Orchids

Eleni tied her sarong around her hips and added a bit more kohl to her eyes. This was not the time to be subtle; she was on vacation and free to do whatever she wanted. He skin glowed with color from her afternoon on the beach, and her hair was freshly washed and silky soft. She smoothed frangipani scented lotion on her skin; a splurge in the hotel gift shop, but one she would never regret.

On her way out, she impulsively put one orchid behind her ear; as she'd noted earlier, this was no time to be subtle.

© 2009 Cynthia Newcomer Daniel

Seed beads. Hand fabricated.

Tide pools

She struggled to keep her balance, and mercifully, she succeeded. Hopping from rock to rock while waves crashed just inches from her tennis shoes was probably not one of her better ideas, but she couldn't resist. She hadn't explored tide pools since she was a young girl; just the idea had made her feel twenty years younger.

As she had so very many years ago, she kept a running list of her finds in her head. Sea anemones were by far the most common, followed by the little clams and hermit crabs. It still startled her to reach for a pretty shell and have it run off; or worse, poke out a leg when she picked it up. Kelp, certainly. But she had also seen a couple of starfish, and some shells that she could not identify.

As she worked her way across, her balance improved. She still had it.

© 2009 Cynthia Newcomer Daniel

Sterling silver, lampwork by Donna Millard of Donna Millard Art Glass Beads and Jewelry. Hand fabricated.

Itsy Bitsy

Betsy stood in the dressing room and laughed. It was either that, or cry; and she was tired of crying. No one, absolutely no one, felt sorry for her; everyone thought it was funny that even size 000 jeans hung on her like a sack.

Betsy was tiny, and that was putting it mildly. Barely four feet ten inches on tiptoe, and very slim; if she could just resize herself about ten or twenty percent larger, she'd be happy. She stuck her tongue out at her reflection in the mirror and wondered if she would ever fit into adult clothes. Not this week; nope, she may have celebrated her sweet 16 last week, but her birthday money would be spent in the children's department.

Again.

© 2009 Cynthia Newcomer Daniel

Seed beads, rubies, swarovski crystals, gold-filled. Hand fabricated.

Lagoon

The water was warm; it felt soft against her skin as she left the shore and slowly worked her way past the stones and plants that kept the timid out. The night was cool, but the shallow water had stored up the heat of the day and felt good. Waist-deep; she bent her knees, and felt the warmth slide over her shoulders and up her neck.

In the moonlight, the surface of the lagoon glowed; beneath the water, all was dark and hidden. She dove deep and disappeared.

© 2009 Cynthia Newcomer Daniel

Seed beads, Cech glass, Swarovski pearls and crystals. Strung on sterling silver wire. Hand fabricated.

Geode

Marina walked along, looking at the ground beneath her feet, repeating to herself, "round, egg like? bumpy . . ."

She wanted desperately to find a geode, so she picked up every likely candidate and dropped it into the canvas bag that she had slung over her shoulder. It was getting heavy, so she took a moment to set it down, swallowed a slug of water from her canteen, rubbed her sore shoulder and decided to try the bag on her other side for awhile.

When she filled the bag, she got back into her car and drove home; tomorrow she would take them in and get them sliced. As she drove, she imagined a wealth of crystals revealed by the lapidary's blade.

© 2009 Cynthia Newcomer Daniel

Seed beads, crystals, glass pearls. Hand fabricated.

Sweetness and Light

Peggy stretched and realized that she was hungry. It was time for a break, and she'd brought in a basket of cookies that she'd baked last night. As she headed off to the break room with her basket and her coffee cup, she noticed that she was gaining a following. As she passed each office, the scent of chocolate and butter was drawing people away from their desks.

She set the basket down on the table, and, with a cheery, "Help yourselves!" she went to the coffee maker and filled her cup.

© 2009 Cynthia Newcomer Daniel

Seed beads, freshwater pearls, Swarovski cyrstals. Hand fabricated.

Round and Round

"Round and Round I go," Tricia found herself humming that song again. She shook her head, trying to rid it from her mind. It wasn't that she didn't like the song; it was just that that particular line of it was far too apt these days. She was constantly doing the same thing; and, worst of all, without any different results.

"Didn't someone say that was the definition of insanity?" she put her hand over her mouth, realizing that she'd spoken the words out loud. Talking to oneself was another sure sign; that's it, she was becoming deranged.

She laughed; whatever else she was, Tricia was always quick to see the absurdity of life.

© 2009 Cynthia Newcomer Daniel

Seed beads, garnets. Hand fabricated.

Wireless

She grabbed her iPod and was out the door before anyone saw her. She sent a quick text from the front porch, before going out of range, to let Jaime know she was on her way. There were lots of open wireless networks between here and there, but she figured she might as well take advantage of her home 'net.

Earphones in place, she swung her bag over her shoulder and was gone.

© 2009 Cynthia Newcomer Daniel

Onyx, seed beads. Hand fabricated.

Flight of Fancy

Eugenia always held her breath when the pressure started to build; although Bronwyn laughed at her, she really did need to silence her own respiration in order to hear the steam from the tiny boiler fill the pipes. She knew every pop, ping and wheeze; the engine told her when it was ready. All she had to do was keep the fire going, and listen.

Time. She needed more time; she wasn't going to have enough time. Very, very gently she fanned the fire, urging the water to boil. The grounded ones were nearly upon her; she could hear them in the middle distance, the cadence of their engines indicating speed, the song of their steam mocking her own efforts. They didn't know how to make flights of fancy, and she wasn't going to be the one who gave up her steam to change that.

Bronwyn would give her grief for not filing a flight plan; but truly, she did not have time to plan this flight, let alone time to let anyone know she was going. She grinned; heck, even she didn't know where, or when, she was going. She would have to take her chances with space and time and work out the details of getting back when she got wherever, or whenever, it was she went. If she had enough time to leave, that is; she was hopeful, but not at all certain. She listened carefully, resisting the impulse to drum her fingers against the boiler to make some noise. At last it began to build: steam, steam; beautiful steam; pop, ping, wheeze.

Eugenia held her breath, set the dials, and vanished.

© 2009 Cynthia Newcomer Daniel

Seed beads, brass, Swarovski crystals, vintage watch parts. Hand fabricated.