Welcome to Poppy's Blog!
Today Poppy is sharing a writing prompt she completed.
"Write a story about a character who's nervous about attending a party - their first in a long time."
As she finished her morning meeting, she stopped in the break room to pour a cup of coffee. She then headed down the hall to her office. She was
balancing her files, portfolio along with the coffee cup. She dropped the files on her chair as she pushed
the office door open. She then noticed
a tiny envelope on her desk that read "Invitation." She grabbed her files from
the chair, set them on the desk, and reached for the tiny envelope. She
flipped it over, and it was embossed with a golden seal. It was so beautiful;
she hated opening it. Carefully she opened it, and it was a party
invitation. She had not attended a party since her office
promotion about 4 years ago. She was determined to move forward in her professional life, which meant "nose to the grind." She looked at the invitation one more time
before she dropped it into her satchel.
When she returned home that night, she pulled
the invitation out of her satchel while sipping on her wine and set it on the
kitchen counter. She ate dinner, watched a little TV, and went to bed.
The following day, she saw the pretty party invitation on the kitchen counter and smiled. She then left for
work. Today was the big day for the presentation she worked on, and she was confident she would nail it. The presentation went well, and
she was elated. Her manager was very pleased. As she walked down the hall, she was
smiling.
She returned to her office and sat looking out of the office
window. There was a knock at the door. It was Tim from next
door. He asked if she had received the invitation to the party. She
said yes, but she would not attend. Tim said, only certain people from
the firm were invited. She said, nice, but she would have to
decline. Tim said, too bad it will be an interesting party. She
smiled as Tim walked out of her office.
It was party night. She arrived home and slipped her pajamas on, and decided to watch a little TV. As she sat watching TV, she kept
looking at the invitation on the kitchen counter. She then got up, walked
over, and picked it up. She said what the heck and made a beeline to her
closet. What to wear.
She found her little black dress and slipped
it on. She then pulled a black silk scarf with embroidered flowers that would add a splash of color. She then grabbed her black
open-toe shoes, along with a black clutch purse. On her way out of
the door, she looked in the mirror. She was perfect.
On her way to the party, she was very
nervous. She had not attended a party in a while. She thought to herself, it's like riding a bicycle. Right? She then laughed.
She arrived at the party to find plenty of
attendees. She pulled her dress down, straightened her hair, and walked
towards the front entrance. She knew if she allowed herself to be nervous, her knees would knock together.
She walked into the party and headed for the
bar to grab a glass of wine. As she reached the bar, there was a tap on
her shoulder. She turned around, and it was an old friend Janice. They struck up a conversation. As Janice
talked, she noticed her manager watching. Janice was a well-known
author. Her manager came over to join the conversation. She asked right away, how do you know each
other? Janice was excited to say we grew up in the same neighborhood.
She said, interesting. Tim walked over, and I introduced him to
Janice, and he too joined the conversation. We both shared a few stories as the
wine flowed. Our circle started to grow, and most of the attendees had
joined us and added to the conversation. We laughed and had a
great time.
As the evening winded down, Janice gave me a big hug and said she had to go. Janice then
whispered in my ear, "you were the "belle of the ball." She then let
out a chuckle. While driving home, she was pleased that she had attended the party.
