Writing For G.O.T

Eulogies for 5 White Cases-#95 Single Spin on Wheel

1037 Words


1. Bandit's Mama

Sandy Brace, Bandit’s Mama, describes herself in her bio-block as, “Writer, parent, wife, cat lover, writer, optimist, intelligent, gentle, lazy, poet, reader, animal advocate, computer lover, occasionally crabby, often cheerful, writer, honest, non-compliant, solitary…” And I want to add one more very important virtue to all that, as well. Above and beyond her descriptions of herself, Bandit’s Mama was a wonderful friend and one of the first people who welcomed me to Stories.com.

Yes, Sandy was a mentor to me when I was a newbie in Stories.com and didn’t know my way around. We exchanged a few emails and she told me about Bandit, her cat, and that she was working in the world’s tallest building at 1 World Trade Center, on the 95th floor, at Marsh & McLennan as an administrative assistant even though she was afraid of heights.

On the most tragic day of the US History, September 11, 2001, we also lost our friend Sandy Brace, in the first tower that toppled.

Very few would recall this, but Sandy was the first torch-bearer who brought the 55-word stories to Stories.com. Her folder, "Fifty-Five Word Stories" , is full of her creations of fifty-five-word stories.

She wrote everything clearly and with feeling, but she was most partial to poetry.

In her portfolio is this poem, "An Ending" . As if she were psychic and sensed her end, she finished her poem with these lines:

I seek only the darkness
And the quiet of the grave.
Let me sleep there forever,
Untouched, alone, at peace,
Distant from this hate-filled world.

Rest in peace, Sandy! I will always remember you.


2. BlueThunder

Blue Thunder came to stories.com just three months short of a year after me. Aside from his handle and username, his name was Larry Kibby, and he lived in an Indian colony in Nevada. We lost Larry in 2006.

What distinguished Larry for me was his heartfelt writing and his love and respect for his heritage. Larry was also one of the few people of those early years of Writing.com who send long, detailed reviews with a very friendly tone.

Looking into his portfolio, I see that he loved animals related to his heritage such as horses and eagles. I am very much impressed by his "Fifteen Horses" , a story poem in which he honors the sacred hunting grounds. He finishes this poem with these words.

“Another battle, another day
Hoka Hay!!
It is a good day to die”

Rest in peace, Blue Thunder! Hoka Hay!

3. Ramblin Rose

Ramblin’ Rose, a.k.a., S. J. King, was a good friend of mine. She told me once that she loved to be called Sarah Rose.

It is possible that Rose and I warmed to each other through the idea of chocolate. She wrote this article "Chocolate Sweet Treats" , and if memory isn’t failing me, she ran a contest together with Susie Franks, who isn’t in WdC anymore. That contest involved chocolate.

Yet, chocolate wasn’t the only sweet thing about Rose. She loved the fantasy genre and all the fairy tales, and she wrote successful fantasy stories about elves, fairies, leprechauns, and other imaginary beings, making us feel like children once more. As such, most of her stories I’ve read today are written for children.

I remember she had a large portfolio brimming with in&outs, polls, stories, and poems. Although her portfolio today is reduced in size, her memory will never diminish in our hearts.

Rest in peace, Ramblin Rose.

4. Spongebob Squarepants

I remember Spongebob Squarepants as a young woman in her early twenties, and when she passed away, we experienced a deep loss, not only because she was so young but also, she had a promising writing career.

Spongebob was a gentle soul and an extraordinary lady. When I sent her a review, I recall that I received a most gracious thank you e-mail from her.

She was quite prolific, too, as a writer. Her stories are in the fantasy, sci-fi, and comedy genres, although she seems to favor comedy more than the others. This same trait also applies to her poems.

The last lines of her poem "Indigo"  end with these words:
But
until I can find out my true self, I will still worry that
you won't like me, though I know I
shouldn't, I still will.

But we did, Spongebob, we liked you very much. Unfortunately, you left us too soon.

Rest in Peace!

5. JudyB

JudyB , Judy was a very lovely lady who was in Writing.com for five years. When I first met her, she said she was a CNA (certified nursing assistant). I told her I had several credits in psychology and I was interested in the subject, she said she had a degree in psychology, too. That idea bonded us together. In fact, her portfolio boasts items touching psychology in some way.

The one item I find the most poignant is "Encounters with the Dying" . In it, she has a story about a hospice patient named Ken, whose hand she held as he passed away. Judie also spent three years in the military. She wrote about those experiences in "Memories of my Military Days" .

Judy loved her family and absolutely adored her granddaughter. As to writing, she considered it a passion, much more than a hobby. We agreed on that idea, too.

When she was hit with Leukemia, she didn’t shy away from the fight nor did she hide her illness. She has a few items on the subject as a caregiver who needed care herself at the end.

In 2007, Judy wrote "My thoughts about Death" , not about herself but about our general approach to death.

Judy has a large portfolio. In it, she has written mostly about the people she cared and she loved everyone unconditionally. I have never read anything in her port or on the mod forums even slightly negative about anybody.

Unfortunately, we lost Judy to Leukemia in 2010.

Rest in Peace, my good friend!