OLWG #219- Aspidoscelis neomexicana

This week’s prompts are at the bottom. Feel free to seize the prompts, twist them, form them, play with them as you will. All comers are welcome. The words below are just practice for me. I had a lot of fun writing them, and you know what I always say, “Practice makes perfect.”

Here’s how to play along, if you are unsure.

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Myrtle was an Aspidoscelis neomexicana, a New Mexico Whiptail. She was slim, sleek, and mostly brown.

Myrtle sported a handsome blue-tipped tail and a narrow face.

Seven cream coloured stripes ran the length of her back. Myrtle lived in the house of Angela Naiche. An old adobe situated in the wood, just outside the town of Mescalero, in Otero County.

Angela knew Myrtle lived in her house. Sometimes she would hear her scurrying in the walls, and when she did, Angela would sing. She would sing the old songs, in the ancient language. Songs that passed down from mother to daughter time and time again. Myrtle enjoyed the songs and found them soothing. In return, Myrtle would tell Angela stories. She liked to tell a story of why the Lizard is Chief of all beasts and why men die.

 “In the early days,” she said, there was only darkness. There was no sun, no stars; there were only beasts and birds. The feathered creatures held the Eagle as their Chief. The Eagle cared  nothing about beasts and very little about other birds. Coyote was Chief of the beasts, but that was about to change. Lizard became Chief of beasts soon after Coyote created men. He made them immortal and fashioned their hands to be closed, like his, but the Lizard counselled that men should be better served if they had hands like hers. She insisted that they must have five fingers. Coyote had only a fist. Coyote asked Eagle, who agreed with Lizard, and so it was.

 Thus, men and women, like you Angela, have an open hand with five fingers. Coyote reluctantly conceded but selfishly insisted that with such fine hands, men must become mortal. And so it was. Lizard seized power from Coyote that day.”

 Angela listened, nodded her head, and picked back up singing. The two housemates could forever keep one another entertained with the tales and songs of their ancestors.

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This week’s prompts are:

1. broken land
2. don’t explain
3. El Paso princess

You can start writing whenever you want, just write, get the words down – and have fun!