Maisy sat down in a heap. Sweat poured off her brow as she swiped at it with a handkerchief.
Carl unsteadily walked up to her, checking his cane against a few of the stones beside the dirt track. He wobbled a bit when he stopped before her. “How much longer, Maisy?”
With a sigh, she squinted up at him. The sun was only high enough to peek over his shoulder. “I gots fo’ mo’ of these logs fo’ I can get to lunch. Why, ol’ man?”
He reached behind his back and produced a canteen. “Drink up and come to the house. You look like you’ve been pulled backward through a knothole. Enough chopping for today.”
Grateful for the water and the reprieve, the spinster replied, “Yesser.”
On the way back to the cabin, he wondered what would become of her when he died in the cold of winter.
Welcome to “Flash in the Pan”
This is a complete departure from what normally appears as my flash. Consider it me trying on hats. Coming in on the nose of 150 words, this flash features the word backward.
Only one left. Next week is the last week of the quarter. Are your flashes in? The deadline is 30SEP13 at 2359 EDT (GMT -4). No late entries will be considered.
Happy Flashing!
Why is the spinster chopping his firewood? Why will she die without him? Why does he not just marry her?
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Binky
/ September 22, 2013I guess he figures he won’t survive the hardships of another winter. And without enough firewood, he may be right.
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Red of M3
/ November 3, 2013My guess is you are right. Not sure if it is because she is not finished the wood or something he has neglected to tell her.
Candy
/ September 23, 2013Ohh…Red…this is good. Quite different from your norm, but a hat you wear well.
Nicely done <3
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Red of M3
/ November 3, 2013Thank you. I do love to wander off the reservation every once in a while. xxx <3
Candy
/ November 3, 2013Trips away from home -even aimless wandering – are good for the soul 🙂
<3
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BuddhaKat
/ September 23, 2013Maybe I’m crazy, but why did I get the feeling that she would do just fine without him, walking along reminding her how tired she is. Perhaps it is he, waiting at home for some wood chips, that wouldn’t make it without Maisy?!?
🙂
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Red of M3
/ November 3, 2013I know he needs her to do all the things he cannot. I think he really is being kind by telling her not to work so hard. xxx
Tess Kann
/ September 23, 2013What a tale you weave. His speech implies he may be the master of the house and he cannot marry her because he is white.
He knows he’s sick and she is old and in need of help herself. They have no-one else in the world and have been together a long time.
It’s hard to say this is your best but I really like this one. 🙂
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Red of M3
/ November 3, 2013I thought I would try on a new genre. I am not so good with this particular era. I do much better with far more ancient and the future than I do here. Still, I do not see color in it. I see her more as a social outcast for not having married. I think they have been together a long time. xxx
Valentine Logar
/ September 24, 2013Love the departure, take a bow. These two have quite the relationship, but I think he might be surprised. Doesn’t he know it is only married couples that follow each other quickly.
🙂
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Red of M3
/ November 3, 2013Hahaha! True. Mayhap, there will be someone else to take her in. I do think they have a long and special relationship. xxx
Gray Dawster
/ September 24, 2013Yes they are all completed now thank you Red and this one of yours titled ‘Backwards’ is definitely a cool looking flash if I ever saw one 🙂 You need to experiment further me thinks 🙂
Andro xxxx
Red of M3
/ November 3, 2013I am toying with a storyboard set in the past unlike I have written before. We shall see. 🙂
Susan Precise
/ September 29, 2013I think Maisy is a slave and Carl is her “master.” Without him she may be free, but then what?
Marriage is clearly not an option.
I like this one a LOT, Red.
Red of M3
/ November 3, 2013You see the master/slave relationship, too. Hmm. Mayhap, I could have been more descriptive. xxx
Susan Shuman
/ November 3, 2013I think it’s the name Maisy, that does it. Plus, the sweat and vernacular… It’s a great flash!
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Red of M3
/ November 3, 2013<<< Currently knows someone named Maisy, and Daisy and Dixie... :P