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A quote: “If someone tells you he is going to make a ‘realistic decision’, you immediately understand that he has resolved to do something bad.” ~~ Mary McCarthy
I’ll start with a story …
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My own great-grandchildren don’t believe the stories I tell of “olden age”. They smile, pat my cheek and humor me – crazy old woman.
My own family is uncomfortable with my stories of a past where I was allowed to play. Outside. And unsupervised. Before families were monitored for proper behavior. If the wrong people heard or reported my stories, it could be a loss of status points for our family. I don’t “just walk” anymore. It causes suspicion. It could hurt our standing.
Though sometimes, late at night, I can hear at my window “Olly olly oxen! Free free free!”
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Now, it’s your turn.
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. Featured image, cropped, Adobe Stock, standard license
Jane Meyerhofer says: I remember the teacher saying that you had to bring in a pack of cans so there would be food to eat after the bomb fell. My mom said there were nine of us. She couldn’t spare that much food and it was silly anyway. The teacher said that we had to understand that realistically no-one was going to share if something bad happened. My mom said, “In a Catholic school, that’s what they are telling you?”
I haven’t posted in a while, so I’ve saved my 100 words from a previous Friday Fiction for this: 200 words (yes, I’m cheating).
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The disease ravaged the county. Old Mr. Barnes was bedridden for two weeks and still wasn’t back to Gabe’s Bar for his afternoon whisky. Barker twins missed wrestling practice because of fevers. National TV told us the whole nation was in crisis, and we could see it here. Hence this council meeting.
The mayor spoke. “We’ve been asked, for the good of the country, to shut down everything – the church, the school, the library, Jake’s Automotive, Heidi’s Salon, the dry goods store. They say we can keep the grocery open. So…”
People leaned forward, tense, trying to guess the mayor’s next words.
“I’ve decided to ignore them. The church, the school, Jake’s, Heidi’s, dry goods, and especially Gabe’s… that’s how we live. We make our livings that way. These are life, we’d die without them. So instead, everyone wash your hands, cover when you cough, and take care of yourselves and each other.”
I’m fuzzy on what happened next, because I was seeding and then those calves got scours. But when I got back to town, half the old U.S. was in ruins, the other half was calling itself Constitutional States of America, and the mayor’s new title was “President.”
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