At the shadowy peak
Of surreal darkness
Above a world both familiar
And utterly strange
Shrouded beacon
Reaches into the murk
Whisper of stifled radiance
Beckons
Illuminates
A serpentine road
Beginning and end uncertain
Strike out for the unknown
Keep faith the road reaches the bridge
Hopeful glimmer beyond
Golden Gate Bridge from the Marin Headlands
San Francisco
California, United States of America
Taken during travels, 2020
Pic and a Word Challenge
Last week we were struck down by Awe. This week, let’s find hope in the Glimmer, or find something else to inspire you in this heavily manipulated HDR image of the Golden Gate Bridge, taken from the Marin Headlands above San Francisco in California, United States of America.
The Pic and a Word Challenge is a weekly creativity prompt offered Mondays.
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 images
- You may use my image in your post, or any image you have created
- 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 — whether on WordPress, Instagram, Flicker, Tumblr, etc. — you can also:
- Add a comment on this post to announce your response
- Apply the tag/hashtag “Pic and a Word Challenge” or “#picandawordchallenge” to your post
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.

Six bloggers managed to conquer their Awe this week. =) Thank you, everyone! ❤
- Awe, by Dancing Echoes
- Awe, by WoollyMuses
- Raw Awe, by Manja Mexi Mexcessive
- Awe, No Other Word, by Cobbled Contemplations
- This Road — A Poem, by I Do Run
- Awe in flying, by Bushboys World
View all the Pic and a Word Challenges, including the current challenge, on the Pic and a Word Challenge tag page.
Happy Creating!