I told these 8-10 year kids at a summer camp I was a camp counselor at with the straightest face that I have web toes. And the whole summer I had these campers believe that Miss Anna had on aqua socks every time they went to swim in the lake because she was embarrassed of her webbed feet.

It probably gave me too much joy as a 20 year old grown up kid myself...

...and also, I've got some very important procrastinating to do, so hi everybody. The "R" in my name is for "Ryan," and I've been teaching high school English in the part of New York with cows for 16+ years. I joined Prose in October 2019 because I hadn't written anything for a very long time but wanted to. The community here kept me inspired and motivated so that I actually stuck with writing and worked on it for real. Through all the practice and experimentation, I improved.

The breakthrough came when I wrote a story titled "Rideshare": it was the best thing I'd written to that point, and when readers told me so, I moved from the maybe-someday phase of writing to the going-for-it phase of writing. Eighteen months later, I have a handful of small-outlet publications under my belt and 60,000 words of a novel. I'm a teacher--it's who I am and I love it--but regardless of how far my writing goes or doesn't, it no longer feels silly to think of myself as a writer. As a friend once told me, "A writer is one who writes," nothing more, nothing less, and I knew that, but Prose helped me to feel that. It's home.

(Longtime readers might remember "Rideshare," but if anyone is curious to read it, I'm happy to say the story got picked up by Sleet Magazine: https://www.sleetmagazine.com/selected/love_v13n2.html)

Cheers, everyone. Glad to be Prosing with you.

Dear Heart,

There have been so many times in my life since the first time ever I saw your face, my soul danced with absolute joy at the essence of your unchained melody that flowed from you.

I can’t help falling in love with you every day as if it is always the first time with no end in sight. I know of no other way to tell you my way of feeling for you goes beyond all worldly boundaries.

Today, tomorrow, yesterday—are all moments that cannot simply be thought randomly of but rather with a purpose to profess a need far greater than imagined.

Can a person say they have no purpose in life? I did and believed that. But then—then you came into my life and the darkness lifted from me and knew then, I would do anything for love.

As you belong to me, I too, belong to you. To walk by your side, hold your hand, to love and make love with you without limitation within our own universe of never-ending time.

My precious one, I know that I ramble with my words, but I know of no other way to explain how truly, madly, deeply I am in love with you.

Always in All Ways,

Vincent

*** The picture has nothing to do with the piece but can you pick the correct answer? The artists did 1,560 words in six minutes, an average of 4.28 words per second.

Listen. It's time we talk.

Do you mind going for a walk?

I know you love things simple,

but your meato-keto diet gave your smile another dimple.

Time to take away the bourbon you consume with your beast of burden.

For you are not a caveman

nor a farmer of the land,

but rather

a 21st century man.