Hoodoos, Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah, United States of America

Castles ~ Pic and a Word Challenge #44

A long shallow beach in the summertime
Children splash and laugh
Swim and frolic
Lay out on towels
In the hot sun
Browning young skin
On the fine grey sand

I the child
Dig down into the beach
Find the water
Swirl sand into slurry
Lift it out
Dripping from fingertips

Each drop
A dollop
Holding fast
Upon the last

Drip drop drip
Layer by layer
Building castles in the sand

I the child
Transported by
Imagination to
Fairytale lands

Some decades later
Travelling through deserts and canyons
I’m delighted to discover
Mother Nature shares
My fascination
For castles made of sand
In a land I could not imagine

Hoodoos
Bryce Canyon National Park
Utah, United States of America

Taken during travels, 1996

Last week we learned some lessons… This week? Tell us about a castle, real or metaphorical. Or find something else in this image of the fabulous hoodoos of Bryce Canyon National Park.

The Pic and a Word Challenge is a weekly creativity prompt offered Sunday mornings.

Each week I provide a photograph of mine along with a single word. The challenge? Use the pic and/or word as points of inspiration to create something — a photograph, a painting, prose, poetry, fiction, non-fiction, longread or just a few words. You are welcome to use these two elements (photograph and word) literally, thematically or metaphorically. If you create both images and words, all the better.

To participate:

  • Use any title you like
  • Your response can be words and/or an image
  • You may use my image in your post, or any image you have created
  • Place the challenge’s Pic (if you use it for inspiration) and Word prominently in your post
  • Mention that you are responding to the Pic and a Word Challenge
  • Add a link to this post in your response

To help us find your response, you can also:

Each week, I’ll list the previous week’s responses at the end of the new challenge. I may also share some on my social media: Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Tumblr, etc.

Last week’s challenge: Lessons

Street Scene, Chiang Mai, Thailand
Challenge #43 ~ Lessons
The word for last week’s Pic and a Word Challenge #43 was Lessons, along with this photograph of a busy city street in Thailand’s vibrant city of Chiang Mai.

Six lessons from five bloggers this week. Thank you everyone! =)