Secret Garden – Unicorn Challenge

Posted on August 18, 2023 by ceayr
Copyright Ayr/Gray

The Unicorn Challenge.

A magical new weekly writing opportunity from her – Jenne Gray – and me.
Visit her blog every Friday to see the photo prompt, and post your amazing story in her comments section.
Or on your own blog, and stick the link down in her comments.
The rules are:
Maximum of 250 words.
Based on photo prompt.
That’s it.

To hear me read my story, just click here:

Secret Garden

there are three paths
all very different
snaking through
the Secret Garden
a place of marvel
mystery
and perhaps
magic

the most picturesque trail
wanders through a series
of pergolas
each heavily bedecked
with white- and pink-flowered climbing plants
providing a heady scent
and an air of tranquillity
here time passes slowly

a secondary track
spins off to the east
sided by rough terrain
supporting only shrubs
and passes beneath a sheer cliff-face
clothed in different plants
darker green with fierce red blooms
giving the fragrance of danger
and an air of menace
here time moves quickly

but the main route
and the most direct
runs almost straight
through the heart of the garden
where one may encounter other travellers
not necessarily from the same land
or world
and where time
sometimes
stands still

About ceayr

A Scot who has discovered peace in a small town he calls Medville on the Côte Vermeille, C.E. Ayr has spent a large part of his life in the West of Scotland and a large part elsewhere. His first job was selling programmes at his local football club and he has since tried 73 other career paths, the longest being in IT, with varying degrees of success. He is somewhat nomadic, fairly irresponsible and, according to his darling daughter, a bit random. So, nobody’s perfect.
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23 Responses to Secret Garden – Unicorn Challenge

  1. Margaret says:
    August 25, 2023 at 10:37 am

    I love the idea that the main path is where time ‘sometimes stands still’. And not only travellers from other lands but also from other worlds. Time’s a slippery thing, for sure, and never seems to be going at the pace we’d like it to. The central path definitely sounds the most intriguing. Lovely.

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  2. lesleyscoble says:
    August 21, 2023 at 9:02 am

    I enjoyed this beautiful wander through your secret garden, C.E. 💗 (It’s lovely listening to the story).

    Like

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  3. Chris Hall says:
    August 20, 2023 at 3:58 pm

    This is a wonderful story, CE. I liked the old song too!

    Like

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  4. The Sicilian Storyteller says:
    August 19, 2023 at 4:45 pm

    A lovely little flight of fancy and mystical meanderings.
    I wonder which route you will choose, CE.

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    Reply
  5. ladysighs says:
    August 19, 2023 at 12:47 pm

    I like this very much. Many paths we might follow. But why choose the main route? Why the straight and narrow?
    An encounter with a traveler from a different land (bringing mystery and magic) is the one I’d choose.

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    • ceayr says:
      August 20, 2023 at 10:58 am

      Straight and narrow has rarely been my chosen route either, dear Lady.
      I’m more of a meanderer, a I-wonder-where-that-goes sort of dude.
      Maybe one day we’ll meet down that quiet lane, hmm?

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      Reply
      • ladysighs says:
        August 21, 2023 at 12:32 pm

        Hey, dude, I wonder why you would want to wander down and meet in that quiet lane which would surely spoil a nice friendship. You are much too much like a Wayward Wind! 😦

        But a compromise is acceptable. We might share some creative links. Years ago I made some – many – tons – of pps just for fun that you might enjoy. I hesitate leaving a link here as they aren’t for the public. This one is from my Western Collection.

        https://pcloscloud.com/index.php/s/LLae7sXgZ3FFAi6

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  6. Doug Jacquier says:
    August 19, 2023 at 1:32 am

    Snakes and Gardens. Hope we’re not on the Eve of destruction in this seemingly blissful spot. 🙂 Well imagined. Loved this:
    ‘darker green with fierce red blooms
    giving the fragrance of danger
    and an air of menace’

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  8. jenne49 says:
    August 18, 2023 at 4:23 pm

    Poetic magic!
    The words, the images, the form, snaking, like the paths in the garden, to the perfect climax of the last three lines.
    I hope you have a chapeau in reserve for yourself!.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

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