It is almost Friday and time for Friday Fictioneers and their stories of 100 words. We are hosted by Rochelle Wisoff-Fields of Addicted to Purple. And here is my story of 100 words. Here is a little explanation for my story. If you don’t know already, I am Chinese. My ancestors dream of a better life in America. They refer to Canada as Gold Mountain and United States as Beautiful Country.
Sally pressed her nose against the window. She breathed onto the glass, then wiped it clear with her sleeve.
She looked out into her garden. The branches bared their arms to the sky. A fine layer of snow covered the creeping juniper. The little blue pergoda stood cold and lonely underneath a cluster of frozen golden petals.
She rested her cheek on the cool pane, sighing softly. She was remembering her dream of coming to Gold Mountain. Her dream had come true. She has been here in Gold Mountain for 30 some years. She didn’t find any gold, only the cold.
onethousandandtwo 
I liked this, you bring across a real sense of wistfulness and not-quite-regret. Nicely done.
KT
Thank you!
Lily
Gold would’ve been nice. Did she look hard enough?
Probably not in the right places.
Lily
Gold is where you make it.
The cold is what keeps you from it.
–
you will notice a small dash above –
that is because i was going to write more but I must have hit enter by accident before finishing. I was about to type
– old unknown Canadian proverb
(which most Canadians, I’m sure, would agree should stay unknown)
Randy
Right on! I love sayings. 😀
Lily
I can see and feel the cold on the window, in the yard, in her life.
Thanks for reading, Alicia.
Lily
Not too much regret, I hope. Spring will soon rescue her.
There is certainly more than enough cold to go around in Canada. As to the gold, that managed to elude most of us.
Your description of Gold Mountain is making me feel chilly! It sounds like a beautiful place, though, and she sounds more wistful than regretful at her choice to live there.
It is very chilly, though has warmed up a bit. I think she has learned that regret is useless. Thank you for reading and commenting.
Lily
I like how you have conveyed how she sits reminiscing and her feelings of nostalgia.
Thank you!
Lily
Dear Lily,
Thank you for the intro. It added to the impact of your story.
One little suggestion…rather than “she was remembering her dream” try “she remembered her dream.” It’s stronger and saves you a word.
Apparently North America wasn’t all she dreamt it would be. Nicely done.
shalom,
Rochelle
Thanks Rochelle.
Lily
Gold is hard to find..cold so much more common… Maybe she still found some gold, but it might be easy to forgot among the cold.
I can see her standing at the window….she seems so sad. Sometimes we forget there is a nugget of gold in each experience…we just have to be willing to accept it and not require it to be more!
So true. Thank you for reading.
Lily
Nicely done. 🙂
Thanks!
Lily
Dear Hafong,
I’m thinking that in the end, they could gold along with the cold. Who knows what their life would have been like back in China. Hard to tell, but they ended up in a good place and had good children who had more good children. Sometimes that is all the wealth any sensible man requires. Good story.
Aloha,
Doug
Thank you, Doug. I appreciate your comment.
Lily
Nice work. I love your second paragraph. Great descriptive writing.
Thank you, Amy!
Lily
Lily, Great description. Looks like she has a nice home, so she found a good life even without the gold.. Well written. 🙂 — Susan
Yes, she does have a good life. Thank you for reading, Susan.
Lily
Great imagery, great post.
Thanks! Happy New Years!
Lily