The clock struck midnight.  At that precise moment in time, it seem everything stood still. Our neighbor's dog, who seconds before was barking at the moon, stood fixed in place also. 

Like a statue, Max seemed frozen stiff.  I walked all around him and he never flinched.  What was happening felt too bizarre, and like something out of a science fiction movie.  Maybe I had watched too much of it.  I needed answers.  I also noticed that the hands of the clock began moving, but in reverse.

The same dog was moving in reverse also.  Nothing regarding me changed at all.  I wasn't headed backwards.  As I kept watching the actions of both clock and dog, a limo pulled up.  A man stepped out of it and began addressing me.  "So, my experiment worked!  I got the hands of time to go backwards.  You are my first witness!  I'm Professor Clay Atkins, by the way."

"I'm Tom, and it didn't exactly work as you had planned, I'm still going forward."

"I didn't shoot you.  What I'm saying is, I used my laser device on the clock and dog.  I didn't feel comfortable to try it on human subjects just yet.  But the dog seems to be okay with no after effects."

Indeed, the dog returned to his earlier barking at the moon, and the clock returned again to strike midnight.  How bizarre this all seemed.  "Professor, why not build a time machine to go back in time?"

"I thought I'd start small, and then work my way up to that.  I'm satisfied with dealing with smaller time frames.  My father died on an operating table, and time is what really killed him.  Had the doctor been given just a few more seconds he could have saved him.

My device will accomplish that feat, and now many more will be afforded a second chance in life."

"In that case, I applaud your work here and heartily endorse your experiment.  Allow me to be your first human subject."  I signed a release paper that gave Tom the permission to shoot me.  Now only time will tell...

It was holiday time again, and Sadie was out on her block. This was her best time of year; guys were especially generous at Christmas. They expected her to be just as generous. 

It was something the men in her life clamored for. The train she chose to ride went faster and faster around every bend. One day this girl would fall off. The life she chose was a dangerous one; different men every night. 

"Hey, lady, I like your dress. You smell good too." She lured another stranger into her lair and den of surprises, and off they rode until the morning. She always said the sun came up too early. Her day job at a restaurant kept her in change all of the time, but no real money. 

A girl's gotta live; she would keep telling herself. Most of the chumps she spent her nightly routine with all seemed to have more money than brains. And the dumber they were the bigger the pay out. 

Carl was a young lawyer headed out into the world and was trying a new job on for size. He was a good looking guy and most of the ladies watched him carefully as he walked by. He had that stride about him that girls talked about for weeks. 

Sadie liked anything in a pair of pants that happened by her place. And her place was always Fourth and Donovan streets.

Her need for the extra money, and her unquenched appetite for the opposite sex, kept her out there night after night. 

As Carl passed by her web of passion, he couldn't help admire her beauty. What he was seeing though, was not the sleek lines of her body or the way her hair drifted softly down her back in ringlets. No, he saw something deep inside her. 

One night Sadie spied him looking at her for the first time. She decided he was going to be her next intended, so she laid a cunning trap for him. As Carl was headed down her block of occupation, Sadie stepped out into his path. Over they both fell. Sadie was so caught up in her drive to nail this new appetizer that she never noticed the large hot coffee he was carrying. 

Most of the scalding brew landing in her face and she screamed. Someone handed Carl a wet towel and he put it on her burn. It was too late. This beauty of the night season was the victim of her own passion. So bent on hooking another victim, and bleeding him of some of his funds, she ended up in a burn unit at the local hospital. 

The train she was constantly pulling came to an abrupt stop. She couldn't go to work or continue her street beat. She was laid up. Word got out that she was in the hospital recovering from burns, but no one went to see her, not even the johns she had previously serviced. 

Yes, Carl did look in on her, but she figured he was just feeling guilty for what happened. He didn't know she was so active at night. This accident put a stop to all of her activities and she would struggle now to make ends meet. Sadie hadn't noticed the huge bouquet of red roses in the corner of her room. Carl had brought them on his first visit. 

She was still groggy from medication to ease the pain; and the scarring would be permanent, she was told. Her spirits were as low as they could

possible be, especially with this being Christmas time. But Carl was like a light flipped on in a dark room. His smile was infectious and she began telling him a little about her life; just not the night life part. She shared mostly about her childhood. 

She found this guy easy to talk to. He listened as she rattled on about her life. To him it was not boring. She became a different person as she related stories of her youth that caused a sparkle to return in her eyes. Her mother was a great cook and loved her children dearly. Sadie stayed clear of even mentioning a father figure in her entire conversation. 

The two of them laughed together as she continued spinning her childhood tales. When she was three, she picked up a kitten by its neck, and it was screaming as she choked it almost to death. The more the kitty screamed, the tighter she gripped its throat. Finally her mother was able to pry the small lifeless animal from her fingers. 

"Honey, you can't hold a small kitten like that, it can't breath." The kitten didn't die, but probably wished its life had hurried up and been over at the time. Once she stood on her brother's head in their pond behind the house. Her head was above water, but he couldn't breath. He didn't die either. 

When Carl would try to bring up the subject of her father, Sadie would shy away by changing the subject. Then Carl did the unspeakable. "Your dad hurt you, didn't he?" 

At this point Sadie lost her face in her lap and tears began soaking her hospital gown. "I don't want to talk about it. Please, we were having such a good time, I thought." 

"Yes we were, and I am so sorry I said anything.

I wouldn't hurt you for the world."



Those words went deep into Sadie's heart.

She knew she could truly love this man. He was just what the doctor ordered, especially after a childhood of abuse that ended with her living on the street for a while. 

At the tender young age of eleven, Sadie planned her escape from home. The only man in her life at the time was a convicted sex offender, and she lived under the same roof with him. After her real dad died, this creep came by and started helping her mom put her life back together. She was a stay at home mom, and her husband had always provided well for them. 

Her mother was caught between a rock and hard place at the time. She had no money and didn't want the children fostered out. She made some desperate decisions, including taking in a monster. The mother looked the other way as this creature, this stranger, would make nightly visits to her two daughters' rooms. Things got out of hand one night when this poor excuse for a stepfather brought a young lady home with him.



Sadie's mother had a nervous breakdown and ended up in the hospital. She never recovered from this incident and doctors say her heart was just too frail and it gave up. When folks asked her what happened to her mom, she would always say that she died of a broken heart. 

Sadie finally began to slowly relate the dark side of her childhood to Carl. He was such a good listener, and at times she would melt into his arms on the couch. The last thing on her mind was to sleep with him, but the only thing she wanted was to be lying beside him in his full embrace. She knew the difference of being used like a rag doll, and being desired for the woman she was in a clean relationship. Her father and mother loved each other in such a way that Sadie had always yearned for the same. Carl was that man! 

When Sadie began to tell about her street life, Carl stopped her abruptly. "I know who you are now, and you have told me enough about the young girl you were. Those are the only two women I want to be with. Can we just begin a life together from this point on? I know this will be a Christmas we will both remember. 

He knew this was the perfect time to pop the question. Sadie did not answer him at first. She burst into a flood of tears that appeared unending. After what seemed like an hour, Carl was able to calm her heart and ask again his question. 

Before he got the words all out, she rushed into his arms and said, "Are you crazy, of course I want to marry you." There in his other hand was a bouquet of red roses. They looked like the same ones he sent to the hospital on that first visit. The only difference was the big green holiday bow it was tied with. She remembered that her father had always given her mother the same color roses on special occasions when they were together.

The two married at Christmas and moved to another part of the country away from her past and where two people could begin a new life. Carl never asked Sadie about her life of misgivings; he so adored her. Sadie grew to appreciate the scars on her face. When her first child reached the age of five, she asked her mom how she got those marks. "It was both a sad and a happy day. It was the very day I met your father. You might say we got together over a hot cup of coffee." 

Author Notes: There is hardly a speck of truth in this piece, and it was simply drawn from my imagination. The only part that really happened was when my wife and I visited an animal farm with our daughter. She went crazy for the kitties and was loving one of them almost to death. We couldn't believe this was happening and my wife literally had to pry her fingers from the kitten's throat. LOL

It will take a lot of getting use to. Christmas is no longer a recognized

holiday. 

The decision to ban Christmas was made in the 19th Circus Court of Repeals in the West Coast state of Confusion. The panel of judges heard evidence and claims that basically led to their unanimous decision. 

Christmas had outlived its usefulness. It was argued that this particular day had become way too commercialized. When storeowners began bringing Christmas trimmings out in February, it was the last straw that sealed the deal. 

The new ruling would rename December 25th as The Holiday. Everyone had been conditioned earlier to say Happy Holidays instead of Merry Christmas, so this had been in the planning stages for some time. 

Families would still be meeting for a festive get together with one important change. No longer would it be a day of giving, but rather one of taking. The way the Circus court spelled it out: each person was to go to any store in his or her neighborhood and pick out a gift to take home for himself or herself. This way there would be ‘no one left behind’ without a gift. 

Too many children were going without on Christmas, while others were drenched in gifts galore. So now there is a one person, one gift rule that will be strictly enforced. Anyone caught taking more than one gift would face fines and imprisonment. 

The churches that represented the voices of the moral majority could not be reached for comment. Christmas would now be called The Holiday. It would be mainly a time for families to get together, and would be still celebrated as a legal holiday on the American calendar. The merriment and drinking would still continue on Holiday Eve. 

The next day on the calendar to be scrutinized for possible changes would be the Easter bunny one – another commercialized fiasco. This will not go down without a fight, what with egg farmers calling in everyday registering their complaints. 

By D.G.Ford

"Little Orphan Bess”

by Don G. Ford 

A long time ago 

In a galaxy far far away 

Awaits the next sequel 

Being held at bay 

We await the results 

Of the last movie option 

The next movie out 

Should be based on adoption 

Which sends the right message 

A sort of letter in a bottle 

Like the tale of Stuart Little 

Our film star will model 

Without a mother of father 

Our story will then progress 

As we rally to the side 

Of Little Orphan Bess 

 (There’s a whole lot more ...BUY THE BOOK!}