Sometimes that's just the way it has to be.

Sure, there were probably other options, but he didn't let

them enter his mind. It was done and that was that. It was just the way it had to be.
To the two friends, the treehouse was much more than a treehouse. It was a sanctuary away
from the other kids where they could be themselves without being teased or bullied. It was
their secret fortress hidden high in the branches of a huge oak that only they knew existed.
At least that is what they thought. They were more than a little annoyed when their two
younger sisters decided to turn the treehouse into a princess castle by painting the inside
pink and putting glitter everywhere.

1. It was supposed to be a dream vacation. They had planned it over a year in advance so that it
would be perfect in every way. It had been what they had been looking forward to through
all the turmoil and negativity around them. It had been the light at the end of both their
tunnels. Now that the dream vacation was only a week away, the virus had stopped all air
travel.

2. His parents continued to question him. He didn't know what to say to them since they
refused to believe the truth. He explained again and again, and they dismissed his
explanation as a figment of his imagination. There was no way that grandpa, who had been
dead for five years, could have told him where the treasure had been hidden. Of course, it
didn't help that grandpa was roaring with laughter in the chair next to him as he tried to
explain once again how he'd found it.

3. Sometimes it just doesn't make sense. The man walking down the street in a banana suit. The
llama standing in the middle of the road. The fairies dancing in front of the car window. The
fact that all of this was actually happening and wasn't a dream.

4. Devon couldn't figure out the color of her eyes. He initially would have guessed that they
were green, but the more he looked at them he almost wanted to say they were a golden
yellow. Then there were the flashes of red and orange that seemed to be streaked throughout
them. It was almost as if her eyes were made of opal with the sun constantly glinting off of
them and bringing out more color. They were definitely the most unusual pair of eyes he'd
ever seen.

5. The coin hovered in the air, spinning over and over again. It reached its peak and began to
descend. Both boys were pleading with it to land a certain way but the coin had already
made up its mind on what it was going to do.

6. He had three simple rules by which he lived. The first was to never eat blue food. There was
nothing in nature that was edible that was blue. People often asked about blueberries, but
everyone knows those are actually purple. He understood it was one of the stranger rules to
live by, but it had served him well thus far in the 50+ years of his life.
7. There was something beautiful in his hate. It wasn't the hate itself as it was a disgusting
display of racism and intolerance. It was what propelled the hate and the fact that although
he had this hate, he didn't understand where it came from. It was at that moment that she
realized that there was hope in changing him.

8. He slowly poured the drink over a large chunk of ice he has especially chiseled off a larger
block. He didn't particularly like his drinks cold, but he knew that the drama of chiseling the
ice and then pouring a drink over it looked far more impressive than how he actually liked it.
It was all about image and he'd managed to perfect the image that he wanted to project.

9. It was a simple tip of the hat. Grace didn't think that anyone else besides her had even
noticed it. It wasn't anything that the average person would notice, let alone remember at the
end of the day. That's why it seemed so unbelievable that this little gesture would ultimately
change the course of the world.

10.I haven't bailed on writing. Look, I'm generating a random paragraph at this very moment in
an attempt to get my writing back on track. I am making an effort. I will start writing
consistently again!

11.The headphones were on. They had been utilized on purpose. She could hear her mom
yelling in the background, but couldn't make out exactly what the yelling was about. That
was exactly why she had put them on. She knew her mom would enter her room at any
minute, and she could pretend that she hadn't heard any of the previous yelling.

12.The bowl was filled with fruit. It seemed to be an overabundance of strawberries, but it also
included blueberries, raspberries, grapes, and banana slices. This was the meal Sarah had
every morning to start her day since she could remember. Why she decided to add chocolate
as an option today was still a bit of a surprise, but she had been in the process of deciding
she wanted to change her routine. This was a baby step to begin that start.

13.I recollect that my first exploit in squirrel-shooting was in a grove of tall walnut-trees that
shades one side of the valley. I had wandered into it at noontime, when all nature is
peculiarly quiet, and was startled by the roar of my own gun, as it broke the Sabbath stillness
around and was prolonged and reverberated by the angry echoes.

14.The choice was red, green, or blue. It didn't seem like an important choice when he was
making it, but it was a choice nonetheless. Had he known the consequences at that time, he
would likely have considered the choice a bit longer. In the end, he didn't and ended up
choosing blue.

15.Puppies are soft, cute, funny, and make a big mess. Every month or two our family fosters 6-
12 week old puppies for a puppy rescue nonprofit organization. We all enjoy cuddling their
furry bodies after a clean bath. Fresh puppy smell is great. The puppies play with each other
 and our adult dog. They look so funny when they lay on top of each other and sleep. While
puppies can be great fun, they also can make big messes. 4-6 puppies can make a lot of
puppy pee and poop. It's a challenge to keep the puppies and the puppy pen clean.

16.I love the feel of wood curls flying off the lathe as I begin to shape the log in front of me.
The sound of scraping changes based on the wetness of the wood, the speed at which the
lathe is turning, and the type of cut I am making. The smell and feel of wet wood being
turned are unique. The water is sprayed out as I cut through the different layers of wood. A
log can turn into anything one's imagination can think of with the right set of hands-on tools.
I have those hands and imagination. I use all of my senses and intuition to create a beautiful
object. That is why I enjoy turning wood.

17.Since they are still preserved in the rocks for us to see, they must have been formed quite
recently, that is, geologically speaking. What can explain these striations and their common
orientation? Did you ever hear about the Great Ice Age or the Pleistocene Epoch? Less than
one million years ago, in fact, some 12,000 years ago, an ice sheet many thousands of feet
thick rode over Burke Mountain in a southeastward direction. The many boulders frozen to
the underside of the ice sheet tended to scratch the rocks over which they rode. The
scratches or striations seen in the park rocks were caused by these attached boulders. The ice
sheet also plucked and rounded Burke Mountain into the shape it possesses today.

18.Finding the red rose in the mailbox was a pleasant surprise for Sarah. She didn't have a
boyfriend or know of anyone who was interested in her as anything more than a friend.
There wasn't even a note attached to it. Although it was a complete mystery, it still made her
heart jump and race a little more than usual. She wished that she could simply accept the
gesture and be content knowing someone had given it to her, but that wasn't the way Sarah
did things. Now it was time to do a little detective work and try to figure who had actually
left the red rose.

19.At that moment he had a thought that he'd never imagine he'd consider. "I could just cheat,"
he thought, "and that would solve the problem." He tried to move on from the thought but it
was persistent. It didn't want to go away and, if he was honest with himself, he didn't want it
to.

20.He watched as the young man tried to impress everyone in the room with his intelligence.
There was no doubt that he was smart. The fact that he was more intelligent than anyone else
in the room could have been easily deduced, but nobody was really paying any attention due
to the fact that it was also obvious that the young man only cared about his intelligence.

21.All he wanted was a candy bar. It didn't seem like a difficult request to comprehend, but the
clerk remained frozen and didn't seem to want to honor the request. It might have had
something to do with the gun pointed at his face.
22.The river slowly meandered through the open space. It had hidden secrets that it didn't want
to reveal. It had a well-planned strategy to appear calm, inviting, and appealing. That's how
the river lured her unknowing victims to her water's edge.

23.What if dogs were racist? Would they care about fur color….. “son, only play with other tan
dogs”? Or maybe it would depend on breed, “honey, only play with other German Shepards,
never poodles”. Better yet it could depend on occupation. “I’m a sled dog while you’re only
a running companion, leave me alone”. Maybe the neighborhood they live in could be the
way they choose which dogs to associate with and which to shun? Size could be the
determining factor, “see how tall that dog is, they are probably dumb”. Luckily dogs don’t
discriminate. Just watch at a dog park. Big black and white dogs wag their tails and play
with tiny tan dogs. A service dog chases after the same ball as the off-duty police dog. So if
dogs don’t discriminate then why do we?

24.The bush began to shake. Brad couldn't see what was causing it to shake, but he didn't care.
he had a pretty good idea about what was going on and what was happening. He was so
confident that he approached the bush carefree and with a smile on his face. That all
changed the instant he realized what was actually behind the bush.

25.At that moment, she realized that she had created her current life. It wasn't the life she
wanted, but she took responsibility for how it currently stood. Something clicked and she
saw that every choice she made to this point in her life had led to where her life stood at this
very moment even if she knew this wasn't where she wanted to be. She determined to choose
to change it.

26.All he could think about was how it would all end. There was still a bit of uncertainty in the
equation, but the basics were there for anyone to see. No matter how much he tried to see the
positive, it wasn't anywhere to be seen. The end was coming and it wasn't going to be pretty.

27.Her breath exited her mouth in big puffs as if she were smoking a cigarette. The morning
dew had made her clothes damp and she shivered from the chill in the air. There was only
one thing that could get her up and out this early in the morning.

28.Why do Americans have so many different types of towels? We have beach towels, hand
towels, bath towels, dish towels, camping towels, quick-dry towels, and let’s not forget
paper towels. Would 1 type of towel work for each of these things? Let’s take a beach towel.
It can be used to dry your hands and body with no difficulty. A beach towel could be used to
dry dishes. Just think how many dishes you could dry with one beach towel. I’ve used a
beach towel with no adverse effects while camping. If you buy a thin beach towel it can dry
quickly too. I’d probably cut up a beach towel to wipe down counters or for cleaning other
items, but a full beach towel could be used too. Is having so many types of towels an
extravagant luxury that Americans enjoy or is it necessary? I’d say it's overkill and we could
cut down on the many types of towels that manufacturers deem necessary.
29.I guess we could discuss the implications of the phrase "meant to be." That is if we wanted
to drown ourselves in a sea of backwardly referential semantics and other mumbo-jumbo.
Maybe such a discussion would result in the determination that "meant to be" is exactly as
meaningless a phrase as it seems to be, and that none of us is actually meant to be doing
anything at all. But that's my existential underpants underpinnings showing. It's the way the
cookie crumbles. And now I want a cookie.

30.She patiently waited for his number to be called. She had no desire to be there, but her mom
had insisted that she go. She's resisted at first, but over time she realized it was simply easier
to appease her and go. Mom tended to be that way. She would keep insisting until you wore
down and did what she wanted. So, here she sat, patiently waiting for her number to be
called.

31.There was little doubt that the bridge was unsafe. All one had to do was look at it to know
that with certainty. Yet Bob didn't see another option. He may have been able to work one
out if he had a bit of time to think things through, but time was something he didn't have. A
choice needed to be made, and it needed to be made quickly.

32.He stepped away from the mic. This was the best take he had done so far, but something
seemed missing. Then it struck him all at once. Visuals ran in front of his eyes and music
rang in his ears. His eager fingers went to work in an attempt to capture his thoughts hoping
the results would produce something that was at least half their glory.

33.The wave crashed and hit the sandcastle head-on. The sandcastle began to melt under the
waves force and as the wave receded, half the sandcastle was gone. The next wave hit, not
quite as strong, but still managed to cover the remains of the sandcastle and take more of it
away. The third wave, a big one, crashed over the sandcastle completely covering and
engulfing it. When it receded, there was no trace the sandcastle ever existed and hours of
hard work disappeared forever.

34.It had been her dream for years but Dana had failed to take any action toward making it
come true. There had always been a good excuse to delay or prioritize another project. As
she woke, she realized she was once again at a crossroads. Would it be another excuse or
would she finally find the courage to pursue her dream? Dana rose and took her first step.

35.One dollar and eighty-seven cents. That was all. And sixty cents of it was in pennies.
Pennies saved one and two at a time by bulldozing the grocer and the vegetable man and the
butcher until one’s cheeks burned with the silent imputation of parsimony that such close
dealing implied. One dollar and eighty-seven cents. And the next day would be Christmas...

36.He took a sip of the drink. He wasn't sure whether he liked it or not, but at this moment it
didn't matter. She had made it especially for him so he would have forced it down even if he
 had absolutely hated it. That's simply the way things worked. She made him a new-fangled
drink each day and he took a sip of it and smiled, saying it was excellent.

37.It was difficult for him to admit he was wrong. He had been so certain that he was correct
and the deeply held belief could never be shaken. Yet the proof that he had been incorrect
stood right before his eyes. "See daddy, I told you that they are real!" his daughter excitedly
proclaimed.

38.She had come to the conclusion that you could tell a lot about a person by their ears. The
way they stuck out and the size of the earlobes could give you wonderful insights into the
person. Of course, she couldn't scientifically prove any of this, but that didn't matter to her.
Before anything else, she would size up the ears of the person she was talking to.

39.The rain was coming. Everyone thought this would be a good thing. It hadn't rained in
months and the earth was dry as a bone. It wasn't a surprise that everyone thought a good
rain was what was needed, but they never expected how much rain would actually arrive.

40.Betty decided to write a short story and she was sure it was going to be amazing. She had
already written it in her head and each time she thought about it she grinned from ear to ear
knowing how wonderful it would be. She could imagine the accolades coming in and the
praise she would receive for creating such a wonderful piece. She was therefore extremely
frustrated when she actually sat down to write the short story and the story that was so
beautiful inside her head refused to come out that way on paper.

41.They argue. While the argument seems to be different the truth is it's always the same. Yes,
the topic may be different or the circumstances, but when all said and done, it all came back
to the same thing. They both knew it, but neither has the courage or strength to address the
underlying issue. So they continue to argue.

42."It was so great to hear from you today and it was such weird timing," he said. "This is
going to sound funny and a little strange, but you were in a dream I had just a couple of days
ago. I'd love to get together and tell you about it if you're up for a cup of coffee," he
continued, laying the trap he'd been planning for years.

43.Here's the thing. She doesn't have anything to prove, but she is going to anyway. That's just
her character. She knows she doesn't have to, but she still will just to show you that she can.
Doubt her more and she'll prove she can again. We all already know this and you will too.

44.It really shouldn't have mattered to Betty. That's what she kept trying to convince herself
even if she knew it mattered to Betty more than practically anything else. Why was she
trying to convince herself otherwise? As she stepped forward to knock on Betty's door, she
still didn't have a convincing answer to this question that she'd been asking herself for more
than two years now.
45.Debbie put her hand into the hole, sliding her hand down as far as her arm could reach. She
wiggled her fingers hoping to touch something, but all she felt was air. She shifted the
weight of her body to try and reach an inch or two more down the hole. Her fingers still
touched nothing but air.

46.Many people say that life isn't like a bed of roses. I beg to differ. I think that life is quite like
a bed of roses. Just like life, a bed of roses looks pretty on the outside, but when you're in it,
you find that it is nothing but thorns and pain. I myself have been pricked quite badly.

47.This is important to remember. Love isn't like pie. You don't need to divide it among all your
friends and loved ones. No matter how much love you give, you can always give more. It
doesn't run out, so don't try to hold back giving it as if it may one day run out. Give it freely
and as much as you want.

48.It was a scrape that he hardly noticed. Sure, there was a bit of blood but it was minor
compared to most of the other cuts and bruises he acquired on his adventures. There was no
way he could know that the rock that produced the cut had alien genetic material on it that
was now racing through his bloodstream. He felt perfectly normal and continued his
adventure with no knowledge of what was about to happen to him.

49.Dragons don't exist they said. They are the stuff of legend and people's imagination. Greg
would have agreed with this assessment without a second thought 24 hours ago. But now
that there was a dragon staring directly into his eyes, he questioned everything that he had
been told.
1.