Starting over Stories

For the first time, a month after her twenty-second birthday, Maria, shadowed by her mother, greeted guests arriving at their seaside residential compound. Year in, year out, this was the most exclusive New Year’s Eve party on Earth. Yet one so shrouded in secrecy, that whispers had never once reached the gossip columnists’ ears. Maria was dressed outrageously; if her glamourous little black outfit hadn’t been the most ex...

It's time to start overTo take chancesTo purge everything you don't needTo be happy, smile, laughForget the past, move onIt's not worth the trouble Let's move forwardNever stopping Always wanting to improve Have faith in yourselfKeep goingNever forgetting You can make it happen

Cerise rode home quietly that night, and Mike glanced at her. "You OK?" "Yeah. Tired," Cerise replied, and looked forward. It had been an odd night. Some of the customers had come on a little strong, and so had the singer. Yet at the same time, Cerise had felt something come back to life inside of her. She was not certain why, but it gave her hope. She stared out of the window as they drove through the dark night, and he...

Cerise Adams stood in front of the worn mirror that was leaning against the wall of her room, staring at the clothes that she wore. It was a pair of black shorts and a bright red tee shirt that boasted the name of her uncle's bar in Portland, and it was her new job. Frank's. It was simple and the name of his father, who had run it before her uncle Mike. Mike had turned it into more of a club, featuring music and dancing o...

What if everything I did was wrong—blunder after blunder—who I married, how I raised my children, what I chose to do instead of something else,what I could have said but didn’t?What if I always missed the pointand thought I understoodand went this way instead of that,following what I thought was right—my passion, my dreams, my sweatsweeping me along as if guided by a star?What if thinking I was wise and finding I was fool...

How do I; love you without the insecurities and hurts from the past clouding my actions.How do I; stop comparing you to him? You love me totally and are a better man. How do I; believe what you say, do and speak, when my mind questions your actions.How do I; stop second-guessing everything I do, even my love for this manHow do I; when I realize completely that you did nothing to hurt me, just love me.How do I; because I k...