating events that changed the lives of many. It was their way of survival, like the thorny bushes.

The village head, an old man swinging his worry beads around his wrist, sat next to me and spoke.

“Photographer lady, will you make us famous?”

“I take pictures for my own pleasure. If I publish or sell them, I rarely mention the place. Would you like me to?”

“Yes and no,” he said, taking a big slurp from his coffee. “This is still a protected site, but we don’t know how long it will last.” He pointed to the TV and folded his arms. “The developers are viewing the land, taking photos and measuring. We may not be able to live this way for long.”

I knew what he was talking about. Land profiteers, vultures that thrive on virgin soil. They were everywhere, digging mines, shaving off mountains, building hotel complexes, marinas, and power plants.

“What they do is against nature,” I said. “Yet, they have supporters in the government.”

“Isn’t it always so?”

“I came here to photograph Spring on these ancient lands. I witnessed it once before, but never managed to visit at the right time again when the combination of the animals and nature exist in such harmony.”

“Once harvest is over, the animals graze in the fields on the other side of the gate. Crop rotation, a four-hundred-year-old tradition.” He pointed to the area, peeking from beyond the houses.

“Spring is transient,” I said.

“Isn’t life?” he answered with a smile, tipping the brim of his flat cap.

 

I loaded my bags containing herbs, honey, and almonds from the local shop into the car, and left the village. Driving through magnificent scenery washed in the colours of sunset, I pondered whether I was spring grass, a thorny bush or an evergreen. Grass renews itself and dies, then comes back again. A thorny bush survives all circumstances. Nature is resilient. Bougainvillea bloom, pine trees grow into forests, from the tiny seeds hidden in their cones.

I decided not to publish any of the photos on my website. Let it be a well-kept secret, on my part. Perhaps I could post them as historical documents in the future.

 

 

Taşlıca.jpg

 

Photos from Google

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook
  • More
  • WhatsApp

Like this:

Like Loading...

Happy Easter! ************************* [in Just-] by E. E. Cummings

30 Friday Mar 2018

Posted by SebnemSanders in poetry, Uncategorized

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

e.e.cummings, Easter, Easter Egg by Limoges, eggs, fertility, Happy Easter, poetry, prosperity, spring

 

 

Easter Egg Limoges

 Easter Egg by Limoges

[in Just-]

By E. E. Cummings

in Just-
spring          when the world is mud-
luscious the little
lame balloonman
whistles          far          and wee
and eddieandbill come
running from marbles and
piracies and it’s
spring
when the world is puddle-wonderful
the queer
old balloonman whistles
far          and             wee
and bettyandisbel come dancing
from hop-scotch and jump-rope and
it’s
spring
and
         the
                  goat-footed
balloonMan          whistles
far
and
wee

 

 

https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/47247/in-just

https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/e-e-cummings

Easter Eggs - Copy

Easter Eggs Various

 

 

 

 

 

 

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook
  • More
  • WhatsApp

Like this:

Like Loading...

Seasons

02 Friday Mar 2018

Posted by SebnemSanders in Flash Fiction, Uncategorized

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

Ad Hoc Fiction, change, continuity, cycle, despair, Flash Fiction, hope, learning, lessons, life, micro-fiction, repetition, seasons, spring

Seasons 1

 

A micro-fiction story of maximum 150 words, I contributed to Ad Hoc Fiction,  using the word “spring”.

 

Spring arrived early. Unprepared, I shed my winter clothes. In the garden, daisies greeted me, along with poppies and dandelions. I checked the seeds of hope I’d planted in November. Little green shoots displayed their leaves and tiny buds with pride.

Like my youth, Spring passed in a flash and became Summer, my middle-age. I didn’t mind the heat, though it slowed me down. Wearing shades under the canopy, I created shadows where I could enjoy the multi-coloured blooms of the Bougainvillaea. Attractive vines that thrive in strong sunlight, and need little water. I decided to imitate them, and protect myself with thorns against unwelcome visitors. But it was too late.

When Autumn arrived, I planted my seeds again, before winter confined me indoors.  A pessimist in darkness,  I asked myself, “How many more times can I do this?”

The hyacinth bulb by window answered, “Until you learn.”

 

http://adhocfiction.com/read/#FlashEbook

 

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook
  • More
  • WhatsApp

Like this:

Like Loading...

Happy May Day !

01 Monday May 2017

Posted by SebnemSanders in Uncategorized

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

Bougainvillea, Daisies, From the Garden, Mallow, May Day, Roses, spring

Collage 3

Collage 2

Collage 1

 

Burnt Norton

I

Time present and time past
Are both perhaps present in time future
And time future contained in time past.
If all time is eternally present
All time is unredeemable.
What might have been is an abstraction
Remaining a perpetual possibility
Only in a world of speculation.
What might have been and what has been
Point to one end, which is always present.
Footfalls echo in the memory
Down the passage which we did not take
Towards the door we never opened
Into the rose-garden. My words echo
Thus, in your mind.”

T. S. Eliot Poems

The Four Quartets

Burnt Norton

 

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook
  • More
  • WhatsApp

Like this:

Like Loading...

Springtime

12 Wednesday Apr 2017

Posted by SebnemSanders in Flash Poesy, Uncategorized

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

eternal cycle, hope, mother nature, promise, prosperity, spring

wild_flower_meadow_lw

 

Puffy grass like a goose down duvet

resplendent with daisies, yellow dandelions,

buttercups and a myriad of wildflowers

that flourish without care,

poppies that pop up everywhere,

sacred earth preserves their seeds

since the beginning of time,

all they need is rain and sunshine,

after a short period of rest of in Gaia’s belly,

a message of hope and prosperity

for mankind to understand the eternal cycle

to cherish and to protect it with care

for the next generations.

Happy Easter Everyone!

 

This is a re-post from last year. 🙂

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook
  • More
  • WhatsApp

Like this:

Like Loading...

Anemone

24 Friday Feb 2017

Posted by SebnemSanders in Flash Poesy, Uncategorized

≈ 7 Comments

Tags

anemone, beauty within, daughters of the wind, depression, dreams, hope, melancholia, pink, purple, spring, sunshine, weary, winter

anemone-color-meaning

Photo source: http://www.flowermeaning.com/anemone-flower-meaning/

 

 

Daughters of the wind

purple and  pink

dew drops

reflecting the beauty within

spring is on its way

my heart is stuck in winter

dark, weary and uninspired

what will it take to move it again,

why the melancholia of purple

than the hope from pink?

my dreams have sunk

into the pools of depression

no sunshine seems to revive

why has everything gone wrong

when I was

ready to go?

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook
  • More
  • WhatsApp

Like this:

Like Loading...

Springtime

27 Sunday Mar 2016

Posted by SebnemSanders in Flash Poesy, Uncategorized

≈ 6 Comments

Tags

eternal cycle, hope, mother nature, promise, prosperity, spring

wild_flower_meadow_lw

 

Puffy grass like a goose down duvet

resplendent with daisies, yellow dandelions,

buttercups and a myriad of wildflowers

that flourish without care,

poppies that pop up everywhere,

sacred earth preserves their seeds

since the beginning of time,

all they need is rain and sunshine,

after a short period of rest of in Gaia’s belly,

a message of hope and prosperity

for mankind to understand the eternal cycle

to cherish and to protect it with care

for the next generations.

 

Happy Easter Everyone!

 

 

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook
  • More
  • WhatsApp

Like this:

Like Loading...

Recent Posts

  • My Story, The Stranger, is published in Pure Slush’s Appointment at 10.30 Anthology
  • My Story, Shadows, is live at SAVA, Subject and Verb Agreement Press
  • Weeds
  • My Microfiction Story, A Tale of Many Cities, is up at The Rye Whiskey Review
  • Angel’s Cove- by Sebnem Sanders

Recent Comments

Richard Ankers on My Story, The Stranger, is pub…
SebnemSanders on My Story, The Stranger, is pub…
Richard Ankers on My Story, The Stranger, is pub…
SebnemSanders on My Story, The Stranger, is pub…
Fran Macilvey on My Story, The Stranger, is pub…

Archives

  • July 2022
  • April 2022
  • March 2022
  • February 2022
  • January 2022
  • December 2021
  • October 2021
  • August 2021
  • June 2021
  • May 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • December 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015

Categories

  • blog post
  • Book Excerpts
  • Books
  • Corona Chronicles
  • Fellow Writers
  • Fiction
  • Flash Fiction
  • flash non-fiction/thoughts
  • Flash Poesy
  • Inspired by a True Life Story
  • Interview
  • Memoir
  • micro-fiction
  • My Reviews
  • Newsfeed
  • non-fiction
  • poetry
  • publications
  • Reviews
  • Short Story
  • The Child of Heaven
  • True Story
  • Uncategorized

Recent Posts

  • My Story, The Stranger, is published in Pure Slush’s Appointment at 10.30 Anthology
  • My Story, Shadows, is live at SAVA, Subject and Verb Agreement Press
  • Weeds
  • My Microfiction Story, A Tale of Many Cities, is up at The Rye Whiskey Review
  • Angel’s Cove- by Sebnem Sanders

Recent Comments

Richard Ankers on My Story, The Stranger, is pub…
SebnemSanders on My Story, The Stranger, is pub…
Richard Ankers on My Story, The Stranger, is pub…
SebnemSanders on My Story, The Stranger, is pub…
Fran Macilvey on My Story, The Stranger, is pub…

Archives

  • July 2022
  • April 2022
  • March 2022
  • February 2022
  • January 2022
  • December 2021
  • October 2021
  • August 2021
  • June 2021
  • May 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • December 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015

Categories

  • blog post
  • Book Excerpts
  • Books
  • Corona Chronicles
  • Fellow Writers
  • Fiction
  • Flash Fiction
  • flash non-fiction/thoughts
  • Flash Poesy
  • Inspired by a True Life Story
  • Interview
  • Memoir
  • micro-fiction
  • My Reviews
  • Newsfeed
  • non-fiction
  • poetry
  • publications
  • Reviews
  • Short Story
  • The Child of Heaven
  • True Story
  • Uncategorized

Follow me on Twitter

My Tweets

Follow me on Twitter

My Tweets

Blog at WordPress.com.

Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy
  • Follow Following
    • sebnemsanders
    • Join 3,043 other followers
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • sebnemsanders
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
 

Loading Comments...
 

You must be logged in to post a comment.

    %d bloggers like this: