An Unannounced Visit
My mood is not pleasant when I am stressed and worried. I have my mother’s temperament; my wrath wicked when stirred. I have no tolerance for forgotten or poorly tended chores. When happy and content, I am as peaceful and lovely as a spring morning. I prefer to think I contain more of the second mannerism. My family would undoubtedly disagree with my assumption on this day. Their feet tread lightly upon these floors.
My valiant husband reminded me with a sympathetic kiss shortly before he left for work, that we are one in the fight against this illness. That may be so, but he spends most of his time at the physician’s office caring for others. Caring for our sick child has become my burden and my burden alone. The situation is less than ideal. I need my husband. I need his hands upon my shoulders in a show of strength and encouragement.
Juliet’s fever is a cause of great concern; it further weakens her already compromised body. Twice in the night, Emma and I changed her sweat soaked sheets. I am frightened, the feeling in my heart heavy with sadness. In spite of my efforts, Juliet is losing her battle against this unwelcome enemy of the body. I fear the Fates will take from me what I hold most dear, the life of my child. I could not bear this loss. I have done everything the town physician has instructed. I have followed the old-ways of the almanac to the letter. I fear this is not enough and now the beetle that protects my home from all that is evil has abandoned his post on my front porch. If the creature does not return soon I fear all that my husband and I have built will crumble into dust.
A loud commotion in my backyard shortly after sunrise forced an early and objectionable exodus from my bed this morning. A large crowd of unwanted guests invaded my property. The chaos that ensued woke my entire house. My temper flaring, wearing only my pajamas and a robe, I stormed out the backdoor to protest the intrusion upon our privacy at such an early hour. If I were a dragon a dozen people would have lost their heads before a single word uttered in explanation.
I angrily pushed myself through the crowd until I was standing in the center of the mob. To my panicked surprise, I stumbled upon the King standing in the center of Juliet’s garden admiring her flowers. The imposition upon my house was an unplanned event, a heartfelt apology given for the untimely intrusion. I asked forgiveness for my appearance and sharp tongue as I bowed to the king and prayed he would not withdraw my service from the castle. My prayer heard, I maintain employment.
The King inquired about Juliet and asked if he might possess one of her flowers to place in the Royal Garden. On behalf of my youngest daughter, I graciously offered the most vibrant of the plants. Even in her weakened state, this news pleased Juliet. For the first time in three days, I witnessed a smile upon her face.
Very nice. Of course, now I will have to go back and read each part in sequence since it seems to be such a compelling story!
LOL, how sweet….lets hope I don’t run out of steam soon.
I enjoyed this very much, and went back to read from the beginning. You are doing a good job and I hope you keep it up.
Thank you, I am going to try and keep things going.
An easy flowing entry into her journal Gwen, with a nice mediaeval feeling.
Welcome to #fridayflash… (almost)
I don’t know what you did, but the link doesn’t work as it should, you need to post your story to your blog, then click on your own story so the link for that story comes into the address bar, then post the link to the story (not the blog) onto #fridayflash.
The second link works okay though.
I posted it again. I still don’t know if it is working correctly.
So gripping Marsha. I love your writing so much!
What a lovely story. So much revealed in all the little details. I really care what happens to these people!
Thank you Ganymeder. I hope you comeback and continue to read the story as things develop.
Very compelling story – welcome to Friday flash! You should consider joining us for #tuesdayserial also
(www.tuesdayserial.com)
Oops, sorry I missed replying to your comment. Thanks for the suggestion to join #Tuesdayserial. I will do that. Welcome to my humble blog.
Well, ya got me. I got through two paragraphs before the name Juliet woke me from my fiction of thinking you were writing about your real life…
Awesome!
LoL, my real life is not so colorful.
only fiction will be found here.
Hey Marsha, I had a problem with your link on Jon’s flash collector… it said it didn’t exist BUT I persevered and found your story by clicking on your home page. And I’m glad I did! Well worth the extra trouble. I was interested in your time period… yes, medieval, but then there was her robe and pajamas… so maybe something futuristic? Cool story regardless! Welcome to #fridayflash!
Sorry about the bad link. My copy and paste didn’t work the first time I submitted. I am honored that you would seek me out anyway. I guess my story is sort of a modern tale with a little fantasy thrown in to make things interesting. I didn’t really plan this, it just happened as I began to write but it seems to be working out.
Excellent as always. I truly felt the pain of the wife and the child. You truly bring your characters to life in these little flashes of brilliance.
Oh. How interesting. Each piece is very good writing.
Thanks, Kolembo, please come back again and again. There is more to come.
The plot is really starting to take shape. I can’t help but wonder if there is a link between the mysterious flower and the sickness.
Maybe, Maybe- LOL, I’m writing without an outline…who knows where this thing is going.