May 22, 2023 • 11 mins
The Worlds of Possibility anthology Kickstarter is VERY CLOSE to hitting the goal! At the time I am posting this, it has just $40 to go! "Things Most Meaningful" is a story from the February 2023 issue of Worlds of Possibility. You can read the text and see the accompanying illustration by Ana Rubio at https://www.juliarios.com/things-most-meaningful-a-story-by-p-a-cornell/
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
Welcome to the OMG Julia Podcast,where we discuss creative lives and processes.
I'm your host, Julia Rios,and today, as I am recording this,
we are seventy five dollars away fromthe primary funding goal of the World's
a Possibility Kickstarter. Maybe by thetime I post this will be at the
(00:23):
goal. I don't know, buteither way it's pretty exciting. I've already
announced the first two stretch goals.Those are at five hundred dollars over funding,
a new sticker design for the topreviews of the Sweet Beauty Bakery,
home of Extraordinary Gender Reveal Kikes byJoe Miles. And then if we've overfund
(00:47):
by a thousand dollars, I willbe having a special open submissions call for
two brand new poems to include inthe anthology. Those are the current stretch
goals that have announced, and aswe go on, I will be announcing
more. For now, I puta poll up I asked what you most
(01:08):
wanted to see in the next update. I gave three choices, poetry,
art or a story. A storyone, but art was a really close
second. And because we are rightat the finish line, I decided I'm
going to give you both. Hereis a story from the February twenty twenty
(01:30):
three issue of World's a Possibility thatalso contains an original illustration. This is
Things Most Meaningful, a story byPa Cornell, and I love this story
very much. If you want togo read the full text, you can
do that at Julia Rios dot comand you can also see the illustration by
(01:53):
Mexican artist Anna Rubio. Things MostMeaningful full by P. A. Cornell.
My father came home from the millone day with a block of wood.
I thought this a strange thing tobring home, but he assured me
it came from a very special treeand that he had a purpose in mind
(02:16):
for it. Over weeks, Iwatched him cut into the wood with various
tools, then sand and polish ituntil he declared his project complete. It's
a box, I said it is. Did you make it for mom?
(02:37):
I made it for you. Iexamined the box closely. He'd carved intricate
designs depicting flowers and animals over theentire surface. Lifting the lid, I
saw that the marks from when he'dhollowed out the interior remained visible. I
ran a fingertip along the grooves,noticing the way he'd sanded them smooth and
(03:02):
the wood's natural caramel color. Itook in the woody scent. The box
was beautifully crafted, but I didn'tunderstand what I was meant to do with
it. What's it for? It'sfor whatever you like, He said,
(03:23):
to place those things that are mostmeaningful to you inside. I took it
to my room and searched for valuablesto store in it. Not being very
large, most things wouldn't fit inside, so I settled on jewelry i'd been
given by family members, a pairof gold studs, a silver bracelet with
(03:44):
my initials on it, a ringI'd inherited from my great aunt. They
all fit neatly in the box,and for many months that's all it helped.
Then one day Mom called me tothe kitchen to help her bake Grandma's
famous walnut tart. Neither of ushad ever made it without Grandma's help,
(04:08):
and her recipe was a bit unclear, so in the end the kitchen was
covered in egg and flour. Walnutbits littered practically every surface, Our hands
were sore from cracking shells, andthe crust had singed a little on one
side. Mom and I looked atthe mess of a tart, laughed at
(04:28):
ourselves, and cut a slice foreach of us. Somehow it was the
best we'd ever tasted. Later,I was in my room when the box
caught my eye. I don't knowwhy, but I picked it up,
dumped that jewelry I never wore intoa drawer, and once again traced my
(04:53):
finger along the grooves Dad had leftbehind. I thought of the day Mom
and I had shared and the sweettaste of the tart we'd made together.
I put that moment in the boxand closed the lid to keep it safe.
A year or so later, onthe way home from school, my
best friend and I stopped to situnder the weeping willow that grew on the
(05:15):
creek bank. Usually we'd sit andtalk for a long time, but that
day seemed strangely quiet. We satin awkward silence, smoothing our skirts over
our knees for something to do withour hands, until finally she reached out
and took mine in hers. Thegesture came as both as a prize and
(05:39):
not. She whispered that I wasbeautiful, and I told her she was
too. Then we shared our firstkiss. I put that moment in the
box too. Over the years mycollection grew, I filled it with countless
(06:00):
celebrations and firsts. I've filled itwith laughter, contentment, and so much
love. Life is full of momentsto add if you know where to look,
if you pause to take them inso you don't miss them. Now
and then, I'd sit quietly andopen the box to see the treasures it
held. I'd run a finger alongthe wood and remember them all, feeling
(06:26):
those feelings all over again. Itworked best on the tough days. I'd
open the box and find a momentto carry me through stormy weather and remind
me dark days are necessary to appreciatehow brightly others shine. The box taught
me the things most meaningful aren't things. Often others ask why I keep it
(06:50):
empty all the time. I tellthem it's full to bursting, but still
has room for more. What islife if not a collection of moments?
We choose which ones to hold onto. That was Things most Meaningful?
(07:15):
By P. A. Cornell.P. A. Cornell is a Chilean
Canadian author who wrote her first speculativestory when she was just eight years old.
A member of s f W aand graduate of the Odyssey Workshop.
Her short fiction has appeared in multiplegenre markets and anthologies. Her story Splits
(07:42):
went on to win Canada's twenty twentytwo Short Works Prize for Fiction. That
same year, she published her debutnovella Lost Cargo. When not writing,
Cornell can be found assembling intricate legobuilds or drinking ridiculous quantities of tea,
sometimes both. To find out moreabout the author and her work, visit
(08:07):
her website, Pa Cornell dot com. Anna Rubio did the illustration that accompanies
this story. It's a picture ofthe moment our narrator has her first kiss
with her best friend. Anna Rubiois a Mexican artist. You can find
her on Instagram as at Anita Rubiodot UWU. You can also commission art
(08:35):
from her on fiver. If youwant to see links to these websites,
you can visit Julia Rios dot com. Follow link in the show notes for
this podcast and they will be there, along with, of course, a
link to the World's Possibility anthology Kickstarter, which is still going until the end
of this week. It ends brightand early Saturday morning in Eastern US time.
(09:01):
The twenty seventh of May, anduntil then you still have your chance
to order a rocket Bike Cat stickerand all the other goodies that we have.
If you're listening to this on Monday, May twenty second, the day
it came out, it's the lastday for you to get the flash reward
(09:22):
or a flash add on for aspecial rocket Bike Cat sticker set that includes
a mini rocket Bike Cat sticker witha prismatic holographic background and also the larger
version which will be made after thekickstarter ends, and that one the background
will be decided on by popular votefrom the backers, So I will be
(09:45):
sending a survey to everyone and youcan fill in your top choice after the
kickstarter ends and you can have yoursay, and whether it gets a white
background, a prismatic background at clearbackground, will do whatever the most of
you want. The rocket Bike Catis, of course designed by Julia Kim.
It's a lovely, amazing sticker.I love it so much. It
(10:11):
was an illustration originally commissioned to gowith a Saturday out by Lena Ung,
And I mean in that story thecat's a little bit of a stinker,
but in its life as the world'sa possibility mascot. Everyone including me,
loves this cat. This cat isjust our fave, my hero. So
(10:31):
anyway, you haven't til midnight tonightEastern time to go grab that. As
a special sticker set reward. Youwill get the big version of the sticker
as part of the sticker set,regardless if you joined the art reward level.
But right now today it's your lastday to go ahead and back and
get just the sticker if you wantit, or add just that sticker set
(10:54):
on to your existing pledge. AndI know that I had some people question
about how to do that, andif you've already pledged, the way that
you'll do that is click Manage yourpledge and then change your pledge and then
it will allow you to choose thesame pledge level that you're already at.
Click pledge that and then the addons menu will come up and you can
(11:18):
add that five dollar cat level.Okay, thank you so much for listening.
I can't wait to see how manystretch goals we can fund with this.
I'm very excited to be making thisbook and all the stickers and everything
else. And thank you so muchfor all your support, keep sharing,
(11:39):
keep being awesome. I will catchyou next time.
Welcome to the OMG Julia Podcast,where we discuss creative lives and processes.
I'm your host, Julia Rios,and today, as I am recording this,
we are seventy five dollars away fromthe primary funding goal of the World's
a Possibility Kickstarter. Maybe by thetime I post this will be at the
(00:23):
goal. I don't know, buteither way it's pretty exciting. I've already
announced the first two stretch goals.Those are at five hundred dollars over funding,
a new sticker design for the topreviews of the Sweet Beauty Bakery,
home of Extraordinary Gender Reveal Kikes byJoe Miles. And then if we've overfund
(00:47):
by a thousand dollars, I willbe having a special open submissions call for
two brand new poems to include inthe anthology. Those are the current stretch
goals that have announced, and aswe go on, I will be announcing
more. For now, I puta poll up I asked what you most
(01:08):
wanted to see in the next update. I gave three choices, poetry,
art or a story. A storyone, but art was a really close
second. And because we are rightat the finish line, I decided I'm
going to give you both. Hereis a story from the February twenty twenty
(01:30):
three issue of World's a Possibility thatalso contains an original illustration. This is
Things Most Meaningful, a story byPa Cornell, and I love this story
very much. If you want togo read the full text, you can
do that at Julia Rios dot comand you can also see the illustration by
(01:53):
Mexican artist Anna Rubio. Things MostMeaningful full by P. A. Cornell.
My father came home from the millone day with a block of wood.
I thought this a strange thing tobring home, but he assured me
it came from a very special treeand that he had a purpose in mind
(02:16):
for it. Over weeks, Iwatched him cut into the wood with various
tools, then sand and polish ituntil he declared his project complete. It's
a box, I said it is. Did you make it for mom?
(02:37):
I made it for you. Iexamined the box closely. He'd carved intricate
designs depicting flowers and animals over theentire surface. Lifting the lid, I
saw that the marks from when he'dhollowed out the interior remained visible. I
ran a fingertip along the grooves,noticing the way he'd sanded them smooth and
(03:02):
the wood's natural caramel color. Itook in the woody scent. The box
was beautifully crafted, but I didn'tunderstand what I was meant to do with
it. What's it for? It'sfor whatever you like, He said,
(03:23):
to place those things that are mostmeaningful to you inside. I took it
to my room and searched for valuablesto store in it. Not being very
large, most things wouldn't fit inside, so I settled on jewelry i'd been
given by family members, a pairof gold studs, a silver bracelet with
(03:44):
my initials on it, a ringI'd inherited from my great aunt. They
all fit neatly in the box,and for many months that's all it helped.
Then one day Mom called me tothe kitchen to help her bake Grandma's
famous walnut tart. Neither of ushad ever made it without Grandma's help,
(04:08):
and her recipe was a bit unclear, so in the end the kitchen was
covered in egg and flour. Walnutbits littered practically every surface, Our hands
were sore from cracking shells, andthe crust had singed a little on one
side. Mom and I looked atthe mess of a tart, laughed at
(04:28):
ourselves, and cut a slice foreach of us. Somehow it was the
best we'd ever tasted. Later,I was in my room when the box
caught my eye. I don't knowwhy, but I picked it up,
dumped that jewelry I never wore intoa drawer, and once again traced my
(04:53):
finger along the grooves Dad had leftbehind. I thought of the day Mom
and I had shared and the sweettaste of the tart we'd made together.
I put that moment in the boxand closed the lid to keep it safe.
A year or so later, onthe way home from school, my
best friend and I stopped to situnder the weeping willow that grew on the
(05:15):
creek bank. Usually we'd sit andtalk for a long time, but that
day seemed strangely quiet. We satin awkward silence, smoothing our skirts over
our knees for something to do withour hands, until finally she reached out
and took mine in hers. Thegesture came as both as a prize and
(05:39):
not. She whispered that I wasbeautiful, and I told her she was
too. Then we shared our firstkiss. I put that moment in the
box too. Over the years mycollection grew, I filled it with countless
(06:00):
celebrations and firsts. I've filled itwith laughter, contentment, and so much
love. Life is full of momentsto add if you know where to look,
if you pause to take them inso you don't miss them. Now
and then, I'd sit quietly andopen the box to see the treasures it
held. I'd run a finger alongthe wood and remember them all, feeling
(06:26):
those feelings all over again. Itworked best on the tough days. I'd
open the box and find a momentto carry me through stormy weather and remind
me dark days are necessary to appreciatehow brightly others shine. The box taught
me the things most meaningful aren't things. Often others ask why I keep it
(06:50):
empty all the time. I tellthem it's full to bursting, but still
has room for more. What islife if not a collection of moments?
We choose which ones to hold onto. That was Things most Meaningful?
(07:15):
By P. A. Cornell.P. A. Cornell is a Chilean
Canadian author who wrote her first speculativestory when she was just eight years old.
A member of s f W aand graduate of the Odyssey Workshop.
Her short fiction has appeared in multiplegenre markets and anthologies. Her story Splits
(07:42):
went on to win Canada's twenty twentytwo Short Works Prize for Fiction. That
same year, she published her debutnovella Lost Cargo. When not writing,
Cornell can be found assembling intricate legobuilds or drinking ridiculous quantities of tea,
sometimes both. To find out moreabout the author and her work, visit
(08:07):
her website, Pa Cornell dot com. Anna Rubio did the illustration that accompanies
this story. It's a picture ofthe moment our narrator has her first kiss
with her best friend. Anna Rubiois a Mexican artist. You can find
her on Instagram as at Anita Rubiodot UWU. You can also commission art
(08:35):
from her on fiver. If youwant to see links to these websites,
you can visit Julia Rios dot com. Follow link in the show notes for
this podcast and they will be there, along with, of course, a
link to the World's Possibility anthology Kickstarter, which is still going until the end
of this week. It ends brightand early Saturday morning in Eastern US time.
(09:01):
The twenty seventh of May, anduntil then you still have your chance
to order a rocket Bike Cat stickerand all the other goodies that we have.
If you're listening to this on Monday, May twenty second, the day
it came out, it's the lastday for you to get the flash reward
(09:22):
or a flash add on for aspecial rocket Bike Cat sticker set that includes
a mini rocket Bike Cat sticker witha prismatic holographic background and also the larger
version which will be made after thekickstarter ends, and that one the background
will be decided on by popular votefrom the backers, So I will be
(09:45):
sending a survey to everyone and youcan fill in your top choice after the
kickstarter ends and you can have yoursay, and whether it gets a white
background, a prismatic background at clearbackground, will do whatever the most of
you want. The rocket Bike Catis, of course designed by Julia Kim.
It's a lovely, amazing sticker.I love it so much. It
(10:11):
was an illustration originally commissioned to gowith a Saturday out by Lena Ung,
And I mean in that story thecat's a little bit of a stinker,
but in its life as the world'sa possibility mascot. Everyone including me,
loves this cat. This cat isjust our fave, my hero. So
(10:31):
anyway, you haven't til midnight tonightEastern time to go grab that. As
a special sticker set reward. Youwill get the big version of the sticker
as part of the sticker set,regardless if you joined the art reward level.
But right now today it's your lastday to go ahead and back and
get just the sticker if you wantit, or add just that sticker set
(10:54):
on to your existing pledge. AndI know that I had some people question
about how to do that, andif you've already pledged, the way that
you'll do that is click Manage yourpledge and then change your pledge and then
it will allow you to choose thesame pledge level that you're already at.
Click pledge that and then the addons menu will come up and you can
(11:18):
add that five dollar cat level.Okay, thank you so much for listening.
I can't wait to see how manystretch goals we can fund with this.
I'm very excited to be making thisbook and all the stickers and everything
else. And thank you so muchfor all your support, keep sharing,
(11:39):
keep being awesome. I will catchyou next time.
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