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The Writer's Cramp 1/29/22 W/C 285 |
NEW PROMPT: Tomorrow, January 29, is Curmudgeons Day. This observance celebrates the birthday of noted curmudgeon and comedian W.C. Fields (more details at that link). Write a story or poem about someone who became a curmudgeon exactly 20 years ago. What was the incident that changed them? Do they have any desire to stop being a curmudgeon? In honor of W.C. Fields, one required genre for your item is: Comedy. Curmudgeon No More This is a hard prompt. Robert Waltz What were you thinking when you posted this? I can think of two examples. Both are from real life. So true confession time. My father was a curmudgeon. “If you haven’t got anything nice to say about anyone, come and sit here by me” is a quote by Alice Roosevelt Longworth. It could also apply to my father. Rude and crude, he would say something to you that could cut to the bone. I was on the receiving end of many a remark of his. I, too, became a curmudgeon for a time back in the 2000s. I had recently divorced my second husband, my children weren’t around, my family far away. I was working three jobs at one time. I discovered that curmudgeon is a uni-sex term. There is no female version. It is an all-encompassing word for a person who finds no joy in life. When you are deep into a bad patch of life, it is hard not to be a curmudgeon. It’s hard not to find the dark side of everything. Life sucks, and hurts. Then one day I decided to find a way out. I made a conscious effort to see my way to change. I started dating again, a humorous effort at times. But this is the time I met my current husband. Once I met him, no more curmudgeon. Life was brighter. There was joy again. A decent person who loves you and you love back, what a change that can make in your outlook. My father? I fear he remained a curmudgeon his entire life. I went to his funeral and wept. I wept for what might have been. W/C 285 |