Every week, Rochelle Wisoff-Fields (thank you, Rochelle!) hosts a flash fiction challenge, to write a complete story, based on a photoprompt, with a beginning, middle and end, in 100 words or less. Post it on your blog, and include the Photoprompt and Inlinkz (the blue frog) on your page. Link your story URL. Then the fun starts as you read other peoples’ stories and comment on them!
PHOTO PROMPT © Rochelle Wisoff-Fields
The Blues
‘The blues’ they call it, and I can understand why.
In the pre-dawn light of a dull March morning, with drizzle coalescing on the windows, nearby houses loom, shapeless, out of the blue-grey mist.
I boil a kettle for coffee. Did I really used to grind beans fresh every morning?
I suppose I’d better wash the plate that I used for my microwave dinner last night.
No. That can wait until after coffee.
Perhaps I’ll feel better when spring finally arrives. Gerald’s plant looks cheerful enough.
It’s nearly a year now since he died.
I wish I could join him.
Dear Penny,
The loneliness and apathy in this piece are tangible. Perhaps she’ll feel better after her coffee. Well done.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Dear Rochelle
Thank you for reading and commenting. I certainly hope she will, but of course it takes time to work through grief.
Shalom
Penny
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I liked the blue connection between the mood, the bowl, and the sky
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Dear Neil
Thank you for reading and commenting. I found the emotion of the prompt very ambiguous. There were cheerful lights in the crystal, but those blue misty windows behind. However, it was the microwave that swung me towards pessimism…!
With best wishes
Penny
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Be careful what you wish for. Spring is special, wait and see.
Click to read my FriFic tale
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Dear Keith
Thank you for reading and commenting. Spring certainly can lift the mood, but I fear my narrator has much more grieving to live through. However, eventually I’m sure she’ll enjoy life again.
With best wishes
Penny
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What a sad one! There is a time for all moods and grief will go by and spring will return….
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Dear anie
Thank you for reading and commenting. Grief is the price we pay for joy; the greater the joy, the greater the grief, I fear.
With best wishes
Penny
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Of course you can not enjoy one thing to the fullest, if you did not have to suffer the other and vice versa. But do you think there is a direct fair balance (1: 1) within a human life or is it not rather that there are people who suffer more and people who slide through life almost without suffering?
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Dear anie
That’s a very profound question, and I can only offer a personal opinion.
No, life isn’t fair. I am outrageously privileged, with plenty of fresh, tasty food and a secure roof over my head and in a peaceful and beautiful environment. Just a flick of the dice, and I could have been born in Syria, or Afghanistan or Yemen where I would almost certainly have none of those things. All I can sensibly do about that is support charities who work in those places, and campaign for social justice; none of which stops me being unfairly privileged.
But when I say that grief is the price we pay for joy, I am thinking more in a personal way. If we experience joy, we are at some point going to lose it, and that will hurt.
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Thank you for your answer, which I is very interesting. No doubt that we are very privileged alone through our birthplace. And after living in Brazil for almost 5 years, I am very aware that we are moaning at a very high level. But I am also aware that the situations in which people live (financially, politically, socially …) are not solely responsible for happiness. On the contrary, I believe that people who have a lot of money tend to be more unhappy because they attribute their existence and how they are treat by other people only to their money and not to their personality/ soul.
But you are right, I also should definitely do more for justice and make room for it in my life. This is not only a help for others, but also brings happiness and social developement for myself.
We can only develop if we have mistakes and gaps and we can only learn if we lack knowledge … and we can only value happiness if we know the sadness. But I do not think we have to lose our joy once we found it, even if death is a mean thing that we all have to deal with sooner or later. I believe joy strengthens and gives us power and we should learn to deal with grief and pain in the present, but actively seek the path to joy …. if that works and make sense …; )
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She must’ve really loved him too much to say what she said in the end. Loved the feeling of loneliness you brought in the narration.
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Dear Shivam
Thank you for reading and for your kind comments. Yes, she loved him very much – they’d grown old together. I’m glad her loneliness came across clearly.
With very best wishes
Penny
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Great job of weaving the elements of the photo into a bittersweet story.
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Dear Susan
Thank you for reading and for your kind comment. I think the photo is a good prompt, because it’s so rich in detail. I’m glad you felt the story was bittersweet, because the prompt felt very emotionally ambiguous to me.
With very best wishes
Penny
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Sad and poignant story, Penny. You really capture it well.
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Dear Josh
Thank you for reading and commenting. I’m glad you feel that I captured it well.
With best wishes
Penny
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Such a poignant story. I often wonder why we are given great love only to have to lose it. The turn of the seasons and the plethora of anniversaries and memories must be incredibly hard to bear.
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Dear Jilly
Thank you for reading and commenting. You ask a difficult question, to which I think we would all give a different answer. What’s your view?
With best wishes
Penny
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Such a sad tale of just managing to keep going, despite not having any reason to. Well done.
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Dear Iain
Thank you for reading and commenting. I’m glad the emotional impact of the story came across.
With best wishes
Penny
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That is horribly lonely. My Dad died over a year ago and I know my Mom misses him terribly. She’s in an assisted living home now, so she doesn’t have the constant reminders of him around her anymore. Also, living with other people gives her a lot of built in company. We’ll be selling their house soon.
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Dear James
Thank you for reading and commenting. As you say, the years following bereavement can be very lonely. My Mum lost Dad 6 years ago, and she’s just starting to enjoy life again. She’s 92 and still in her own home thank goodness. I hope your Mom does well in her assisted living home.
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Unfortunately, her dementia is getting worse, so it’s been a struggle. It’s hard watching her slowly decline.
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I’m so sorry to hear that, James.
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As I face these years when either one of us could be gone very quickly, I react with more emotion to these stories of love and loss. Well written.
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Dear Linda
Thank you for reading and commenting. I hope you enjoy many more years with your husband!
With best wishes
Penny
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the older we get, the more we become aware that our time is limited. All the more important to enjoy the present in joy. But how worse, if you can not feel this joy.
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I am thankful to find joy every day, Anie. Last night we sat up until past midnight with my family in South Dakota, where we are visiting. We shared stories and laughed so hard, finding great joy just in being together. Wonderful memories.
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spending time together is the most important things for good memories, you are right!
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That perfectly described drizzle and the scene from the window; the sad domesticity of the single and lonely. Pitch absolutely perfect, Penny. A real sense of desolation in this piece
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Dear Lynn
Thank you for reading and for your lovely comments. I think it was an excellent prompt because it holds so much emotional ambiguity. I allowed the outdoor feeling to corrode the domesticity, but I could equally have chosen to have the beauty of the fine crystal bowl, with its flower, and the play of light in its facets, push back the gloom outside.
With best wishes
Penny
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You did it beautifully Penny and I love the way you chose. As I said, perfect
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I love the elements you pulled into your story. The sky, the blue reflection on the edge of the bowl, the microwave. The feeling of sadness is palpable. Nice connection between visuals and emotion.
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Dear Alicia
Thank you for reading and for your very kind comments. I really enjoyed this prompt, even though it led to a very downbeat story.
With best wishes
Penny
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The melancholy and sorrow is so heavy in this… the detail of not grinding the beans any longer says so much to me.
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Dear Bjorn
Thank you for reading, and for your very helpful comment. I’m so pleased to learn that the detail of not grinding the beans worked as planned.
With very best wishes
Penny
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Poignant, sad and beautifully written.
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Dear Lisa
Thank you for reading and commenting. I’m glad you enjoyed the writing.
With best wishes
Penny
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Oh how terribly sad. My mum is in this situation at the moment so really struck a chord with me.
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Dear Clare
Thank you for reading and commenting.
My dad died six years ago, when my mum was 86. It took years for her to regain her zest for life, but she has done. In fact I’ve just come back from taking her out for lunch at a nice hostelry about five miles from her home, and we had a lovely cheerful time. There’s hope beyond bereavement, but it takes time. I hope your mum comes through okay.
With best wishes
Penny
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Thanks Penny.
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Wow loneliness is so palpable in the piece. Well done, Penny! 🙂
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Dear Kasturi
Thank you for reading, and for your lovely comment. I’m glad the loneliness came across.
With best wishes
Penny
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Beautifully written, Penny. Your words and descriptions placed me inside her loneliness, sadness and even hopelessness.
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Dear Jan
Thank you for reading and for your thoughtful comment. ‘Hopelessness’ is a good word to describe her state of mind. My mum was bereaved after a long marriage – over 60 years – and that was her state of mind for a long period. Thank goodness she came through, and now takes pleasure in life again!
With very best wishes
Penny
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You could feel how difficult everything has become for her. I thought it was due to ageing but it was made even sadder when you revealed her husband had died and she still wanted to join him after a year. So hard losing one you love.
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Dear Irene
Thank you for reading and commenting. Yes, age and grief are both dragging her down. It can take years to recover some enjoyment after losing a life-long partner, but it can be done. There’s always hope!
With best wishes
Penny
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Oof…..I can see this person just shuffling through. Well written.
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Dear Britlight
Thank you for reading and commenting. I’m glad you enjoyed the writing.
With best wishes
Penny
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It makes you want to give her a hug and maybe take her out to see more of life.
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Dear Alice
Thank you for reading and commenting. Despite the narrator’s grief I think the treatment you suggest will eventually be successful!
With best wishes
Penny
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You start with such descriptive prose and then bring out her loneliness and sadness so well.
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Dear Subroto
Thank you for reading and for your kind comments. I’m glad you enjoyed the descriptive prose.
With best wishes
Penny
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Beautifully done, Penny. For some, grief totally takes over. For others, they do so in moments reserved for it. One is not necessarily better, I should think.
This reminded me of my first Dear Mick that I wrote, one year after his death. One of the things I told him about was my using a single serve coffee filter now. But I do still grind my coffee 😉
I hope she finds something to live for.
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Dear Dale
Thank you for reading and commenting so kindly. You and I seem to be soul-sisters in our love of good coffee!
When my dad died, mum was devastated – well, they’d been married over 60 years. My sister and I tried our best to support, but mum grieved almost continuously for about three years. Then, gradually, she started to pull through, and now she has some genuine enjoyment again from life; which is great.
With very best wishes
Penny
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I should think after almost 60 years there would be devastation as well as total loss on where to go from there. It would be like losing a limb as well as part of your heart.
Good for your mum for slowly coming back – can’t be easy in your late 70s, early 80s (if I do the math…)
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Beautiful prose reflecting grief. You got a clear snapshot of despair in so few words.
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Dear Vivian
Thank you for reading and commenting. It’s very kind of you to appreciate my prose.
With best wishes
Penny
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A real sense of feeling like giving up after losing a loved one.
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Dear Ali
Thank you for reading and commenting. I’m glad the story spoke to you.
With best wishes
Penny
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I hope the blues turn into yellows for her. So much sadness in this piece Penny, but written beautifully. 🙂
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Dear Norma
Thank you for reading and commenting. I’m glad you enjoyed the writing.
With best wishes
Penny
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That’s sad. At first I thought you would go with the blue tint/reflection off the front.
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Dear StuHN
Thank you for reading and commenting. There’s a surprising amount of blue in the photo, and that, together with the microwave (possibly the most depressing cooking equipment imaginable) prompted me to write a sad story
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This is beautifully written and tragic at the same time. I do hope she finds new energy with the spring. You have really captured her loneliness here. Well done, great piece.
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Dear Jen
Thank you for reading, and for your kind comment. I, too, hope she finds new energy in the spring, and starts to come to terms with her bereavement.
With very best wishes
Penny
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A sad but true tale of our times.
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Dear James
Thank you for reading and commenting. I’m glad you feel there is truth in the story.
With best wishes
Penny
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So poignant and terribly heartbreaking Penny. So very well written – kudos
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Dear Dahlia
Thank you for reading, and for your very kind comment. Unfortunately this is the fate of the survivor of any long marriage. The loss takes years to heal.
With very best wishes
Penny
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If at all they heal…
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I doubt if they ever heal completely.
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A poignant word picture of bereavement.
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Dear Yarnspinnerr
Thank you for reading and for your kind comment.
With best wishes
Penny
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This one made me teary eyed, Penny. My dad passed away 5 years before my mother. She kept a little picture of him on the dining table so they could share meals together. She was a woman of strong faith. I know she couldn’t wait to be reunited with Dad again. I saw them recently in a dream. They’re both young and happy now.
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Dear Russell
Thank you for sharing such a personal memory. I really appreciate it.
With very best wishes
Penny
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This is heartbreaking and beautiful. It’s so real – even cleaning a single plate is more than the mind can muster when gripped by depression. The depression that often follows grief – leaving you lost in the sadness, unmotivated to live. This is so beautifully written – makes me want to reach out and hug her x
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Dear Anna
Thank you for reading and commenting. That’s a lovely comment about reaching out to hug her.
With very best wishes
Penny
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Having lost my husband in 2004 to cancer and being a widow for the next four years, I completely understand. But life continues on…
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Dear Donna
Thank you for reading and commenting. I hope the story didn’t stir up too much sadness.
With best wishes
Penny
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Well told Penny. That despondant moment is very palpable. Why bother? I hope she is able to find a new focus.
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Dear Laurie
Thank you for reading and commenting. I, too, hope she is able to find a new focus.
With very best wishes
Penny
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Loneliness makes doing the simplest things – like eating or drinking coffee – mudane.
Your story spotlights a world many live once someone they love is gone. Powerful write …
Isadora 😎
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Dear Isadora
Thank you for reading and commenting. Yes, you can lose the joy in life for a long time, I fear.
With very best wishes
Penny
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So sad, I can feel her pain and loneliness. Very well written! =)
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Dear Brenda
Thank you for reading, and for your kind comment.
With best wishes
Penny
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I feel bad for her but I understand. Still I want to help. Very evocative!
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Dear Dawn
Thank you for reading and for your kind comment. You have a warm heart, wanting to help her.
With best wishes
Penny
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So sad that your narrator wants to join Gerald a year later. Your descriptions in the second paragraph are so strong. Hopefully the need to keep his plant going will sustain her until spring comes.
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Dear Sarah Ann
Thank you for reading and for your thoughtful comment. It may well be that keeping Gerald’s plant alive will sustain her, and give her just enough will to live.
With best wishes
Penny
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A subtly told story, so well observed, as to how grief affects people. Think you empathise so well the woman, most touching.
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A beautiful and very touching story.
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