Eventuality – Friday Fictioneers

Varad,

sandra-crook-stacks

Ria walked through the dilapidated house with a grace that belied her age. She paused by the ornate French windows and smiled ruefully.

‘This place was designed by Angelo Del Vecchio. He billed by the minute, you know?’

She stepped out to the garden overrun by nettles and weeds.

‘I used to host tea parties here when I was a kid.’

She stopped outside the derelict solarium and choked back a sob.

‘What happened? It was so beautiful.’

‘Age and neglect, Madam.’

She ran a shriveled finger over her parched face.

‘Ah, yes!’

The once dream-girl walked away in silence.

Written in response to the picture prompt provided by Sandra Crook for Friday Fictioneers hosted by Rochelle Wisoff – Fields. Please find other entries here.

Word Count: 100

 

Published by Varad

Self-published author/ Social media neanderthal.

53 Comments

  3. Even before the actual tea word came up I was thinking tea with the word nettle – had it a while back and was delish!
    And then when the reflective looking back came I was moving with the story quite well – and like the details here -could imagine that window

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  5. Pingback: An Almighty Juggling Act…Concert Pianist & Mother, Eunice Gardiner. | Beyond the Flow

  6. I was really entranced by this piece…so philosophical and profound in so few words. I remember my grandmother talking to me in her late 80s about hos she looked in the mirror and wondered who this old lady was staring back at her. She added that she thought I probably thought she was crazy but I didn’t. It made sense at the time and it making more sense as I start to see her mother staring back at me from the mirror. I am so much like her. Yet, in my heart, I will be 25 forever. Must have been a good year.
    Best wishes,
    Rowena

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    1. I remember reading a story about your grandmother. I think it was about her trip to New York, if I’m not mistaken. She was quite the character, traveling alone to follow her passion.

      Thanks for the comment, Rowena. Have a nice day. 🙂

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      1. Thank you, Varad. My grandmother has been this incredible mystery all my life and having all these old newspapers go online, has both illuminated and confused me. One of the things that really blew me away, was finding out there was a miniature grand piano on top of my grandparents wedding cake. My husband and I have both thought it was a recognition that my grandfather was marrying her the piano and all that went with it. I’ve never seen a photo of the cake and would dearly love to and I only found out about it from the newspapers. It is very strange finding out such personal details about your own grandmother through old newspapers online. The other thing that I’ve come to realize is that her genes have been passed onto us. In he past, that was simply seen as whether or not we’d inherited her musical talent, and perhaps in the more specific context of the piano. Could we play? It’s taken me some time and a few more generations to join the mix, to see that we have inherited a smattering of things from her, including an absolutely dogged determination and focus, which was just as important to her success as her musical talent. A jack of all trades isn’t going to cut the mustard.
        You got a story there, Varad and I’m going to paste it to the end of my post. Your comment really got me thinking this morning as I’m back at my desk with a cup of tea, porridge and my go pills.
        Hope you have a lovely weekend!
        Best wishes,
        Rowena

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      2. I do feel inspired – and that is some dress in that photo – and what a beautiful picture “on so many levels”
        And nice to also have a spot for a resource as precious as this

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  12. I wonder what made her return to her childhood home. I like the way you said her grace belied her age, but left it open till later, whether she was young and gawky or old and suffering from mobility issues. Her spirit seemed to transcend her age.
    The solarium–which i assume is something like a greenhouse–caused her to break down. Nothing shows decay or neglect like the proliferation of greenery in a once civilized space.

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    1. To us, time is cruel. Take the ‘us’ out of the equation, we’ll just find time just going about its business per usual. Thanks for the comment, JJ.

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