Flame, Glass and Ink are Poems, essays, and reading notes by Stefania Joori Suh

Tag: creative writing

  • Episode IV: Lunch at Rainbow Bakery

    Lunch at Rainbow Bakery (Click here.)

    73eea028ace6869003bb394a78d4e400It’s after a wintry weekend, and the boys of Avonlea met together at Rainbow Bakery for lunch. It’s their elbow room where they can sit down with a set of delicious food, always freshly cooked on premise by Mrs. Lompstrompf according to her old world recipes from her grandmother in Norway and enjoy their time there as long as they like. In terms of the food, Anika, Mrs. Lompstrompf’s only granddaughter who can speak both Norwegian and English thanks to her grandmother’s bilingual teaching since she was a toddler, always adds a great touch of many inventive flavors to the food. In fact, were it not for Anika’s delightful fusion of diverse flavors from all over the world, the little ones would not make Rainbow Bakery their yummy den.

    There was also Sally at the bakery after a visit to her doctor’s office on Kingsbridge Avenue early this morning.  Sally had been suffering from an unfortunate case of abscess on her neck. It gathered and burst 5 days ago, which lessened the pain considerably. She thought that there would be no need to see a doctor for such because she could be healed of as time would go by, but her ma and pa told her to see to a medical provider’s help. So Sally, being always a good girl with full of humanity and great filial duties, hearkened to her parents’ advice and took a trip to the office by tram.  Sally endured the pain of treatment with ladylike dignity, got her prescription from the doctor, and decided to go to Rainbow Bakery to rest herself with the food prepared by her aunt Mathilda to brighten up her weary soul and weakened body. Now she felt much better and relieved, thanks much to the hearty food and the ever gentle kindness of  Mrs. Lompstrumpf (“Grandma” as Sally endearingly refers to and calls her) and vivacious Anika’s personality.  Grandma cheered up Sally with a mug of hot peppermint tea she made especially for the poor girl.

    The lunch at Rainbow Bakery is always pleasant, and even a total stranger would feel included just by sitting there with a cup of coffee and a donut. There is no time limit for how long one can stay there regardless of the cost of food from the menu; you can buy just one croissant and sit there until you are bored with sitting. That’s why the little ones, Sally, and others regard the bakery as their elbow room.

     

     

     

     

     

  • Episode III: A Cozy Sunday Afternoon

    The Sato Family on a Sunday Afternoon (Click here.)

     

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    Although it was an icy Sunday with a frequent scatter of snow today, which was a typical climatic tendency on the east coast, the home of Mr. Sato’s young family was cozy and nice with a fireplace, a rocking chair, a comfy set of sofa, and a TV set.

    Meet the Sato family from Japan, who have recently arrived in Charlottestown, a neighboring town of Avonlea. In spite of a different cultural setting, the Sato family fit right into the lifestyle and cultural mode of a new environment thanks much to their civil decorum, playful nature, and diligence work ethics that are universal virtues transcending the subjectivity of time and territorial boundaries.

    The Sato are a young, budding family with Mr. Sato himself, Michiko, his pretty wife, and 2 adorable little sons, Hideo and Yuki who are the apples of their eyes. Perhaps they may reside in Chalottestown permanently after Mr. Sato completes his term in the office. However different decision Mr. Sato will make, the family bound by love, understanding, and support will not be deterred by any existential difficulties of life and remain strong and be a bedrock of what a family should be in times of trouble.

  • Episode II of the Sylvanians: Before the Weekend

    Click here for Thursday evening

    24879320_502678990099370_2033890894_oThis is an episode 2 of the Sylvanian Series I have written. Although the story might be deemed intent upon children because of the characters being anthromopoistic, it is actually intended for all ages, including the young at heart.

    The theme of the story goes thus: It’s a Thursday evening, when the the residents of Avonlea enjoy their mealtime after a hard day’s work. In fact, Thursdays are much pleasant than Fridays because the impending weekends are all the more enlivened by plans of cherished weekend activities as they deem enjoyable and rewarding on their own accord.

    It’s always heartening and relaxing to expect to do something rather than doing it in actuality. Meet Sally, Mr. Karl’s family, Mrs. Lompstrompf, Mathilda, and a band of little guys for their evening repast.

    *Sylvanians are the residents of Avonlea, the miniature figures that I have. I haven taken pictures thereof and written a few short episodic stories thereabout.

     

  • The Collie Family

    The Collie family (Click here)

    I have written some episodic short stories about my Sylvanian miniature figures I have collected. Today I am posting the first episode of the Collie family which I wrote when I got them for the first time. Just click on  “The Collie family”, and it will lead you to the story in PDF format.

    I wish my blog geared by WordPress would show the writing with the pictures in its entirety without clicking on the link as above, but it does not seem to have such convenient function unless I change my current free plan to premium with a certain charge fee. (Yes, we all know the power of money in the capitalist society because it is a carte blanche.) Someday in near future I may change it to premium for more options for my blog. (Yes, I cannot help but conform to the norms of the society, as Aristotle says that humans are by nature social animals…)

  • Facing Unpleasant Facts by George Orwell

    Facing Unpleasant Facts: Narrative Essays (Before Orwell)Facing Unpleasant Facts: Narrative Essays by George Orwell

    My rating: 5 of 5 stars

    Eric Arthur Blair, better preferably known as George Orwell, wrote a series of essays that dealt with the subject matters close to the human life in the manner of a journalist with heart. This book is a definitive anthology of Orwell’s essays contributed to various magazines and newspaper that will invite the readers to the Orwellian world of reality as he saw and he liked.

    Orwell was capable of perceiving the absurdities of reality and truths masqueraded by ornamented political euphemism to obfuscate the masses for unscrupulous intentions. Of all his essays, “Why I write” is a paragon of his fineness as a great essayist. In the essay, Orwell provides the readers with sage guidelines for a writer, one of which is a choice of the subject matter that should be determined by the age a writer lives in. Such advice links with Leo Tolstoy’s view on great work of art to be closely related to the ethos of the time it is made. That is, a writer is unavoidably influenced by the ethos of the time he lives against his willful struggle to escape from solid reality.

    Orwell asserts that a writer should discipline his temperament lest he should be stuck at immature stage or depressive mood. A writer should think straight so that he can write clearly. This shows Orwell’s belief in writing not as a platform for babbling about his egoistically driven existential dilemma of daily life, for consuming his energy into such self-induced woes and pains will kill the creative spirit in him, the very impulse to express himself as he truly is. To my delight, Orwell further expounds 4 motives for writing as follows:

    (1) Sheer egoism: desire to be regarded as clever and much to be talked about. Writers are vain in the fact that they do want to be individuals, not compromising with the social conditions of reality. Writers can be egotistical and vain because of their elitist attitude toward the opinions of others and general opinions of the public, but are less interested in monetary reward.

    (2) Aesthetic enthusiasm: desire to beautify arrangements of words in pleasing manner by using a plethora of flowery words and rhythmical rhymes.

    (3) Historical impulse : desire to record historical facts of the time to pass the written records for the use of posterity.

    (4) Political purpose: desire to direct the world in a specific direction in order to influence people’s views on society in such direction as it should be

    The readers may find Orwell’s credo in writing rather anachronistic and dogmatic in consideration of the time the essay was written (1946). However, what rings the bell is the recognition of impulse to write as a sublime human act of expressing himself in connection with the time and society he lives in because as Aristotle put, “Man is a political animal.” This collection of Orwell’s poignant, honest, and witty essays will guide the readers into the mind garden of Orwell where moral obligation and the psychological facts are differentiated as pointed out in “Such, Such Were the Joys” and  where there is a pleasant, family-friendly pub called “The Moon Under the Water” with a privilege to appreciate Orwell’s brilliant display of language facility and power of facing unpleasant facts in his own words.

  • Waiting for Gotto

    rain.jpg

    Beneath the grey curtains of rain, there she was solo,
    Standing at a bus stop all alone where no one could find
    With her eyes gazing upon the road far away with eager mind
    Without a soul to join her solitary waiting for Gotto.

    But Gotto would not come in any minute soon to her,
    not coming forthwith, for she would have to wait longer,
    until her faith in him became flickering out and would disappear
    so that he would finally come and manifest her wishes so dear.

    And when Gotto came at his appointed time however uncertain,
    he would come incognito to make his adored presence certain
    by the conspicuous obscurity of the ordinary facade ever discreet,
    and her wishes to meet him would be fulfilled in secret.

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