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Murray Burns

Author on Reedsy Prompts since Jan, 2022

Stories (150)

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276 Followers

29 Following

150 Stories

4778 karma pts

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A Dog's Best Friend

Murray Burns

Submitted to Contest #332

A Dog’s Best Friend "You've heard of the British Nation and the French Nation? Well, this is the Imagination. And when you get there, you can do almost anything you want."-Kris Kringle, Miracle on 34th Street Reality to dream to delusion. This was the life of Riley.“Riley, what’s wrong?”“I’m not sure, Scoots. I feel sick as a dog.”This was always hard on Scoots. He knew his best friend, Riley, a stout, tricolor five-year-old beagle, had struggled with it for years. Scoots had tried everything: gentle persuasion, fierce argument, video clips,...

18 likes

Sex Worker Gets Final Rose

Murray Burns

Submitted to Contest #331

Sex Worker Gets Final Rose“Caveat emptor.”-Ancient Roman principle (Crude, possibly offensive humor) The unexpected confluence of seemingly unrelated factors can lead to interesting results.Factor #1- Herb, soft, if not pudgy, forty-two-year-old, mild-mannered, self-checkout lane observer at Walmart; average in appearance with a nondescript personality; lonely.Factor #2- Once popular TV show dropping in the ratings.Factor #3- Creative TV writer brought in to save TV show dropping in ratings.Factor #4- TV producer desperate to salvage TV show...

16 likes

A Sin for the Ages

Murray Burns

Submitted to Contest #329

A Sin for the Ages“Confession is good for the soul.”-Scottish proverb. The lights were still shining through the stained-glass windows of St. Peter’s. Every second Tuesday of the month, Father O’Brien heard evening confessions for sinners who couldn’t take off from work if their souls depended on it. He was old school. The penitent took their place in a cramped cubicle and unloaded their transgressions on the elderly priest behind the curtain. Presumed anonymity loosens the lips and bares the soul.The lines had been long that night. It was t...

15 likes

I Still Remember You, Duncan

Murray Burns

Submitted to Contest #328

I Still Remember You, Duncan “Why have all the pieces joined together to create such a cruel fate?” -Origin unknown 1965 The memory has persisted for sixty-two years. This is remarkable because I never even met him. Duncan, was just the guy who sat in the last row of my high school Spanish class, noticeable because he was always smiling or laughing, or at times struggling to stay awake. I envied him at the time because he was able to stay up late enough to watch the Steve Allen Late Night Show. Duncan was the prototype of the class clown wit...

16 likes

Hecate Remembers Macbeth

Murray Burns

Submitted to Contest #327

Hecate Remembers Macbeth “Double, double toil and trouble,Fire burn and cauldron bubble.Fillet of fenny snake,In the cauldron boil and bake;Eye of newt and toe of frog,Wool of bat and tongue of dog,Adder’s fork and blind-worm's sting,Lizard’s leg and howlet’s wing,For a charm of powerful trouble.Like a hell-broth boil and bubble.Double, double, toil and trouble;Fire burn and cauldron bubble.”-Shakespeare ; Macbeth Halloween, the night of the witching hour, was the only day of the year that stirred Hecate’s spirit, the lone remnant of the glo...

12 likes

Cruel Encounters of the Third Kind

Murray Burns

Submitted to Contest #326

Cruel Encounters of the Third Kind“If you have never been hated by your child, you’ve never been a parent.”-Bette Davis Reader discretion advised: repeated references to oppression and suffering.Early and often, that is my tale of woe. It was only though a strong spirit, mental toughness, and the grace of God that I survived. I remember it all like it was yesterday. Traumatic events leave lasting scars.----------“Waa, waa, waa.”Who could ignore the anguish of a crying child? My parents, that’s who! At the vulnerable age of one, I was left al...

17 likes

Loving

Murray Burns

Submitted to Contest #325

Loving“No, that’s not what I mean. No, no… I mean that I love them. I’ve beenso lucky to have been able to have someone to love so much.”-Bessie (Diane Keaton); Marvin’s Room “Let’s hit the bars, Henry. The ladies are waiting.”“You go, Jack. I’m tired of trolling for women at the bars and clubs. I want a more meaningful relationship.”“The girls I meet at the bars hold a lot of meaning for me. A man has his needs, you know.”“No, I’m good here tonight.”“Your loss, Henry. I’m feeling lucky tonight.”“You always feel lucky.”“You’re not going to f...

20 likes

Redemption

Murray Burns

Submitted to Contest #324

RedemptionJune, the month the Colorado River gorges itself on mountain snowmelt as it picks up steam, weaving its way down the Western Slope. Rapids, calm, wide, narrow, shallow, deep, left turn, right turn. Six million years in the making, but it was today that mattered.Carl often came to this place at river’s edge, the magnetic pull of the imagined and the unforgettable. The images played in his mind as often as the sun rises, creating a tapestry of memories and dreams competing for places in his mind. God made the human brain in such a wa...

17 likes

Sisyphus, Beans, Zucchini, and a Pumpkin

Murray Burns

Submitted to Contest #323

Sisyphus, Beans, Zucchini, and a Pumpkin“Who will help me plant the wheat?”“Not I… Not I… Not I… Not I.”-The Little Red HenHerb missed his time. He couldn’t forge his way through the Kentucky wilderness with Daniel Boone, roam the Plains with Buffalo Bill in search of life-sustaining game, or team up with Lewis and Clark to blaze a trail across an untamed land. With his fanciful imagery of the rugged individual vs. the land, he even sometimes (with an assist from Camus’ take on Sisyphus- the struggle is what gives our lives meaning) thought ...

16 likes

Winning

Murray Burns

Submitted to Contest #322

Winning“Winning isn’t everything, it’s the only thing.”-Vince Lombardi It was a different time. Joey could walk six blocks in three different directions and usually find a pickup game on one of the baseball diamonds that had evolved naturally in empty fields over the years. He didn’t care where he played- infield, outfield, catcher, whatever. He pitched once in a while, though his “stuff” was limited to a pretty respectable straight ball. Position didn’t matter to this thirteen-year-old boy who had pictures of Aaron, Adcock, Matthews, and Sp...

15 likes

Peeling the Orange

Murray Burns

Submitted to Contest #321

Peeling the Orange“Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.”-Anthony Weldon, The Court and Character of King James, 1651“This is pretty exciting, Roy, my first President’s address to Congress. I’m nervous.”“This is my 17th, and I still get goosebumps, Fred. It’s such an honor just to see him in person.”“Well, I’ll just follow your lead, you know, for when to clap and for how long.”“It’s not complicated, Fred. Basically, every time he says something, you clap. Stand up when I stand up and sit down when I do. You’ll be fine. And...

25 likes

One Afternoon in a Physical Therapy Waiting Room

Murray Burns

Submitted to Contest #297

One Afternoon in a Physical Therapy Waiting Room“Excuse me, Miss, could you hand me one of those magazines?”“Which one?”“I don’t think it matters. They’re all a year old.”The old man laughed and the young girl smiled. Personal connections have been born of less, but none had bridged so many years. Fate has an interesting way of bringing people together, even the very old and the very young, and sometimes in the most surprising of places.“You are going to dramatically affect the average age of the clientele here, young lady. You could bring i...

20 likes

Friends on Ice

Murray Burns

Submitted to Contest #290

“Friends on Ice”“It’s a great day for hockey.”-Bob “The Hawk” Johnson, former University of Wisconsin hockey coachA visitor couldn’t tell the color of the walls in little Lincoln’s bedroom. They were covered floor-to-ceiling with posters of the all-time hockey greats- Howe guiding the puck down the ice, Gretzky dropping one in coming around the side of the net, Lemieux hoisting the Stanley Cup, and Hashek with a spectacular skate save.Lincoln’s Grandfather was once the stick boy for Chicago’s hockey team, so the Blackhawks were well-rep...

25 likes

Herb Meets His Maker... Maybe

Murray Burns

Submitted to Contest #289

Herb Meets His Maker…Maybe                                             “Which door will it be?”                                     &nbsp...

23 likes

A Rainy Day in 2348 BC

Murray Burns

Submitted to Contest #288

A Rainy Day in 2348 BC“Often it does seem such a pity that Noah and his party did not miss the boat.”-Mark Twain“Looks like quite a storm brewing, Pops. We better call it a day.”“Nope, my itchy toe says no rain today, Shem. You’re just trying to get out of work early. Get back to the sheep.” “You and your stupid itchy toe. I’m telling you this one is going to a barn-buster.”“That’s why I call you ‘Chicken Little’. You worry too much. Now get back to work.”Noah was tough on his kids. His wife, whose name he somehow never learned (he affe...

34 likes