Listen

Posted on May 28, 2014 by Jan Brown

Welcome to Friday Fictioneers! We are a community of writers from around the world who post 100-word stories based on a photo prompt provided on Rochelle Wisoff-Fields’ blog. Please visit her lovely blog for more information…and join us if you wish!

This week’s photo is by Jennifer Pendergast. Thank you, Jen!

Listen

by Jan Brown

Church attendance skyrocketed when the aliens settled on earth. They loved the choirs! They couldn’t sing, of course. They had no vocal chords.

On their own planet, they communicated telepathically, so there was no need to speak. They could hear through multiple orifices sheathed by sensitive membranes that alerted them to approaching vehicles, bad weather and the soft footsteps of their cuddly domestic pets.

But they had never heard singing. They had never experienced the poetry of opera, the raw emotion of jazz, or the awesome power of gospel music.

They were here to listen.

They were here to stay.

For more Friday Fictioneers’ stories, click the link:

60 thoughts on “Listen”

Rachel Bjerke on May 28, 2014 at 2:05 pm said:

Wow, I loved this story! So imaginative and very well written!

Reply ↓
- Jan Brown on May 28, 2014 at 10:16 pm said:
  
  Thank you–high praise, indeed! Your feedback is greatly appreciated 🙂
  
  Reply ↓
wmqcolby on May 28, 2014 at 3:06 pm said:

See? You proved a premise. Telepathy isn’t everything Of course, I doubt I could sing straight from the many orifices … 😀

Good job!

Reply ↓
- Jan Brown on May 28, 2014 at 10:15 pm said:
  
  Hahaha! Glad you enjoyed it! Thank you for reading and commenting 🙂
  
  Reply ↓
Snow's Fissures and Fractures on May 28, 2014 at 4:09 pm said:

Finally some friendly aliens….I bet they would love Puccini!

Reply ↓
- Jan Brown on May 28, 2014 at 4:34 pm said:
  
  Ha ha! I bet they would! Thank you for reading and commenting 🙂
  
  Reply ↓
JKBradley on May 28, 2014 at 9:30 pm said:

I don’t just like the story, I like the entire idea. Nice job.

Reply ↓
- Jan Brown on May 28, 2014 at 10:12 pm said:
  
  Thank you!!!!
  
  Reply ↓
kindredspirit23 on May 28, 2014 at 9:51 pm said:

I don’t blame them for staying; I would.

Reply ↓
- Jan Brown on May 28, 2014 at 10:12 pm said:
  
  Me, too! What could be better than hearing music for the first time?
  
  Thank you very much for reading and commenting 🙂
  
  Reply ↓
Sandra on May 28, 2014 at 11:48 pm said:

You couldn’t help liking them, could you? What an imaginative take on the prompt. Well done.

Reply ↓
- Jan Brown on May 28, 2014 at 11:59 pm said:
  
  Thank you, Sandra!
  
  Reply ↓
Gunn's Cabin Fever on May 29, 2014 at 12:29 am said:

Very clever this one, indeed. You really gave pause for thought.

Reply ↓
- Jan Brown on May 29, 2014 at 12:48 am said:
  
  Thank you, Hamish.
  
  Reply ↓
rochellewisoff on May 29, 2014 at 3:37 am said:

Dear Jan,

What a delightfully imagined story. How many different ways can I say “clever?” I think I’ll sing it. 😉

Shalom,

Rochelle

Reply ↓
- Jan Brown on May 29, 2014 at 7:12 am said:
  
  Thank you, Rochelle!
  
  Reply ↓
dmmacilroy on May 29, 2014 at 3:38 am said:

Dear Jan,

As long as they don’t listen to hip hop, they’ll be okay.

But, seriously, I loved this story. It is sooooooo good, so very well written and imagined. Wow.

Aloha,

Doug

Reply ↓
- Jan Brown on May 29, 2014 at 7:41 am said:
  
  Mahalo, Doug! You know if I invent a race of aliens, they have to love music 🙂
  
  Reply ↓
Lindaura Glamoura on May 29, 2014 at 7:40 am said:

Oh, Jan, that was an absolutely perfect evocation of what music could be – to so many and to our Alien friends. I loved your description of them and I welcome them as long as they cuddle me gently.

Reply ↓
- Jan Brown on May 29, 2014 at 7:44 am said:
  
  They will definitely cuddle you gently, especially if you make music for them and teach them to dance 🙂
  
  Thank you for visiting and commenting!
  
  Reply ↓
BrainRants on May 29, 2014 at 8:50 am said:

I like your ‘what if’ premise and answer.

Reply ↓
- Jan Brown on May 29, 2014 at 11:07 pm said:
  
  Thank you very much!
  
  Reply ↓
K.Z. on May 29, 2014 at 10:30 am said:

i love that they’re here for the music! and the great thing is, we can afford to share it. brilliant. 🙂

Reply ↓
- Jan Brown on May 29, 2014 at 1:13 pm said:
  
  Thank you, K.Z.!
  
  Reply ↓
aliciajamtaas on May 29, 2014 at 12:57 pm said:

Thanks for this. Music truly is the glue that can bind nations (whether on earth or beyond)! Love this tale.

Reply ↓
- Jan Brown on May 29, 2014 at 1:16 pm said:
  
  Thank you, Alicia!
  
  Reply ↓
Rick Daddario on May 29, 2014 at 7:02 pm said:

aloha Jan. you have an intriguing concept that looks to me like it has multiple directions in which to explore. I like the ending which is also open to exploration of course. fun. aloha.

Reply ↓
- Jan Brown on May 29, 2014 at 7:06 pm said:
  
  Mahalo, Rick!
  
  Reply ↓
elappleby on May 30, 2014 at 2:04 am said:

Fabulous concept, perfectly executed. I can practically see these aliens listening and enjoying. One of my favourites this week.

Reply ↓
- Jan Brown on May 30, 2014 at 2:19 am said:
  
  Thanks, EL!
  
  Reply ↓
Liz Young on May 30, 2014 at 4:17 am said:

Lovely – it makes a change to read about aliens who want to enjoy what we have rather than steal it or destroy it.

Reply ↓
- Jan Brown on May 30, 2014 at 5:22 am said:
  
  Yes, friendly aliens are rare! Thanks for reading and commenting 🙂
  
  Reply ↓
unspywriter on May 30, 2014 at 9:45 am said:

Wonderfully clever take on the prompt. Yes, I’d like to think music would also soothe the savage alien.

Here’s mine: http://unexpectedpaths.com/2014/05/30/friday-fictioneers-and-an-elegy/

Reply ↓
- Jan Brown on May 30, 2014 at 10:01 am said:
  
  Thank you, Maggie!
  
  Reply ↓
the blogging disciple on May 30, 2014 at 12:55 pm said:

Viva la musica!! 😉 Very imaginative! -Beth

Reply ↓
- Jan Brown on May 30, 2014 at 1:07 pm said:
  
  Thanks, Beth!
  
  Reply ↓
patriciaruthsusan on May 30, 2014 at 2:38 pm said:

Jan, Lovely story with a happy ending and beautiful music. Aliens that appreciate our culture. I wonder what the’ll share with us in return. It looks like perhaps we’ll benefit as well as give to this group. Advanced friendly aliens usually help us. Well done. 🙂 —Susan.

Reply ↓
- Jan Brown on May 31, 2014 at 4:36 am said:
  
  Yes, they probably have so much to share, and plan to do so as long as they view us as their music – loving friends. But there must be other aspects of our culture they find confusing, weird or repellent, to say the least!
  
  Thank you for reading and commenting 🙂
  
  Reply ↓
lingeringvisions by Dawn on May 30, 2014 at 7:52 pm said:

This is musically imaginative!

Reply ↓
- Jan Brown on May 31, 2014 at 4:36 am said:
  
  Thank you , Dawn!
  
  Reply ↓
Weltchysnotebook on May 31, 2014 at 1:37 am said:

Excellent story. Though god knows what they must think if they heard the euro vision song contest.

Reply ↓
- Jan Brown on May 31, 2014 at 4:55 am said:
  
  Thanks, Weltchy! As to the Eurovision song contest, being in the USA I only saw a couple of the finalists perform, but I thought they were great! And I doubt that the aliens would find a transgender performer (or any performer) unusual, given that they have no preconceived notion of what is “usual.”
  
  Reply ↓
  - Weltchysnotebook on May 31, 2014 at 5:22 am said:
    
    It’s a bit too much euro pop for my liking. But your right, tastes vary and the aliens might appreciate it
    
    Reply ↓
draliman on May 31, 2014 at 2:19 am said:

Very imaginative. I hope we’re not the “cuddly pets” – I did think the final line was a bit ominous! I’ll be optimistic for once – they’re friendly 🙂

Reply ↓
- Jan Brown on May 31, 2014 at 4:57 am said:
  
  Yes, I think there’s reason for optimism with these music-loving aliens 🙂 Thank you for reading and commenting!
  
  Reply ↓
Björn Rudberg (brudberg) on May 31, 2014 at 6:37 am said:

Good that they could not read their poetry.. there are terrible poets in Space.. terrible…

Reply ↓
- Jan Brown on May 31, 2014 at 7:16 am said:
  
  Ah, the Vogons from Hitchhiker’s Guide 🙂 🙂
  
  Reply ↓
elmowrites on May 31, 2014 at 7:37 am said:

What a wonderfully novel way of looking at things, Jan. And beautifully worded – you’ve reminded me not to take both ears and voice for granted. Thank you

Reply ↓
- Jan Brown on May 31, 2014 at 2:59 pm said:
  
  Thank you, Jen, and thank you for the great photo !
  
  Reply ↓
Dee on May 31, 2014 at 9:11 am said:

Jan this is brilliant. Nothing else to say 🙂

Dee

Reply ↓
- Jan Brown on May 31, 2014 at 2:59 pm said:
  
  Thank you, Dee!
  
  Reply ↓
MythRider on May 31, 2014 at 11:39 am said:

How beautiful. Nice to know not all aliens have come to have us for dinner.

Reply ↓
- Jan Brown on May 31, 2014 at 3:06 pm said:
  
  Yes, I hesitate to think all aliens would be wicked–even though it makes for some great plot twists 😉 I don’t think they could advance their technology enough to visit us, if they were as selfish and self-centered as we humans are! Technology takes teamwork….
  
  Reply ↓
Perry Block on May 31, 2014 at 6:43 pm said:

Yeah, but wait til they hear me sing Jethro Tull. They’ll be here to leave.

Reply ↓
- Jan Brown on May 31, 2014 at 7:44 pm said:
  
  And I suspect many humans will go with them, once they’ve heard your “singing ” :-0
  
  Reply ↓
talesfromthemotherland on June 1, 2014 at 2:31 pm said:

This is the kind of sci-fi I can wrap my head around. Fun and clever, Jan. Wonderful story!

Reply ↓
- Jan Brown on June 2, 2014 at 5:54 am said:
  
  Thanks, Dawn!
  
  Reply ↓
Nan Claire Falkner on June 2, 2014 at 2:45 am said:

Dear Jan – You are so good at this! I really enjoyed it – too bad the aliens are taking over – I hope they brought their own power source and food. But WELCOME ALIENS! Glad you’re here. Nan 🙂

Reply ↓
- Jan Brown on June 2, 2014 at 5:52 am said:
  
  Thanks, Nan!
  
  Reply ↓
etiennehanratty on June 3, 2014 at 7:44 am said:

I doubt there’s a finer opening sentence than t

Reply ↓