Michael sat in the living room, the cat and dog laying close by. Tessa was away, babysitting. Silence was no longer his enemy. He had come to enjoy having private time to think and pray. “Father, I’d rather be a married man with my own legs instead of metal ones, but I probably wouldn’t have left the service if that were the case. So, thank you. I feel I am right where I belong at this stage of my life. Married to my best friend, a step-dad and grandfather, still singing and happy to be of help to others.”
Note; Due to the new format at Carrot Ranch Literary, this is the end of Michael’s Circle, the serial I have been writing for the past two years. He has come full circle attaining his long desire to be married to his soul mate.
Written in response to Charli Mills February 21, 2022, prompt at Carrot Ranch Literary: In 99 words (no more, no less), write a story using the phrase, “I’d rather be…” You fill in what comes next. What would a character(s) rather be doing and why? How can you use the phrase as a literary device? Go where the prompt leads!
02/24/2022 at 16:39
Gratitude and happiness. 🙂
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02/27/2022 at 12:25
Congratulations, Susan, I’m glad you managed to come full circle.
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02/27/2022 at 15:07
Thanks Robbie.
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03/05/2022 at 17:33
Your note confuses me, as I am not sure how the presentation at Carrot Ranch effect serials, but this flash does feel like a satisfying ending to a series I have enjoyed and watched grow. The story and story telling got stronger and stronger. Michael is truly ready to stand on his own two feet. 🙄 I hope you take all those 99 words and do something more with Michael’s story.
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03/06/2022 at 07:56
Sorry I confused you. The first compilation of stories at the Ranch my authors note was not included so I didn’t feel I could add notes of explantion for new readers. And,as I read the collection, I felt I was writing scenes, not stories. It did seem like a good ending spot.
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03/06/2022 at 08:12
That’s the thing of having serial characters. They show up for a prompt and the scenes add up but it’s not necessarily a cohesive story as such. Mine anyway. I have felt that yours have all been solid stand-alones and that they also flowed fairly cohesively from week to week. You wouldn’t have too much trouble shaping your 99s into a long short story or a short long story.
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03/06/2022 at 10:15
Always good to be happy where we are. Not always the case –
Thanks for the journey and the happy ending.
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03/06/2022 at 17:07
Your welcome, Jules, but I think you’ll find next week, the characters aren’t done telling their story. You know how it is, writing is never done…
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03/06/2022 at 17:19
Some may sit suspended between pages for a bit… but their voices call us don’t they 🙂
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03/06/2022 at 17:23
Yes, they do call.
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03/07/2022 at 16:08
I like how you tackled a difficult topic.
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