Sunday, April 19, 2009

Rhubarb - 50 word story



He talks on and on, and she loves it. She keeps lists of possible subjects and picks a new one every morning. He’ll think for two minutes, and then for the next 24 hours he talks about dogs. Or lighthouses. Or avocados. No day is ever too long for them.

8 comments:

Douglas Bruton said...

Harriet never stops. Talking that is. Through the best bits of movies. Over songs I like on the radio. Making me re-read whole chapters of books because her voice louder than the voice in my own head. Even speaking in her sleep – though I listen then, for secrets she has.

Douglas Bruton said...

My dad baked pies when I was a boy. Something he learned from a baker he was apprenticed to once. With apples in, or rhubarb, or blackberries. Pastry sweet and light. Melt-in-the-mouth wonderful. They were the best pies. In my memory at least. I miss them. Miss my dad too.

Douglas Bruton said...

Eric’s grandad had rhubarb growing in one corner of his garden. Tall as tall. Like a forest in miniature if you crawled in there. Eric did. Lay on his back looking at the undersides of the leaves, and the things that crawled there, and laid butterfly-eggs, like a skin rash.

Douglas Bruton said...

Douglas just wouldn’t shut up. Not ever. Even though he was saying too much. Even though he knew he was. And everyone else was silent. Couldn’t get a word in, probably. Maybe they weren’t even listening. It made no difference to him: he liked the sound of his own voice.

:-)

Sarah Salway said...

Aw, Douglas. Never shut up - or at least not on this blog at least! I love the Eric one in particular.

Douglas Bruton said...

Shucks... someone IS listening. Douglas doesn't know what to say now! Not fifty words now, just twenty... Thanks, Sarah, thanks.

D

Sarah Salway said...

Of course I listen, D. I'm not the only one who loves your responses either!

Douglas Bruton said...

Oh, now Douglas is flying... feet off the ground and head all cloudy and a little giddy from the flight.

Thanks Sarah... this is such a brilliant fun thing to do. And so kind of you to let us hang the pieces up here on your site.

Do you know what else is sometimes fun... the word verifictaions we have to type in in order to have our comment accept... below in squiggly blue right now it says 'mindboa'... these 50 word things just get inside your head and won't let you go... and the whole 'story' is constricted into just 50 words!!!

D