Shanon Angermeyer Norman
Bio
Gold, Published Poet at allpoetry.com since 2010. USF Grad, Class 2001.
Currently focusing here in VIVA and Challenges having been ECLECTIC in various communities. Upcoming explorations: ART, BOOK CLUB, FILTHY, PHOTOGRAPHY, and HORROR.
Stories (377)
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The Orphans in the Woods
It was about dawn when Gertrude opened her eyes, stretched her body as she rose from her bed. She could tell that the sun hadn't completely risen yet, as her bedroom was still dark. She walked from her room out into the living room and saw that her brother was asleep on the couch. She remembered that he had tucked her into bed last night, and felt like crying knowing that Mom and Dad were no longer here to tuck him in anymore. She didn't want to wake him up so she tip-toed quietly into the kitchen to look for a snack. She found a slice of American cheese, removed the plastic film from it and began chewing on that. Then she walked out of the kitchen heading to the back of the house and before she knew it she was standing in front of her parent's bedroom at the closed door. Her memory was clouded about what she had seen. All she remembered was them on the floor and blood. But she didn't really look. What did they look like dead? Should she look again? Should she say goodbye to their bodies? She had wanted to go in there to look for more money, but was afraid. Now she was standing at the door trying to be brave. She wanted to be as helpful to her brother as she possibly could be. He was being so brave and strong.
By Shanon Angermeyer Normanabout a year ago in Chapters
The Orphans in the Woods
After Rohan filled the bag with all the batteries, flashlights, and candles he could find he zipped it closed. Then he walked around the house again feeling a combination of tired, stressed, and worried. His thoughts were racing. He peeked from behind the curtain out of the living room window and saw the darkness of the night. Mom's 65 Mustang was parked in the driveway. He hadn't even noticed that the car was there when he and Gertrude got home from school. He saw the full moon and the light beam glaring from it. He remembered his mother talking about the names of faces of the moon. He remembered his sister talking about werewolves who go crazy when the moon is full. Then he started thinking about the money they had put together so far. He sat back down on the couch and re-counted.
By Shanon Angermeyer Normanabout a year ago in Chapters
The Orphans in the Woods
Gertrude was sitting on the couch watching her brother sort through tools and place items in bags and clothes in his suitcase. She was trying to see what he was packing so that she could pack properly also. She started drifting off to sleep feeling exhausted, and finally she passed out on the couch. When Rohan noticed that she had fallen asleep, he stopped packing and went to her, nudging her gently.
By Shanon Angermeyer Normanabout a year ago in Chapters
The Orphans in the Woods. Top Story - January 2025.
Rohan washed the dishes and put them away. He was grateful that his sister had cooked dinner. It wasn't as good as Mom's cooking, but for her first try it wasn't that bad. She'd get better. Gertrude had begun looking around the house for money as Rohan had told her. After Rohan was done putting the washed dishes away, he double checked the front door to make sure it was locked. He glanced at the telephone on the wall in the kitchen. No one had called yet and he was glad. He wondered if he should disconnect the phone or leave it alone. He decided to leave it alone for now. He walked through the living room to his bedroom to find his large suitcase. He had to pack the suitcase carefully with his best camping clothes.
By Shanon Angermeyer Normanabout a year ago in Chapters
The Orphans in the Woods
While Rohan was in the living room sorting through various supplies in the wheelbarrow, Gertrude was in the kitchen straining spaghetti noodles. She opened a can of tomato sauce and found a jar of parmesan cheese in the refrigerator. She set the table for her and her brother the way she had always done every night for her mother. They had chores. Her chores included setting the table, clearing the table of the dishes, putting the clean dry dishes back in the cabinet, and sweeping. Her brothers chores included taking the garbage out, helping Mom bring groceries in and put them away, cleaning the bathroom, and general maintenance when Dad wasn't around like changing light bulbs or making sure the grass or snow wasn't blocking the driveway. They were good obedient children. They believed in God and they loved their parents. They had been taught well at home and in school even though Rohan had only begun 4th grade and Gertrude had just started 2nd grade. They were intelligent children, excelling in their school studies without complaining about the various disciplines they were being taught.
By Shanon Angermeyer Normanabout a year ago in Chapters
The Orphans in the Woods
Rohan was 9 and his sister Gertrude was 7 when they lost their parents. The year was 1970 when the tragedy happened and the siblings became orphans on the run. They had been living in Branchville, New Jersey in a lovely 3-bedroom house with their parents - Stefan and Gretchen Hamberg. They were a happy family. Everything seemed just right. Stefan had a good job as a trucker. Gretchen took care of the home and children. Rohan and Gertrude rode the bus to school Monday through Friday. On Sundays, Stefan was always home for morning church and evening dinner. Life was good. Until the dreadful August day. It was the last date that Rohan would remember for any significant reason. August 18th, 1970. That was the day when Stefan and Gretchen were murdered.
By Shanon Angermeyer Normanabout a year ago in Chapters
What can I do in 2025 as a Vocal Writer?
Today is Saturday, January 11th, 2025 as I write about this Vocal website, what it means to me, and what I could possibly achieve with it this year. 2025 is the year of The Snake on the Chinese calendar, closing the year of the Dragon, 2024. Snake years are not my worst years or my best. Born in 1971 (The year of the Boar), Pig years tend to favor me. As I plotted my life's timeline I noticed a trend of my worst years having been Dog years. The year of the Dog does not favor me. I have a pretty safe road since the next year of the Dog does not occur until 2030. The challenge for me this year in 2025 (Year of the Snake) is to somehow make sense of the parts of my life that don't make sense. I mean I have to sail my ship regardless if the wind is going the way I want it to. That's not easy for me anymore. It's not that I lack what is needed (I have a good ship, a strong compass, and plenty of experience), rather my lack of motivation mostly stems for the emotional debris that I haven't cleaned up yet. I linger in that emotional debris. I must lift the anchor of my emotional debris in order to let my ship sail. Yet it has become quite comfortable just floating in one spot. As I've watched and endured the enormous amount of changes and difficulties of the past five or six years, my resiliency and survival became attached and comfortable with my emotional debris. Motivation is the sum of desire plus ambition. If I or anyone lacks motivation, either desire or ambition or both is missing from the equation. This lack of motivation is puzzling to me because as I look back on my life's timeline, I had been a very ambitious and motivated person most of my life, in childhood and in adulthood. Perhaps the word "ambitious" is the puzzling part. Perhaps that word has become to "ambiguous" to me at this stage of my life, therefore I can not clearly define goals or express my motivations. Ambition? Ambition is defined as the attempt to achieve something that typically requires hard work and determination. In a song sung by Cher (Believe) the lyrics are "Do you believe in life after love? I can feel something inside me say I really don't think you're strong enough." I guess Cher is singing about how after a love relationship ends, one has to be strong to move on and keep going. They have to find a new motivation for life besides love. That's not always easy. What I call my personal baggage or my emotional debris is another way for me to say that I don't have love motivating me anymore. Many people think that success from hard work is motivated by ego or lust or greed. Perhaps that is true, but for me in my life, everything I've ever done has been motivated by love. My family was for love. My motherhood (albeit brief) was for love. My marriage was for love and comfort. My career was for love and money. No matter what I did in my life, love was always a motivating factor. So what do I do when there is no love? Motivation? For what?
By Shanon Angermeyer Normanabout a year ago in Motivation
The Unwanted Future
The year is 2050. Some historians attempted to document the events that lead to the end of civilization and humanity, but it was a futile attempt. After President Trump was assassinated in 2027, the United States had a second civil war. Millions of people were killed in riots, shootings, and road rage accidents. The hospitals were depleted of resources and doctors, as Corona Virus and various other viruses killed millions more. Energy sources (electric, oil, nuclear) began to fail as there were not enough educated and skilled engineers and technicians to maintain the nuclear plants or oil companies. Pollution began to create new viruses as acid rain began to kill the trees and plants. The air was toxic. The ozone gaps became worse. Global warming was keeping the temperatures above 95 degrees all over the world, all the time. There was no winter season anymore, and Spring and Autumn were not much different from Summer. The people who were leftover survivors suffered many physical ailments because the food and water had changed. The strongest survivors were murderers who had weapons and camping supplies. They would kill anyone or anything in their way for food or shelter.
By Shanon Angermeyer Normanabout a year ago in Futurism
The Future
There are two crystal balls. One shows the future if evil defeats good. The other shows the future if good defeats evil. I will tell you what I see in the crystal ball that shows the future in 2050, twenty-five years from today's 2025 - if good defeats evil.
By Shanon Angermeyer Normanabout a year ago in Futurism
Ghost Stories of The Bermuda Triangle
There are many rumors and stories about airplanes and ships that have disappeared in the region known as The Bermuda Triangle. Photographs of sunken vessels, people who had reportedly gone missing after traveling through the area, and images of strange weather and ocean phenomena can be found per research. However, there is no absolute factual information that can be agreed upon regarding the mysteries within the stories about The Bermuda Triangle; Therefore I have decided to interview and consult with a very powerful medium (Belinda "Mary" Propper) who has agreed to share what she knows since she has been receiving messages about these mysteries since 1999.
By Shanon Angermeyer Normanabout a year ago in Chapters
Confusion is like a road block
Information overload happens sometimes. Did I watch too much television? Did I read too many articles online of various topics? Did I inquire too much about various possibilities as I was trying to figure out how to "get a life"? Probably. It's like going to the buffet restaurant. There's so much! Where do I start? What should I try? What will I like?
By Shanon Angermeyer Normanabout a year ago in Journal
