Your prompt word is
FIRE
I gave this week’s prompt word to a writing group on Monday and it brought out some fantastic work. It’s a word that’s current, with the intense heat causing lots of awful fires around the world. But it’s a word that can have a positive meaning – think about cosying up to an open fire on a winter’s night. We might also feel fired up, excited by something that’s got us thinking or inspired. Of course it has negative connotations as well. Someone can be fired from their job. And of course there’s gunfire. What does this week’s prompt word mean to you?
Fact or fiction, prose or poetry, I would love to read your thoughts on this week’s prompt, but there’s no obligation to share your writing. Here is the work you shared on the last prompt TEST.
Should life be this way? Maybe it’s a test.
Suspicious Mind
You ask me for my
opinion, but why does it
feels more like a test.
life is a test
but not of what is best
on top for now
but flat line is death
so rise and fall
with anticipation and baited breaths!
Before you become a husband,
You have to pass the “boyfriend test.
And miraculously, I’ve done it four times –
Something no one would have ever guessed.
My friends would wager on the total number of dates I’d have,
And I, myself, was beginning to wonder.
They set an over & under betting line at three…
And all the action came in on the under.
You could say I was socially awkward.
An understatement at the very least.
And though I always wanted to be a boyfriend,
Because of it, the odds greatly decreased.
But I can cook and write poetry,
Those are valuable boyfriend skills.
And I as I gained relationship experience
I learned how to give a gal boyfriend thrills.
I have to say that I’m at my best
In two rooms in the house
So if you’re good in the kitchen and bedroom
You might go from boyfriend to spouse.
I did – four times!
Timed Test
A tiny test? I’ll do my best.
The clock has now begun.
So, win or lose – No, I won’t lose.
I’ll win when it is done.
Between the Notes
sometimes i think
your soul hid itself
between the notes,
not because it wanted to stay,
but because it never had the courage
to leave properly.
maybe the silence was a test,
a final question written in melody
whether we would find each other
or simply fade between the sounds.
and perhaps your absence
was the answer i was meant to hear,
a lesson hidden softly
between the notes.
The New Speakers
When I got a new computer seven years ago, I wasn’t able to afford the cost of new speakers. Luckily, the computer tower had speakers inside.
However, they were not so loud, and the music sounded weak, so I decided to keep it on mute until I was able to save for the new speakers. I needed those speakers as I needed to be able to listen to music while working.
Although I had old speakers, they were for my old computer that I also used frequently, with my experiments and tests being done there, and I didn’t want to bring those speakers back and forth over and over.
Once I saved for the new speakers, I went to the electronics store, and bought the best ones that were available. Once I went back home, I plugged them in to my computer, and put them to the test by playing music. I did it to verify that those speakers really worked.
They worked well, so I decided to listen to music while working on my computer as I enjoy working with music more than without it. I love testing new electronic devices to ensure that they work before I start using them.
I hated tests at school, mainly because as a swot, I was pretty hopeless.
I didn’t do too badly though, passed most, did better in some more than others but excelled in none.
I would study and try to remember facts and figures, but as soon as I turned the paper over in that examination room, my mind would go blank.
Surprisingly I passed my driving test first time, but in 1978 this was all practical which is something I tend to cope with better. Now that they have theory papers as well as the practical driving examine, if I was learning today, it could be a different story.
Then of course we get those who test us and/or our patience, especially kids.
I had this with one of the boys in my care and he pushed me to the limit and beyond.
I had warned him that if he continued to use his felt tip pens to draw on the bedding, walls and furniture, they would be confiscated and not replaced. He continued and I followed through on my words. He complained to his Nanny who simply bought him some more. I took those too, taking them over to her house where she could keep them and let him draw on her walls and furniture!
I had also told both brothers that I was happy to take them shopping with me or down to see my parents, but they only had to show me up once, and that would be it. That same child played up in the supermarket and I stood by what I’d said. The problem was it affected them both, so not fair on the other, but he understood and never let his brother forget that it was all HIS fault that they didn’t have the usual outings with me anymore.
What a wicked woman I was… but the moral of the latter part of this post is Don’t Test Me!
Weathered Assessment
The radio blared; “This is not a test! Flash flooding due to storms is possible. Stay away from flooded roads. Do not cross flooded roads”
With our on and off downpours, – according to my garden water rain gauge we have had about three inches, though the main reports disagree with me. The creek that was rising has settled back into its banks, but the water runoff between our place and the neighbors (the lowest point in our suburban development) that empties into the gully sounds like a raging waterfall. I know because I was just out there in the latest mist and checked!
darkened sky
not due to early sunset
forecast; rain
The Ultimate Test
I was enjoying a leisurely cup of coffee at my favorite local coffee shop when a woman walked up to my table and asked if she could sit down. I looked around the cafe, and yes, it was crowded, but there were a few open tables. But hey, if she wants to sit with me, that’s cool.
The woman was, I’d guess, maybe late thirties, early forties, pleasant looking with auburn hair and brown eyes. But not what I would call a knockout. Probably the most notable thing about her was the fairly large ivory cross she was wearing outside of her dark sweater.
Anyway, I went back to sipping my coffee and reading the newsfeed on my phone. I must have said “Jesus Christ” out loud without meaning to after reading yet another article about Donald Trump’s grotesque corruption.
“It’s a test,” she said.
I looked up from my phone at the woman sitting across from me. “I’m sorry, what did you say?”
“I said it’s a test from God. God sent Donald Trump to us to test the will of the American people to defend and protect democracy.”
I either shook my head or rolled my eyes, or maybe both. “I’m serious,” she continued. “God is testing us, seeing how we deal with the difficult questions about democratic values, truth, loyalty, and the limits of executive power. He is testing us, through Donald Trump, to see if we, as citizens of this country, will decide whether we will defend constitutional principles, participate in elections, respect institutions, and engage in civic life.”
“If that’s the case, then we are regretfully failing God’s test,” I said. “We should be having mass demonstrations out in the streets every day protesting what Trump is doing to destroy America’s democratic heritage.”
“So why aren’t we?” she asked me.
“I dunno,” I said. “Maybe we’ve grown complacent after 250 years of fitful but unbroken democracy to believe it could be actually be taken from us. Or maybe we’re too well-fed, too distracted by our devices, our games, and an endless tsunami of “content.” Perhaps too many of us are fed up and have become disconnected or indifferent. Or maybe some of us are simply afraid.”
“Or perhaps Donald Trump is God’s way of revealing the character of our nation at a time when we have lost our way,” she said. “We are turning away from the Bible and the lessons and teachings of Jesus. We have abandoned our belief in God and lost our moral compasses.”
She grabbed her cross with her left hand and reached across the table with her right hand and placed it over mine. “The only way to save our nation is by embracing our Lord Jesus. Won’t you help me pray for America and accept Jesus into your heart. Let’s pass God’s test and save America and at the same time save your immortal soul. Let me help you find your way home.”
I pulled my hand out from under hers, pushed my chair back, stood up, and said, “No thank you, lady. I can find my way home without the need of divine intervention or assistance.”
As I was leaving I thought to myself I need to find a new favorite coffee shop.
Every Day is a Test of Survival
Every day is a test of survival, though not always in the dramatic ways people imagine. Most of the time, survival is quiet. It is waking up with worries that never truly disappeared, carrying responsibilities that feel heavier than yesterday, and still choosing to move forward. It is finding the strength to smile when your heart feels tired, to keep working when motivation is gone, and to believe that tomorrow can be better even when today offers little evidence.
Life has a way of presenting challenges without warning. Some days bring disappointment, loss, uncertainty, or unexpected setbacks. Other days simply test our patience, our resilience, and our willingness to continue. Every obstacle becomes a reminder that survival is not only about staying alive—it is about protecting hope, preserving purpose, and refusing to let hardship define who we are.
This daily test is not graded by perfection. It is measured by persistence. Success is found in the decision to stand back up after falling, to keep faith after failure, and to extend kindness even when life has not been kind to you. The strongest people are not those who never struggle; they are the ones who continue despite their struggles. They understand that courage is often quiet, showing itself in ordinary moments when giving up seems easier than carrying on.
There are days when exhaustion whispers that enough is enough. Yet something within us continues to push forward. It may be love for family, a dream that refuses to fade, faith in something greater, or simply the hope that brighter days are ahead. Whatever that source of strength may be, it reminds us that survival is not about avoiding pain but about finding meaning beyond it.
Perhaps that is why every sunrise feels like an invitation to try again. Every new day presents another opportunity to grow stronger, wiser, and more compassionate because of what we have endured. The challenges we face shape our character, revealing strengths we never knew we possessed until life demanded them.
In the end, every day is a test, but it is also a chance. A chance to keep believing, to keep learning, and to keep moving forward despite uncertainty. Survival is not merely existing from one day to the next; it is choosing resilience over defeat, hope over despair, and determination over fear. Each day we endure becomes proof that even in life’s hardest moments, the human spirit is capable of rising again.
When Our Leonberger Took a Car for a Test Drive
Today we started looking for a new car for our daughter, so we visited some dealerships and she test-drove some cars. This reminded me of when we bought our Subaru some years ago. We felt that it was very important that our Leonberger dog Bronco, or Le Bronco von der Löwenhöhle, which was his full name, was happy with the car. So, we let him take the car for a test drive. My wife and I sat in the back seat. Naturally, we had him in a leash. There are leash laws here in Dallas and we are not crazy.
More recently the Texas Legislature passed HB64 and SB14, which made Texas the first US state to allow dogs to drive. Any dog of any breed is allowed to drive a car as long as they are two years or older and are facilitated by a DDAD, a dog drivers assistance device. The Texas legislature isn’t crazy after all.
A DDAD is a device that reads traffic signs for the dog and takes cues from the dog’s body language to turn the car and control it in other ways. DDAD utilizes a multi layered neural network (deep learning style neural network, like LLMs) that has been trained using several thousand dogs that included all of AKC’s approved dog breeds as well as 100’s of mixed breeds. Rollo, our mini-Australian Shepherd, passed his driver’s ed test and now he has a driving license. In the picture below he is coming back from a visit to grandma and grandpa. He drove there all by himself.
For the truth about the above – and some great photos, click here.
Getting this post to my liking is becoming a test
If you will like it is something I can only guess
Trying to rhyme the next line with the word sheet
Leaves this mind feeling like a worn out athlete
No worries, all three challenges have been addressed
panaecea:
The Test
It was his first after struggling for twelve long years.
A make-it or break-it opportunity.
The Director said he had it in him.
This was a test of his lifetime and he had to pass with flying colours.
Just one dialogue and a minute’s appearance on stage before a live audience pulsating with excitement.
He had mugged up the line to the extent that he could repeat it even in deep sleep.
Which went like this :
“Your highness ! I opened the lid of the wok to find the mutton was gone!”
What a powerful , profound punch pivotal to the play!!!!
But …. Ooooh!!! These butterflies in the pit of the stomach and the trembling in the legs.
Somebody gave him a push from the back and he stumbled on stage landing straight at the feet of the king seated regally on his grand throne.
A second’s hesitation. Then a quick recovery.
He lifted his head dramatically.
“Your Highness!” His voice quivered a bit.
But again he cleared his throat as though it were a part of the act.
(He was a natural, wasn’t he?)
And repeated with all his bottled up emotions,
“Your highness ! I opened the lid of the mutton to find the wok was gone!”
A deathly silence….
Followed by roars of laughter, cat calls and whistles..
Something hard fell on the stage
….smelly….rotten…
Then the curtains were dropped hastily
Unexpectedly
And a scream mixed with a few garbled ejaculations …. Unprintable.
That was from the Director…
Ufff!
He had failed again…
***
PS : This was my father’s favourite story which we asked him to repeat often. He loved to deliver the line “Your highness ! I opened the lid of the mutton to find the wok was gone!” with a lot of dramatic humour!!!!
The Afterlove Voice:
Life has a way of testing us.
Not with pencils and paper, but with moments that ask who we really are.
Some tests arrive quietly.
A difficult decision. The choice between speaking up or staying silent. Finding patience when everything feels impossible.
Others arrive without warning.
Illness. Loss. Heartbreak. The kind of tests no one volunteers to take.
I’ve taken many tests throughout my life.
School exams that were forgotten within weeks.
Medical tests that changed how I understood my body.
Driving tests that taught me confidence doesn’t appear all at once—it grows mile by mile.
But the greatest tests have never come with grades.
They have been the moments when life asked me to keep going, even when I wanted to give up.
To stay kind when bitterness seemed easier.
To hold onto hope when the future looked uncertain.
Those are the tests that shape us.
The interesting thing about life is that we rarely know we’re being tested until we look back.
Only then do we realise how much stronger, wiser, or more compassionate we have become.
A test is not always there to prove what you know.
Sometimes…
it is there to reveal who you are.
And perhaps that is the only result that truly matters.
Cathy Cade:
At the End of the Day
Remember the test card when TV was young?
It aired at the end of the day.
The last programme ended; a voice said goodnight,
and the National Anthem would play.
Some recall it as spooky: that eerie clown’s grin
and the lassie’s sardonic smile.
These days, there are programmes on twenty-four hours,
and the test card’s been gone for a while.
A piercing tone, like a high-pitched drone,
used to sound when the test card appeared
in case you’d forgotten to turn it off
as the Sandman’s visit neared.
And sometimes I think I would welcome that shriek
that once would fill my head,
because it would serve to wake me up
in time to go to bed.
Roberta Writes:
Life Tests (haibun)
When I was a girl of nine, I contracted chicken pox. Within a week, my three younger sisters also went down with the virus. There were no vaccinations for chicken pox back then and Laura, aged one year old, and I were both very sick. I remember the day before the spots broke out in support of my claim of feeling unwell. It was a Saturday so we were all at home. I lay on a bean bag in the family room in a patch of winter sunshine feeling to ill to even read. My mother brought me a chicken mayonnaise sandwich at lunchtime but I could not eat it. Not even a bite. She was annoyed when she saw the untouched sandwich and said I was naughty to not eat it. She didn’t believe me when I said I was nauseous. On reflection, its strange that she didn’t believe me as I was never fussy about food and a chicken mayonnaise sandwich was a treat. I’ve never forgotten that she didn’t believe me. A day or two later, I came out in the tell tale rash and Mom knew I had chicken pox. One by one, the other children got sick and came out in rashes. The rash was itchy and I had to lie in a bath with Epsom Salts a few times a day to help sooth my skin which has always been ultra sensitive. We were all warned not to scratch the rash as that would leave scars. The only good thing I remember about this period is that I missed all the end of term tests for my grade. I was given an exemption from writing the tests due to contagious illness. I still have a few white scars along my hairline as testimony to my having had chickenpox. I never liked chicken mayonnaise sandwiches after this and still don’t ever eat them.
An interesting thing about this episode of childhood illness is that Mom never got chickenpox. We all assumed she’d had this virus as a child. A few years ago, my mother contracted chicken pox at the age of eighty four. This illness was a real test of her resilience and she had to be hospitalised for a few days. Her skin was yellow and she looked like a dried pear. It’s amazing that she cared for four sick children and never picked up the illness. Her resistance must have been good at the time.
white chickenpox scars
reminders of misery
days of nausea
Boomcha:
The Real Test
The real test came on an ordinary morning. I had dropped the kids off and was sitting in my car outside my first hospice visit. I had been a nurse for years, but this field was new, and I felt the weight of doing it while raising two children alone. I remember gripping the steering wheel and wondering if I could carry everything that waited on the other side of that door.
I walked in anyway. I met a family who needed calm, and I found it in myself even though I wasn’t sure it was there. I guided them through a moment that mattered, then went home and helped with homework and made dinner like any other night.
That was when I understood the test. Strength wasn’t in choosing between hospice and single motherhood. It was in discovering I could hold both without breaking.
And I did.
Susan Batten:
“I’VE PASSED MY TEST!”
How often do you take a driving test? Very likely, only once, when you first learn. You may be required to do simulated tests to renew your license, and have your eyesight checked, but a real-time, out-on-the-road, rush-hour traffic test? Does this happen? How many people – drivers all their lives – are on the road today, barely familiar with the new controls and sensors in the modern car, often forgetful of the Highway Code and definitely “set in their ways”?
When I came to live in the Basque Country, I left my car behind and didn’t need to drive for four years. Then, with a bit of rubber-stamping, I got a Spanish driving license and was loosed on the public highway: a left-hander in a left-hand drive car, with a raft of new challenges to face. I had two hours’ driving round the town with a driving school instructor. At the end, he told me my bad habits were too ingrained to correct and I just needed practice. Don’t tell me I didn’t need a new test!
A Multitude of Musings:
Testing, Testing... in so Many Ways
The word this week is “test”. I could, like I’ve done so many times, rant about the use and misuse of testing in education and care. I mean, everyone who’s followed my blog for some time knows about the nearly thirty-year-old, horribly flawed IQ score still in my care plan today. However, I recently saw the housing profile that will be used in finding me a more suitable place and it thankfully never mentions my IQ.
There are, of course, many other meanings to the word “test”. It could refer to something new you’re trying. For example, today I cooked a cabbage and mashed potato dish. It was the first time I cooked something with mashed potatoes (or boiled potatoes in general, for that matter). When I mashed the cabbage/potato mixture, it sounded horribly soggy, so I almost threw out the entire pot. Thankfully, a staff convinced me to let it sit and see if I and/or my fellow residents would like it regardless. Turns out that, though the texture was too smooth for my liking, it wasn’t nearly as bad as I’d expected.
On Monday, I also took out my AirPods to test if they still worked. My best friend had cleaned them several months ago and I was too impatient to let them properly dry. Turns out my right earbud was ruined, though the left one still works. I have been using headphones ever since, but don’t particularly like the feel of headphones on my ears. I do have earbuds, but cannot use those to make phone calls.
This got me thinking of finally buying new AirPods. Browsing the Apple Store online sent me down a rabbit hole of thinking I might want to buy a Macbook again. I had one for about six months in 2019, but struggled to get used to it. The thing is though, I bought that one without researching it properly first because my previous Windows laptop had been near-dead for several months and health insurance wouldn’t pay for me to get JAWS for Windows. JAWS at the time didn’t have a subscription plan, so I’d have to pay like €1000 for just a screen reader. That didn’t make sense to me, so I spent this money on a new Macbook. Six months later, insurance changed its mind and I couldn’t wait to buy a Windows laptop again. I sold my Macbook to my then mother-in-law. Now that my Windows laptop is still working and, besides, I do get annual JAWS upgrades, I have more time to actually orient myself before making a choice.
My best friend was a bit worried when I mentioned the idea of buying a Macbook, because well she doesn’t want me to get overly stressed about it like I was in 2019. That being said, Windows has near-weekly updates that change things around, so I’m more used to adjusting to changes in my tech than I was back then. We’ll see where this goes…
Cathy Cade:
Acid Test
The honeymoon has come and gone.
So far, so good; you jog along.
When feeling ill and looking rough,
does he support you, or rebuff
with acid comments and cruel jest?
This is love’s true litmus test.
The Elephant's Trunk:
Can You Hear Me Knocking?
When my children were old enough to start school, I decided I would teach Sunday School at our little Presbyterian church; I was assigned to the kindergarten class. We read Bible stories, watched animated videos about the Old and New Testaments, sang songs, and did Bible arts and crafts. It was uncomplicated …. until one of the children asked what happens when we die.
“You go to heaven, unless you’ve been really bad” one girl adamantly answered.
“Yeah! Then you go to H-E-L-L!” another kid chimed in, spelling out the bad word.
“That’s right but only the girls are turned into angels and then God tries to do the best he can with the boys” claimed a little girl, quite sure of herself.
“That’s not true” yelled the boys. ”Everybody in heaven is an angel and God is the head angel!”
Suppressing a laugh, I figured I better take back control of my class and start asking some questions.
“Who thinks they know what heaven is like?” I asked.
The girls all agreed that “there’s lots of singing and dancing to harp music and everyone wears flowers in their hair.”
But the boys had different opinions, especially about wearing flowers in their hair.
“Boys have halos just like Jesus and they help feed the animals in heaven.”
One boy raised his hand and answered very seriously “There are no doctors or lawyers in heaven because God does all the healing and arguments aren’t allowed.”
“There’s always angel food cake …. not devil’s food cake” giggled a blue-eyed girl with pig tails.
A little boy was next to answer the question. “God sits in heaven but he isn’t on a throne or anything like that. He sits in a garden playing with the children, puppies and kittens and lets them climb on him. And the grownups just do stuff like they used to do at home.”
I asked another question: “How did heaven begin?”
Silence.
Then one tiny, timid girl answered quietly “A really long time ago a lot of kids were crying because their grandmas and grandpas were dying so God said ‘Don’t cry. I’m going to make a beautiful place way above the clouds where all the grandparents and parents and pets can stay forever’. And so he made heaven.”
I felt a lump in my throat, perhaps thinking of my own grandparents, but in all honesty I’m sure it was the simple yet poignant answer of that sweet girl. I coughed a bit to mask the emotion in my voice and asked another question.
“Is there a special test to get into heaven?”
I was rewarded with a resounding “NO!”
I countered with “No? Well if there’s no test how do we get into heaven?”
An adorable red-headed boy dotted with freckles quickly raised his hand and said “When you get to heaven, God whispers one question in your ear.”
“He does? What’s the question?” I asked.
“He asks ‘Do you love me?’ It’s really not a hard question. And when you say ‘Yes’, God kisses you and says ‘Come on in!”
Intrigued, I asked “And how do you know this?”
Displaying a toothless grin he declared “My grandpa tells me every time I talk to him. That’s what God asked him when he got to heaven and my grandpa said ‘YES!’”
And all the kids shouted “YES!!”
Poetisinta:
Don't Test My Love
You keep pushing that line
Like I won't fold
You watch me calm and quiet
Then act so bold
I held your hand through fire
Held my tongue too long
But don't mistake my silence
For not being strong
I can take a lot
But I've got limits
One more little game
And you're gonna know
I don't break easy
I don't bend for show
Just read my eyes
Before I let go
Don't test my love
Don't test my love
I give my all
Then I draw the line
Don't test my love
You keep on playing
You could lose your mind
I can take a lot
But I've got limits
One more little game
And you're gonna know
I don't break away
I don't bend for show
Just read my eyes
Before I let go
I am not a maybe
Not a passing mood
If you want to real thing
Then be real too
I'm tired of the doubt
Tired of the pull-away
Say my name like you mean it
Or step away
Don't test my love
I give my all
Then I draw the line
Don't test my love
Don't test my love
You keep on playing
You will lose your mind
Don't test my love
Don't test my love
Say it straight now
Or leave me behind
***
Image credit: Pinterest
Esther Chilton 
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