And now, from Jo Hawk, the 2020 Daily Writing Challenge, for August 1!

For my writing challenge, I am going to be working with daily prompts from the book “The Daily Writer: 365 Meditations to Cultivate a Productive and Meaningful Writing Life.”

So, today is:  Contemplating Art – “Spend several moments contemplating a work of art of your choice, and then write a one-page tory in which you enter that work of art.  Describe how you interact with your surroundings.”

In our foyer is a painting of a jazz trio. Entering that work of art is easy.

The room is dark and smoky, because this painting pictures a club from the time before the banning of smoking in public places.  I never liked smoke, but something about a smoky jazz or blues club, well it just seems right.

The music is relaxing, and I hear the clinks of glasses and low chatter of people asking for another beer or a plate of nachos. Yes, nachos. It’s my fantasy.

The sax player starts his solo, like the room, smoky and a little sexy. It’s not a ballad, something bluesy. The drummer brushes lightly on the hi hat, a light bass drum kick in the background, and the bass player, well, his eyes are closed and he just swings.

The trio picks it up the main melody again, ending the set with a flourish. Applause sprinkles across the room, and I sit back and sigh in contentment.  It’s been a long time since I’ve been out to enjoy good jazz. That pandemic really took it out of all of us, and it’s good to get back to something normal.

With that I flip off the 3D glasses and return to reality, a whiff of smoke still haunting my memory.