Oslo, 1056 – In my boyhood, long ago, I sat and saw longboats streak along the fjords, like spears flung by All-Father Odin. Odin’s one-eyed face shone with joy, brighter than the sun, as he saw our longboats flung to destinations far and near, for raids or trade. Then Christians arrived and we learned we were wrong. All-Father is called Yahweh, Jesus his son. But when black clouds roll over, burying the sky, and thunder goes growling along the fjord, it’s still Thor’s face I see watching over us. I still shake with pride as jagged sparks fly from his hammer.
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This piece of flash fiction was written for Friday Fictioneers: a story in 100 words prompted by a picture that Rochelle Wisoff-Fields posts every Wednesday. Here’s the link to the stories and this week’s picture is below (originally there were rooftops visible in the photo, but I only needed the sky and so I cropped it a little).
Oh I really love this! Great story!
Thanks. The Norse myths have a certain grandeur and poignancy about them, I think.
A beautiful story, respect to the old gods.
Definitely. I think it’s always a good idea to have Thor watching your back.
Brilliant.
Aw, thanks 🙂
Calm and beautifully painted.
Thanks. I thought an old Viking, surveying all the sights he’d seen would have an unwavering calmness about him, somehow.
Your piece made me smile. Thanks,
Randy
May the sparks be with you
May the sparks be with you – I like that 🙂
I’ve written a YA novel about Norwegian settlers in the pacific Northwest and spent months studying Norse gods. This rang a glorious bell for me (we even named our black cat Freya) Delightful take on the prompt Thank you.
Thanks, glad you enjoyed the story – “rang a glorious bell”, what a beautiful way of putting it 🙂 Btw I just read your story “Flight”, which I thought was excellent, so I’ll be heading over to leave a comment. And best of luck with the Norse YA novel.
Thanks. I just had the YA novel professionally edited and am “making changes” – as always.
Sue, Lovely story. When you describe Thor, I see the face of Anthony Hopkins with the patch over one eye as in the movie. Well written. 🙂 —Susan
Thanks, Susan. Well, he did make a pretty great Asgardian, to be fair 🙂
Dear Blake,
Welcome to Friday Fictioneers. A very enjoyable piece. BTW There’s no need to alter the picture to fit your story. Just write what you see. 😉
Shalom,
Rochelle
Thanks, Rochelle. And thanks for the welcome. Oh, I needed to crop the picture – suburbia was out of place 🙂