The Old Tree
Fifties by the Fire
Fifties by the Fire — a fifty-word, prompt-based writing exercise. Feel free to share your response below, or read and comment to join the fun.
Prompt: Write a fifty-word story (fiction, CNF, or poetry) that uses the phrase, “the old tree”.
Here are the other guidelines:
Make sure your piece is exactly fifty words. Feel free to use Word Counter or the word processor you use.
Write a title with the genre in the first line. (Example: Missed the Boat, Fiction)
The title does not factor into the word count.
Good luck and have fun. Happy writing!
Special thanks to John Lightle for providing “The Old Tree” for our writing prompt.
Hand of God, fiction
The old tree looks like a deformed hand protruding from the top of the desolate mesa.
If it can survive here, so can we. Ultimately, it’s where we settle.
The Hand of God becomes our meeting place, lookout point, and source of hope.
Time passes. Wars wage. Still, it stands.
(I imagined seeing the tree atop the mesa. Though not a direct take on the photo, I am grateful for the inspiration, John!)
Rock Formations
The old tree looked dead but the mountain behind it grabbed her interest. She had to get closer and examine the interesting rock formations. They looked like ancient decorations to a lost city, possibly hidden behind the facade. As she neared five hundred feet, a force was pushing her away.