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 :)
Stories (350)
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Let the Feast Begin
The whole kingdom was bustling with excitement. There had been weeks of planning and preparation leading up to this coming night's event. A formal banquet, if you will, to welcome her, their newest member of the kingdom. There would be no stone left unturned. Everything she had imagined in her heart of hearts would come to fruition when the trumpets bellowed at the first guest's arrival. Even the scents of lavender and peaches were being breathed in all around her tonight. And she had butterflies around her, too...kissing her shoulders. The whole night was lit up with fireflies and a full moon. And even they were joyful. It was a Southern girl's dream.
By Shirley Belk5 years ago in Humans
Name for a Sister, Color TVs, Family Secrets, & The Beatles
Picture my world if you will. It is 1964 and we are living in Houston, Texas. My sister was born that first week of January, one day before my mother's birthday. My sister was mostly bald, but the red fuzz on top of her head was foretelling. We would have a beautiful, little red-headed girl. My brother, closer to two years old than to three, now had to share my mother's lap. I, who had better things to do than to be in my mother's lap, would soon be returning to my 3rd grade class when Christmas break was over. For our family, it was a joyous time.
By Shirley Belk5 years ago in Humans
An April Kind of Day
Her day had been a definite eight out of ten on the bad scale of long and taxing ones. To begin with, it started way too early; even earlier than her usual four am workday alarm. It had started with a phone call from the nursing home around three thirty from a familiar and panicked voice on the other end complaining that “the nurses aren’t giving me my medicines and they won’t give me any coffee.” As the seasoned nursing professor sat up in bed and listened to her mother, there was no being worked up in emotions, as she had run interference many times before. The difficult part was calming and appeasing her cherished, yet very stubborn parent. The staff would listen and follow any suggestions she would give them, not only because they knew her so well, but because she had been a clinical coach in college to many of them. Her mother would get a cup of coffee.Having put that small fire out, coffee didn’t sound like such a bad idea. Besides, her cat was insisting on being fed and the two dogs needed to go outside. She remembered she would need to dry her uniform to make sure it was fluffed out of any wrinkles. “Ah, another day,” she thought, as her morning routines began. By this time her mind had fast-forwarded to the plans she had for her students at the clinical facility where they were training.
By Shirley Belk6 years ago in Families
I Never Promised You a Rose Garden (Teenager in the 70's)
By the time I was twenty-five I had four children. They came from three different fathers. Two of whom, I had married. And one had never seen his child. How did this happen in my life? What storm brought this in from afar? For the past two days, after another forty years of just living the life, I have been digging into introspection, trying to put my thoughts down and to figure this out for myself.
By Shirley Belk6 years ago in Humans
Get a Tat? Good idea???
I don't have a tattoo. I've never really wanted a tattoo. I've considered the pros and cons, the merits involved, and I've pondered if having one would somehow prove a personal point or change me in some way. So, I have been deliberate in my decision. And please know that my choice to not have one was not predicated on any fear or bigotry about them or the people that have chosen differently than I did.
By Shirley Belk6 years ago in Blush
