Your July Creativity Mini-Challenge + New, Exclusive Short Story by Me!
A quick, 5-minute creative hit to kick off your weekend
Hello, Protagonists! In this post you’ll find:
🎉 5-minute Creativity Mini-Challenge
✍🏼 A new short story by me (published exclusively here on CREATIVE. INSPIRED. HAPPY)
🎉 Your July Creativity Mini-Challenge
It’s a common myth that creativity has to be a huge undertaking. I actually believe we can spark it with just small moments, and anyone can do it, not just professional artists.
Also, these little bursts of creativity can lead to larger inspiration or simply bring a smile. Both are wonderful and enough in their own ways.
So here is your Creativity Mini-Challenge for this month. It’s based on a picture I took and will only take you five minutes. (Below, you’ll find my take on it, although I admit time gets away from me once I get going.)
Look at the photo of the churro and chocolate below (alt text available for accessibility).
What happened right before the photo was taken, or what happens next? Tell yourself a super short story or doodle something about it.
REMEMBER—This is supposed to be whimsically rough! It’s not about perfection. It’s five minutes to dream—just for you. Have fun!
CREATIVE.INSPIRED.HAPPY is a warm, vibrant community of thousands who believe that anyone can spark creativity and build an inspired, happier life.
✍🏼 My whimsically rough, super short story:
Veronica had to delete Instagram. Any time she looked at her phone, someone else was posting about their magical European vacation, the family in matching black-and-white striped boating shirts in front of picturesque stone castles, or the kids’ eyes bright and eager as they readied to eat seafood paella with tentacled squid and shrimp that still had their heads on, all with zero complaints.
Veronica’s triplet toddlers only ate food that was a very specific shade of beige and shaped like trucks, doused with fluorescent orange powdered cheese. God forbid she try to serve them mac n’ cheese shaped like anything else. And she certainly couldn’t afford to take her them to Europe.
But even with the apps gone from her phone, she still felt the twinge of envy. She loved her boys and her husband, but their needs and desires were non-stop. She just wanted five minutes to herself. If only she could teleport herself to Spain for a few lousy minutes.
And then she smiled. She remembered she had a box of churros in the freezer. She tiptoed away while her boys watched PAW Patrol and played loudly with their toy trucks.
She couldn’t go to Spain, but she could bring Spain-ish here.
Veronica tossed the churros into the toaster oven. She climbed up the step stool and retrieved her secret stash of chocolate from the back of the highest kitchen cupboard, then broke the bars into chunks in a mug and nuked it.
When the toaster oven dinged, Veronica checked over her shoulder; the boys were still engrossed in their truck war and the cartoon puppies on the screen. She snatched her mug of melted chocolate from the microwave and dumped all of the churros onto a plate and half-walked, half-sprinted into the closet in her bedroom, where she shoved aside the shoes and nestled in under the clothes, shutting the door behind her.
Five minutes. All hers.
Using her now Instagram-less phone as a light, Veronica dipped the first churro into the chocolate. It dripped down in dark, glossy streams, and she moaned as she bit into it. Was there anything more heavenly than the crunch of churro and cinnamon meeting rich, warm chocolate?
Halfway through the second bite, though, little footsteps pounded into her bedroom.
“Mommy?”
“Where are you?”
“I smell churros!”
Within seconds, they’d discovered her. “Churros!” they shouted, as they piled into her lap and snuggled up next to her—only a mother would be agile enough to yank the chocolate and the plate of churros out of the way while neither spilling them nor smashing them into the clothes hanging overhead—and as soon as the boys were settled, they stole her bounty and got chocolate and cinnamony crumbs everywhere.
Yet Veronica smiled. Because yes, she couldn’t escape her boys. But it was because they wanted her. And maybe this was the five minutes she had really needed—Five minutes of not running around. Five minutes of sweet little angels, sharing an activity that she’d chosen. Cuddled up against her like there was nowhere else they’d rather be in the world.
Another set of footsteps approached, these heavier.
“Hey,” her husband said, smiling down on them on the closet floor. “You got room in there for one more?”
*this photo is actually of our vacation in Spain. The churros and chocolate in Madrid lived up to the hype!
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Awwwwwww this was so dang sweet!! Here's my little piece conjured up over a little longer than 5 minutes, but I couldn't help myself :)
I don't normally write fiction, but this all popped into my head! I've been daydreaming about writing a fictional story and your churro with chocolate was a great way in! Thanks Evelyn! <3
Cookie spied the street vendor with the flashing neon sign, “CHURROS” called out to her as she wandered aimlessly along the sidewalk. What had she been thinking about just now? Oh, right, happier times. So few and far between these days. Maybe a churro will usher in a moment of joy.
The vendor had eyed the pretty brunette heading his way, she seems so sad. He willed her to look up at him, he couldn’t make out all her features, but he could tell they were delicate punctuated by a slightly pouty mouth. Just as he started to look down, she looked up and they locked eyes.
“Who is that?!” Cookie thought to herself.
“Who is she?” the vendor thought to himself.
They both timidly smiled at each other as she continued her approach.
Everyone else had disappeared.
Cookie gave a little wave and shyly walked up. “Hi” she said. Clearing his throat, seems a frog had gotten stuck there in a matter of seconds, “hello” he returned.
“May I have one of your churros? They smell divine” Cookie asked. *Who says divine?*
“Of course, anything you want!” He exclaimed. *Am I being extra loud? What is happening to my voice? Why am I sweating*
Cookie started grinning more broadly and he felt the heat rise into his cheeks. He fumbled around trying to get the churro into the wrapping, muttering to himself about his own clumsiness.
Cookie found herself chuckling softly, she could relate to his fumbles and utterances, and she found him endearing.
He handed her the churro stick and asked “Have you ever dipped a churro in melted chocolate before?”
Cookie’s eyes lit up, “no, that sounds fantastic and exactly what I need right now”.
The vendor’s own eyes lit up at how excited she was to have chocolate. He handed over the little cup full of melted goodness. She instantly dipped the churro and watched the chocolate fill the sugary ridges and drip down the sides, her mouth watered in anticipation of the first bite.
Cookie looked back up and felt a little butterfly take flight in her belly. The vendor is quite handsome she thought to herself, dark wavy hair and kind light blue eyes, wait is that a dimple. She fought the urge to poke it and then realized she’d been staring, and he was staring just as intently at her.
“Thank you so much for making this day better.” she said as she turned to leave.
Suddenly remembering she hadn’t paid she turned back and met his gaze once more, “how much?”
“For you, anything.” He responded. *Wait that’s not right, she asked how much, as in how much to pay*
“Sorry?” She inquired.
“Um, no charge for you today. You said you needed it, so it’s on the house” he sheepishly replied.
“You don’t have to do that, thank you though.” Cookie decided to leave a tip and as she went to drop a ten-dollar bill into his cup, he stopped her and touched her hand.
They both jumped at the contact and then laughed.
“I’m not usually this awkward I swear,” Cookie said giggling.
The vendor decided to take a chance. It had been a weird day full of serendipitous moments, he took this as his sign to leap.
“I’m Cookie” she said bravely, holding out her hand that wasn’t covered in sugar and chocolate.
“I’m Drew” he said and took her outstretched hand in his own. The thought repeating in both their heads - this is exactly what they both needed right this divine moment.
So cute! Now I want to snuggle my nephews and eat churros. Or watch them eat churros because they steal whatever sugary thing I try to eat.
Here's mine:
First and Fair
Charlotte, or Charlie to her friends and to the boy walking toward her, sits at a picnic table. She’s not sure if the flush she feels is from the heat of the sun or from butterflies at the idea of her first ever date. An afternoon at the state fair might not seem like a dream first date to a lot of people, but to Charlie it’s perfect. Her date’s plain black shirt and jeans doesn’t stand out in the sea of people enjoying the fair’s offerings but Charlie has no trouble following his path through the crowd.
Jacob expertly avoids elbows, bags, and running children as he makes his way to the picnic table Charlie has commandeered for them. The smell of the cinnamon and chocolate from the churros and cup in his hand mingle together and make his stomach growl. He stops just short of the table, placing the container of churros in front of Charlie so he has a hand free. Before she can reach for one, he snags one, dips it into the cup of chocolate in his hand and offers it to her.
The smile on her face is worth not having the first bite.