Tag Archives: drabble

The City On The Edge of Heaven

city

PHOTO PROMPT © Roger Bultot

“I’m in a city somewhere.” Rand stood on the sidewalk looking at his reflection in the windows of the building across the street. He pulled out his wallet.

“Yeah, plenty of cash and a credit card.” He stopped when he saw the name and address on the drivers license. “My picture, but from a long time ago.”

It got worse when he saw the expiration date.

“That was decades ago.” He looked at his reflection again. He was so young.

“What happened?” Then he remembered the wish he made. He had been dying. Cancer.

A voice said, “Welcome to Heaven.”

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The Last Days of Great-Grandma Sherline McCabe

belton

PHOTO PROMPT © Rochelle Wisoff-Fields

Great-grandma Sherline McCabe lay on her deathbed at the age of one-hundred-and-one surrounded by four generations of her progeny. Her voice was weak and she was as thin as a ghost as she began the final rendition of her tale.

“Listen here. I was born on the Woman’s Commonwealth commune in Belton, Texas in the year of our Lord 1882. Mama had just left my old Papa Silas Sean O’Neill who was a wife beater and a drunk.

“The women raised me and took care of each other and were not only fine Christians but successful in business and commerce.”

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And they were singin’ bye-bye, Miss American Pie

cafe

PHOTO PROMPT © Lori Wilson

Todd’s hands were trembling and fear twisted in his gut. The café wasn’t right, even though it said “Route 66” on the sign.

“You weren’t here back then,” he muttered to himself. He shivered but not just because it was cold.

Todd sat at one of the outside picnic tables. Maybe if he closed his eyes and wished hard enough… But the only thing that happened was the waitress asking if he wanted a menu.

After his coffee came and she left, he took a sip and waited to die. The past was gone and he was going with it.

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Dangerous

sidewalk

PHOTO PROMPT © David Stewart

It was a pleasant neighborhood and having time to kill before my next business meeting, I decided to take a walk. I began to think that was a mistake when the lone pedestrian, a woman wearing a baseball cap, saw me coming towards her and slowed down.

She looked scared. Was it because I’m an American, that I’m tall, or just because I’m a man?

We got closer and I smiled and nodded. I didn’t know if that was okay here in China. She looked relieved as we passed each other. I’m sorry if she thought I was a monster.

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Freezing My Butt Off In Quebec Again

stairwell

PHOTO PROMPT © Jennifer Pendergast

“Of all the ridiculous…not Quebec again.”

Gerald sat on the steps heedless of melting snow making the rear of his jeans cold and wet. He propped his elbows on his knees and set his forlorn looking face in his hands. His gaze darted around the concrete stairwell. “Le Petit Champlain. I know where I am. A damned quaint, picturesque tourist hole.”

He stared upward as if seeing through the clouds. “Look, I’m trying to find the ultimate evil down here. Get your bloody coordinates straight for once.”

“Sorry,” said the chagrined voice in his ear. “We’re still experiencing technical difficulties.”

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Grandpa’s Hippie Birthday Cake

hippie

PHOTO PROMPT © Rochelle Wisoff-Fields

“What about this one, Grandpa?” Ten-year-old Mia pulled on Tom’s arm dragging him through the bakery section of the party emporium.

“Oh, you’ve got to be kidding,” he said exaggerating his frown. “I can feel myself becoming diabetic just looking at that awful thing.

“But you were a hippie a long time ago, right?” she giggled.

“Not exactly,” he mused. “Sure, I’m old, but I don’t remember eating anything like that.

Tom looked at her smiling face and lamented the world she was growing up in. Sure, the world of his childhood was far from perfect, but it had hope.

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Terry’s Day At The Amusement Park

amused

PHOTO PROMPT © Dale Rogerson

Doctors would have called him neurodivergent if they had been able to submit him to various standardized tests. In truth, Terry (he liked the name for some reason so gave it to himself) was far more alien than that.

He thought he may have started out life as a normal boy, but as he grew older, his parents became afraid, especially after the neighborhood pets started messily dying.

The amusement park amused him, but the sign “Maximum 50” was being flaunted. There were a lot more than fifty people in that park. Terry decided to do something about the excess.

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Looking Up

archways

PHOTO PROMPT © Jennifer Pendergast

This was supposed to be a movie set but in spite of the traditional harsh and hot lighting, the details were too exact.

“Hello?” Where had the crew gone? Was it lunch yet?

He tried to look back at the doors. He swore he left them open but he couldn’t hear the noises from outside the studio and it was getting warmer.

Then his neck started hurting, but he couldn’t stop looking up. Oddly, it wasn’t the colorful stained-glass windows that attracted him but the stone faces instead.

They became animated and sang as one, “Welcome to the afterlife, Scott.”

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The Backyard Pond at Dad’s House

ice pond

PHOTO PROMPT © Sandra Crook

“Oh, crap.”

Jeremy had been surprised when he was given Dad’s house in his will. They hadn’t even talked in ten years. Then he visited the property and found out why.

“You died on Christmas and are making me deal with your junky place for New Years,” he said.

The backyard pond was not only filled with trash and frozen over, but something was strange.

“What is that, plastic mesh?”

He kicked at it with his shoe and it grabbed back.

“No! What?” Jeremy was pulled off his feet as something cold and hungry sucked him into the small abyss.

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The Phantom of Dark Lake

dark lake

PHOTO PROMPT © Lisa Fox

The kiosk to the park was long deserted when Charlotte pulled up alongside it. She was surprised that it was so easy to get here despite its reputation.

“Thanks for getting me hear across that crappy backroad.” She slammed shut the door of her ancient four-by-four.

It was still cold an hour later when her booted feet hit the sandy beach. Dark Lake was filled only by underground springs from deep caves. She watched her white breath swirl.

“I know you’re still down there, Mark,” she said. “I’m coming to take you back from that bitch mermaid.” Charlotte stepped forward.

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