What If (A Short Story)

New "What I'm Reading" + Treehouse Reading Club Monthly Bonus Post

Exciting news! I’m rolling out a new monthly offering “What I’m Reading.” I love getting these from the publications I follow, and figured, hey, why not let my readers know what I’m consuming (and loving)! Free subscribers will get a free preview of my monthly paid subscriber bonus post (like this one) that will include “What I’m Reading” so ya’ll can get in on the reading bliss.

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What I’m Reading (and watching)!

I read a lot. Between the two to three books I inhale every month, articles and blog posts from online magazines I’m eyeing, creative writing on online publications I follow and all the other research I do to build my writing business, sometimes I think I’m more of a reader than a writer ;) Here are a few July recs for your reading bliss:

Books:

• Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail by Cheryl Strayed I’ve been admiring Cheryl Strayed long before I knew her as a writer. I’d first learned about her journey hiking from the Mojave Desert to the Oregon/Washington border in the wilderness, alone, from the movie, Wild, based on her book many, many years ago. I’ve been saying if I ever find myself without dogs for a period of a few months, I want to hike the PCT from Mexico to Canada. Anyways, I finally got around to borrowing this book from my local library and am losing track of time flipping the pages and going to bed wayyyyyy too late. And I’m apparently obsessing over Cheryl Strayed as you’ll see below ;)

• Ask Again, Yes by Mary Beth Keane My little book club July read! It took me a few chapters in to get hooked, but once I did, I was gobbling up the pages. The “explosive events” hinted to on the back cover are exactly that and Mary Beth Keane leaves a trail of human wisdom that will have you pondering existential questions of your own life. Read to the end, you’ll be glad you did.

Other Substackers:

• Weaving Wisdom: Fellow Substack writer, earth lover and new writing friend

  Rhiannon Lynn
  pollinates (her great word!) beautiful, creative and poetic expressions in collaborative posts, bringing together art, wisdom and lovely words for us to connect with our inner beings while we commune with nature and all Her healing groundedness. I’m so grateful for this new connection and Rhiannon’s spirit of integrating.

Stories/Essays

• Life Cycles by Hannah Love in Crow & Cross Keys Written by a fellow writing friend and one of my favorite writers, Hannah has a way of transforming both ordinary and weird into the palpable, relatable and clever.

• The Love of My Life by Cheryl Strayed in The Sun Magazine A beautifully written memoir account of Cheryl’s grief after her mother’s young death from cancer. My jaw was almost dropping at her writing and while I’m mostly in admiration, I also feel loads of imposter syndrome reading such amazing writers like Cheryl. It’s about a 15-20 minute read and worth every ounce of your time.

Mini-Series

• Tiny Beautiful Things I’m not a big TV show watcher (and don’t even own a tv, who’s with me?!), BUT this mini-series is fantastic! It’s giving This Is Us vibes (another dear favorite show) with ALL the feels. Based on Cheryl Strayed’s book by the same name (no, I haven’t read it yet, but it’s on my list), it’s basically a take on what Cheryl’s life could have been if she didn’t get an abortion nor hike the PCT. It got me thinking of what creative take I could write in another version of my life had I made different choices.

Now onto our monthly bonus post for my Treehouse Reading Club crew! 
Want in? Upgrade or subscribe to paid below :)

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What If

A Short Story

Why does this phrase often end with a question mark? Why can’t it be a statement? Like a command to self to consider the alternative, the questionable, the weird. To step out of one’s “normal” into a whole new world. An invitation. An open ended beginning of a new story. Because in my third story apartment overlooking a patch of weeds and close enough to the building next door, the only things I see are my neighbor’s clothesline full of underwear, mismatched socks and what I can only refer to as a monochromatic ensemble of uniforms, for what I have no idea.