Thunk!
Baba peeked through her shutters, to see Billy’s hind end bouncing its way back to town. That night, sucking on her pipe, she considered the moon overhead. Why did he throw rocks at her cottage? No hello, no jeers, no partner in crime. Was he lonely? Her rocking chair creaked in assent.
She offered cookies, meat pie, even halloos. Never accepted, never answered, so she only nodded when he came, gathering the rocks in a pile that grew with the child.
Until the day she couldn’t get out of bed, and the young man knocked on her door.
© Liz Husebye Hartmann (2023)
Carrot Ranch Prompt (07/11/2023): In 99 words (no more, no less), write a story about a loving relationship with an adult child. What happens when a significant child in one’s life becomes an adult? Think beyond a son or daughter — a niece or nephew, a former student, a grandchild. How did the relationship shift? What is the importance of the new dynamic? Go where the prompt leads!
Valley of the Trolls 
Liz,
Loved it, especially the twist at the end. Maybe it was the only positive contact he received, but he couldn’t admit to it until then. Well done!
~Nan
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You may well be right…see what a little love can do?
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Yep, love is a powerful magic!
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I took the twist at the end to be a positive one, was I right?
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That’s what I was thinking as I wrote. Her kindness had been noticed all along, and despite what was going on in the rest of his life, the love & caring had been received…and returned
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Oh, good, I read that right!
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😊
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An intriguing story Liz.
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Thank you kindly, Sadje!
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You’re most welcome
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