Not wanting to have my talents taken away from me, but rather wanting to increase them, I've decided that for today's blog, I will participate in LDS Publisher's writing prompt.
So, here is what I came up with:
Hilary paused in her sweeping and raised her head slightly so the gentle autumn breeze could dance across her wrinkled face. She closed her eyes as the cool fingers of the wind caressed her cheeks, listening to the crinkling sound of cottonwood leaves skittering across the patio.
Time to start planning
my winter trip to Phoenix.
After a moment, she hefted her broom and returned to her
task of clearing the red brick patio of dust, debris and gathering leaves.
Red brick?
Glancing at the skyline, Hilary saw faint purple mountains
in the distance, framed by the faded blue of the desert sky, not the tree-lined
ridges that pushed close to her small house in Oregon. Directly in front of her was the gray wall
that separated her son's swimming pool from the rest of the yard, not her
round, above ground pool sitting open on the welcoming green lawn. She released the broom, watched it fall and
clatter onto the red bricks, not her wooden deck.
Her legs felt weak as she shuffled over to the wooden picnic
table by the door, its checkered table cloth held in place by a variety of
large rocks.
Phoenix? How long have I been here?
She couldn't remember.
She tried and tried and tried, but she couldn't even remember what she
had done the day before, or what day it was, or whether she'd had grapefruit or
French toast for breakfast.
At least I know my
name. Hilary Grosberg. And I'm...I'm...how old am I?
Hilary leaned her elbows on the table and rested her
forehead on her hands. She breathed in
short, panicked gulps, and her heart began to pound a crazy rhythm against her
chest. Then she felt something furry rub
against her leg.
"Beast!"
She scooped the gray tabby kitty onto her lap. "You always know when Mama needs
you." She stroked his soft fur,
enjoying the humming rumble of his purring.
The cat raised his head, looking at Hilary and mewed. She held him up so she could gaze into his
blue eyes. "Now, Beast..."
Blue eyes? Beast's were brown.
In disbelief, Hilary set the cat back down on the
ground. He rubbed his head against her
leg a few times, but when she didn't respond he sat back to lick his paws.
Hilary stood up and walked slowly to the door that led to
her room at her son's house. She paused
with her hand on the knob, her attention caught by a pile of rotting boards
shoved in the corner against the fence that lined the property. With her free hand, she touched her
wrinkled, weather-worn cheeks, her coarse gray-white hair.
Crumbling. Useless.
No better than a pile of forgotten wood.
