I wrote this story for Round 8 of SPARK. To see the photograph that inspired it, go to http://www.getsparked.org/spark8/helen-whittaker-and-edite-haberman This story won second place in the June 2010 Global Short Story Competition at http://www.globalshortstories.net/index.html The trouble with Adam I’m waiting in the reception area at Happy Bunnies day care. In one corner of the room [...]
Posts Tagged ‘childhood’
Stained lips
I remember when you were a bridesmaid at Aunt Evie’s wedding. Someone gave you a blackcurrant whistle pop and your lips turned purple. It took me half an hour to scrub the stain off. That green sheet doesn’t look anything like your bridesmaid’s dress and the purple stain on your lips won’t come off no [...]
Pocket money, December 1972
Tom stands on tiptoe his forearms resting on the counter. He slides one sweaty palm aside to reveal the full moon of a ten pence piece against a black Formica sky. On the shelves in front of him constellations of sweets twinkle invitingly: gobstoppers as big as Jupiter, liquorice Catherine wheels that suck in light [...]
