Shirley Belk
Bio
Mother, Nana, Sister, Cousin, & Aunt who recently retired. RN (Nursing Instructor) who loves to write stories to heal herself and reflect on all the silver linings she has been blessed with :)
Achievements (1)
Stories (333)
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Just Like in the Movies
My Uncle Harry (James Harry Smith,) was much like the character, Hub McCann, played by Robert Duvall. He served in the U.S. Marine Corps during WWII. He was in the brutal Mariana Islands campaign in the Pacific, where he was wounded in 1944 while taking another wounded soldier to safety during heavy fire, and later he received a Purple Heart.
By Shirley Belk5 months ago in Serve
The Assessment. Content Warning.
The day that Twyla turned twenty-six, she had a silent reckoning with herself. She had purposely spent the day alone, as she assessed her life from its beginning onward. She scanned the years with brutal honesty, making mental piles of what had been her fate (none of which she could be faulted for,) her choices (both good or bad,) her triumphs (mostly lucky breaks,) her downfalls...too many to count. At this point, she determined, it was damn near impossible to look at her reflection from any mirror that dared to cross her path without feeling slightly disgusted.
By Shirley Belk5 months ago in Fiction
A Walk in the Woods
Recently, my daughter coaxed me into taking a personality test. She and I love to delve into the depths of our own and other family members "psyche." We learn, we laugh, we ponder. (Psychology and trying to understand why people do crazy or even heinous acts fascinate us...that's why we watch all those kinds of shows and documentaries.) But with our kindred circle, it's always in a non-judgmental tone and we often account for the characters in our family being slightly "off " as simply due to their astrological inclinations. We keep it all lighthearted and without malice or intent, though. Just some silly projects the two of us like sharing.
By Shirley Belk5 months ago in Psyche
Man in Charge
Daniel was a man of few words. Even at age fifty-five, his body remained chiseled and in top shape. Years of military training and special operations service to his country had formed him into a disciplined, loyal, and forthright man and husband, sound in body and mind.
By Shirley Belk5 months ago in Fiction
August, Annie Oakley, & More
Sitting here being calmed by the sounds that the thunder is making outside of my window and watching the rain trickle down the panes. "Gosh, how we needed this reprieve from the unrelenting heat and humidity from these July days that have collapsed on the calendar," my soul thinks...
By Shirley Belk5 months ago in Humans
A Look at Life. Top Story - July 2025.
Jesse's mom always knew he was odd. He was in fact, "different" from the other small children that gathered in the courtyard play area. That's why they shunned him. But it was strange to her that it never seemed to bother her little blond-headed boy. He was in a world of his own most of the time and probably hadn't noticed their mocking of him. They called him four eyes because of the thick glasses he wore with the head strap to keep them secure. But maybe he hadn't heard their nips because he wore hearing aids in both ears. Even Jesse's mother, Brittany thought he appeared more like a ninety-year old man than a a five year old.
By Shirley Belk6 months ago in Fiction
Modern Medicine or Mechanics
It's true that we are made of flesh and blood and thoughts and dreams and a host of all else imaginable. Yet, lately I have never felt more like a car. That's right! A mechanical contraption with varied parts of pumps and gears and belts, fluids here and there, and some spark plugs to crank the machine and keep it puttering along to where it needs to go. I lost a bit of the familiar humanness in the process of which I found myself in.
By Shirley Belk6 months ago in Wheel
Just Don't Kiss Me
"This time would be different," she promised herself. Even though all the other players would have their exact roles and all the scripts would remain the same, she wouldn't play the game as she had before. No, she would have a different strategy; one that would change the course of her future. She wouldn't blow this opportunity. It was her second chance. She knew the value of coming in with a different mind-set, a clearer vision, and she was determined to use logic and not "follow her heart" as her youthful impetuousness had demanded before. She would decisively think before acting with each move. Failure could not...must not be an option. Not again.
By Shirley Belk6 months ago in Fiction
