31 Nights: A Walk Through the Valley of the Shadow of Death

For the last five years, I participated in the #Write31Days challenge which officially ended last October. Booooo. But all things eventually end, yes? And new things arise…it’s the circle of life. However, as I approached October 2019 I still wanted to do something…and a couple of things did arise that I’m super excited about participating in:

The Heretics, Lovers, and Madmen Quotable Poe Challenge
Writer’s Treasure Chest’s 5th Halloween Poem Contest
Brave and Reckless’ October’s Monster, She Wrote Writing Prompt Challenge

All Halloween-esque…scary, spooky, haunting fun!

BUT here’s the thing…I don’t know how to write scary poems or haunting prose 😬 – I tend to fare on the lighter things of life – flowers, butterflies, love and the like. HOWEVER, I do love a scary story…to slink low into the covers with a shudder after reading a particularly well-written line. To explore and visit the darker side of humanity. AND because I don’t know how to write in this genre makes it all the more attractive to learn. Call me a fear slayer junkie. AND what better month than October, with her witches, goblins, dark corners, and spooky noises to wander through the dark side. So here we are…

I choose the title 31 Nights: A Walk Through the Valley of the Shadow of Death after studying Psalm 23. The Hebrew for the phrase “shadow of death” is “darkest valleys” – I’m sure you, like me, have experienced dark valleys that never seem to end. The walls on each side closing in…the way out not entirely clear. But you do leave the valley. The valley has a beginning and an end. We’re not quite the same though…the journey having transformed, edified us. This crossing of the unknown can be a beautiful thing. And that’s where I’m headed…into the valley of unknown.

So what do you think? Will I see in one of the challenges above or will you embark on your own 31 Day Challenge? I’d love to hear about it!

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Hey y’all, thanks for visiting the Go Dog Go Cafe and I hope you enjoyed reading today’s selection. I am Donna Matthews, a born and bred Texan who can usually be found writing, painting, taking pictures, or traveling the world on foot. I’m all about love, people, sharing, and doing life together and would love to get to know you. I host two blogs…the first, The DJ Ranch, documents my personal adventures while the second, Slay The Chaos, focuses on mindsets, technology, productivity and organization. Come on over for a visit sometime 💙