Address unknown

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I came across this fantastic resource from educator @MarcusLuther6 while scrolling on X last night. (Whenever I think I should just delete the app, something like this will pop up and I’ll stay on it another day.)

I thought I’d give this idea a go for today’s slice.

Pre-flight, the passenger is alert and anxious, anticipating the journey; once landed, the passenger is tired, but relieved to have made it to the destination. What comes in between is mysterious and dark time travel.

So, what happened during that dark travel through time…

As I awoke from my in-flight nap, I saw a flight attendant walking down the aisle collecting forms. In that same moment, I felt a tap on my shoulder. “Vivian, Vivian.” It was my husband, who was sitting behind me.”Did you fill that out?”

“No, what is it?”

“I don’t know.”

Apparently, we both slept through the distribution of the agricultural form you need to fill out when visiting Hawaii. I got a form for the two of us and began filling in the empty boxes. When I got to the section where it asked our address or hotel name for our stay, I was stumped. I passed the form back to my husband. After all, we were staying with his parents at their time share. He would know. Nope. He passed the form back, section unfilled.

“You don’t know where we’re going?”
“No, I have no idea.”
“How are we getting to where we’re going?!”
“I think my parents are picking us up.”
“You think?!”

I made a guess at the name of the hotel and turned it in. It was a great relief when I got the ping once we landed. Call us when you get your bags.

Phew!

8 responses to “Address unknown”

  1. Heidi Allum Avatar

    Ohhh…thank you for sharing this prompt!!! This is EXACTLY the work I am doing with my students. I also love how you used the prompt, and then built a story around it. Thank you!

    Like

  2. arjeha Avatar

    Your story reminded me of our trip to Africa. We had to fill out where we were staying. I had no idea since arrangements were made by someone else and we were just along for the ride. Luckily, she knew so we got the information from her and filled in the forms.

    Liked by 1 person

  3. Alice Avatar

    This is fantastic! I like how you brought that in-between to life. The technique is interesting and reminds me of how graphic novelists use the gaps between panels (gutter) to fill in time, much as the semicolon functions in this example. 

    The exchange between you and your husband when filling out the form is well crafted and vivid. Good thing you didn’t have to worry about arriving to your final destination after picking up your bags.

    Saving this one to try later.

    Liked by 1 person

  4. Trish Avatar
    Trish

    I seldom visit X, though I have not yet deleted the app, but Marcus Luther is an Oregon teacher working at a high school nearby. His Substack, The Broken Copier, is a wealth of wonder. I love what you’ve done here using one of his ideas.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. vivian chen Avatar

      Thanks for the info–just went and subscribed!

      Like

  5. mschiubookawrites Avatar

    Ooooh, I love this hook! I’m with you on Twitter-turned-x. “Mysterious and dark time travel” intrigued me; the convo between you and your husband made me lol. Excellent writing!

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  6. natashadomina Avatar

    I love the prompts using the semi-colon–thank you for sharing, and for trying it out to show us how it could work (and inspiring me to try it myself). I love the “what comes between is mysterious and dark time travel”. I also really enjoyed how you then fleshed out the story of what came in between

    Liked by 1 person

  7. […] I am trying a hook highlighted in Vivian’s post Address Unknown. […]

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