Please checkout http://jfb57.wordpress.com/2014/06/30/100-word-challenge-for-grown-ups-week139/ for this challenge.
This week’s prompt is …but even when I listened carefully… + 100 words
Meaning
Those are tulips—I think. I prefer roses in dark velvet hues. My favourite is carmine—a deep merlot. Someone said carmine looks like dried blood. What a thought.
“Still awake? Time for the toilet and a nap.”
Her voice, pleasant at first, offended my ears. I watched her face for a hint of meaning. The sounds finished, jumbled and empty.
“Ellen, let’s go.” She clapped, then tugged my arm, but even when I listened carefully I couldn’t understand.
Who is this now?
“You’ve stared at that painting enough.”
My vision blurred and lip stung.
“Nurse is busy today,” she said.
The word no escaped me.
How the Cookie Crumbles 
July 1, 2014 at 6:35 pm
That is sad! but sadly true.
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July 2, 2014 at 7:29 pm
😦
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July 1, 2014 at 9:23 pm
So sad, and so familiar to my work world. 😦
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July 2, 2014 at 7:35 pm
😦
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July 1, 2014 at 10:30 pm
A lot said here. Like the other comments I find it sad but also a bit scary. Maybe because I am “of a certain age”?
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July 2, 2014 at 7:36 pm
Thank you for your comment, Patricia.
This subject has been creeping into my work lately. It must be that time in life…
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July 1, 2014 at 11:06 pm
Ellen, insist on “No”.
Insist that the world slows down long enough to consider the colours of the flowers. Tomorrow the flowers may no longer be there and the opportunity will be lost forever.
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July 2, 2014 at 7:37 pm
Sigh.
Thank you for reading and for your comment. This has been dogging me in the last while.
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July 1, 2014 at 11:33 pm
Sounds like the opening to a deep story of life. Any memories of China there to keep the heroine simmering over a lost love who gave her roses in dark velvet hues?
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July 2, 2014 at 7:39 pm
No China connection. 🙂
It’s about thoughts of age. 😦
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July 2, 2014 at 12:39 am
Definitely pulls at my heart Tess. As a nurse of over three decades I always hope that those in my profession shower compassion on others.
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July 2, 2014 at 7:41 pm
Sigh.
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July 2, 2014 at 1:39 am
Poor Ellen, this is the worse nightmare and I’m sure it happens even here still.
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July 2, 2014 at 7:42 pm
Sigh.
Thank you, Gilly.
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July 2, 2014 at 9:30 am
So few words and telling of an emotional tale. 😉
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July 2, 2014 at 7:49 pm
Thank you. 🙂
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July 2, 2014 at 10:06 am
Deep.
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July 2, 2014 at 7:51 pm
Painful. 😦
Thank you for reading and commenting.
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July 2, 2014 at 12:04 pm
Wow. What an unexpected point of view! Marvelous.
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July 2, 2014 at 7:55 pm
Thank YOU. I appreciate your comment. 🙂
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July 2, 2014 at 12:23 pm
Some really great lines here, Tess. “Still awake? Time for the toilet and a nap.” = love it!
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July 2, 2014 at 7:56 pm
Thank YOU, Paulette. I appreciate your comments. 🙂
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July 2, 2014 at 12:40 pm
Amazing what you area able to say in so few words!
Hugs from Ecuador,
Kathy
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July 2, 2014 at 7:57 pm
Thank you, Kathy, for your generous comments. ❤
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July 2, 2014 at 5:14 pm
Enjoyed freading your 100 words. Love the opening description re: the flowers. I can picture the scene in the nursing home or hospital ward.
I focussed on deafness during old age in my challenge. I look forward to reading your work next week!
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July 2, 2014 at 5:52 pm
That is confusing, but it jangled some memories. Oddly, there are times people talk and it takes me too long–5 or 10 words–to figure out what they’re saying. I don’t know if it’s noise or accent or what, but I feel like your character. What the h*** does that mean?
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July 2, 2014 at 8:09 pm
I believe your mind is someplace else, calculating another equation. I keep losing my train of thought if I side-track just a wee bit. Some days more than others. I find that scary.
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July 2, 2014 at 8:32 pm
I think this needs to be put into perspective a bit :-).
Step back 100 (or even 50 years) and think about what people of your comparative age were expected to know, remember and do each day. Then look at what you know, remember and do. You may be very pleasantly surprised!
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July 3, 2014 at 1:30 pm
True, and I am surprised, but it pains me I can no longer multitask like I used to, and get lost along the way… 🙂
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July 3, 2014 at 5:29 pm
I guess we all get to the point where mother nature suggests we rethink the ‘busy-ness” of life.
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July 3, 2014 at 8:04 pm
Grrr. 😦
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July 3, 2014 at 3:49 am
Poignant, thought-provoking and yes, scary. I’m shocked at how quickly thoughts leave my mind and I can’t remember what I was saying a mere second ago. I’m sure blogging will prove to be the great cure for memory loss. though!! And as I just posted on my Facebook Page, a little snippet about sniffing rosemary (the herb, not the woman, haha!) can improve our memories by 75%!!! Who knew? Another fine flash Tess, as always 😀 <D 🙂
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July 3, 2014 at 1:45 pm
I like to sniff rosemary, not the woman. 😀 I didn’t know that tidbit.
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July 4, 2014 at 6:27 am
got plenty in my frontyard, all year long… shall I send you some?!… 🙂
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July 4, 2014 at 8:40 am
We have some in the garden, but thanks for offering. 😀
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July 4, 2014 at 7:34 am
Neither did I…we live and learn 🙂
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July 4, 2014 at 8:40 am
Yes, and that’s what makes life so interesting. 🙂
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July 3, 2014 at 2:17 pm
Oh Tess, this one is significant. Sad. You did this so well it caught my heart.
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July 3, 2014 at 7:36 pm
If you say this, I WILL believe YOU, right? This one got to me too. Thank you. ❤
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July 5, 2014 at 12:13 pm
Good, good writing, Tess. As usual. You’ve captured the ageing issue, which has been on my mind a lot lately, perfectly.
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July 5, 2014 at 2:29 pm
Thank YOU, Susan.
On YOUR mind. Too soon for you to think about ageing. 🙂
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July 5, 2014 at 5:15 pm
I’ve been an AARP member for five years. Oy!
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July 6, 2014 at 11:24 am
I’ll have to look into this. I just waster about 20 years of benefits. Ugh. Our is called CARP. I’ve heard their advertisements but never paid attention. My mind was always someplace else.
Thanks, Susan. I always learn something new from you. 😎
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July 5, 2014 at 7:53 pm
Reblogged this on mihran Kalaydjian and commented:
100-Word Challenge for Grown-ups – Week #139
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July 5, 2014 at 8:48 pm
These words brought to mind the times I would hurry mama as she took her time looking at things. One day it hit me, I would one day not have to opportunity to go about dawdling with her. I slowed myself down and was patient. Holding her elbow, slowly walking with her, letting her look as long as she wished. I’m glad.
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July 6, 2014 at 11:41 am
You are a sweetie, although I am not surprised, because I know you have a caring heart. ❤
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July 6, 2014 at 6:18 pm
Thank you. I appreciate that.
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July 7, 2014 at 11:48 am
~(*_~)~~
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July 6, 2014 at 2:24 am
So. Sad.
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July 6, 2014 at 11:54 am
Yes. Can’t close our eyes to sad either.
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July 9, 2014 at 11:43 am
Tess – This isn’t where this comment belongs but remember I said I’d comb my brain for bloggers you might want to ask: here are a few I thought that might participate: http://bythemightymumford.wordpress.com (John), http://kattermonran.com (Al), http://thebonnyblog.wordpress.com (Bonnie). I know there are others. I’ll continue my search.
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July 9, 2014 at 6:09 pm
You don’t fool around do you, Sheri. You are amazing. How do you find the time?
We missed last week and with the way response has been in blog world this last while, I told my short list we’d can it. I actually put a couple on a new task so I don’t want to stress them out. I must keep these names for the fall, when I hope to try again. I could go ahead and invite these nice people now but what will my cancelled friends feel?
Thank you. Thank you, dear friend. I’ll try again in the fall and these three will be hearing from me. Thank YOU for all your precious time. ❤ ❤ ❤
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July 10, 2014 at 2:55 am
Tess – I was trying to do some housecleaning on my ‘Blogs I follow site,’ and realized that not only do I not have you listed but looked over the list searching for names I thought might work for you.
I so apologize for not having your name on my list. You are such a good friend – I feel more of a good friend that just a blogging friend. Hugs, Sheri
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July 10, 2014 at 1:14 pm
❤ ~(*,*)~~ ❤
I don't know what to say to you, friend, Sheri. Thank you for being such a good one. May all blessings shine upon you.
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July 7, 2014 at 8:32 am
Hey Tess, just wanted to tell you, I just met Julia from Julia’s Place who runs this 100 word challenge! She runs the under 16s 100 word challenge in schools, and she had contacted me completely separately through my work Twitter account about that (without knowing that I had any blogging connection), because she had seen that my job involves working with schools. And she arranged to come and have a meeting with me about promoting it to the schools we work with. Funny!
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July 7, 2014 at 12:12 pm
AWEsome. Wow. This IS a small world. Thank you for sharing with me. I don’t know why, but I’m absolutely tickled, 1) that you decided to share with me and 2) that Julia found you. She’s a nice lady. When I went travelling, she didn’t know and wrote me to see if I was okay. ❤ ❤ ❤
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July 7, 2014 at 3:52 pm
She and I spoke about you and agreed about how wonderful you are 🙂
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July 7, 2014 at 6:32 pm
Pshaw. I’m sure there are lots better subjects to discuss. It’s amazing that you two talked in PERSON. The Internet is a wondrous place. ❤
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July 11, 2014 at 12:22 am
Oh my! You are superb. A brief bit of fiction, so sad… almost poetic. Loved it.
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July 11, 2014 at 9:36 pm
You have made my day. Thank YOU. I like your writing too. 🙂
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July 11, 2014 at 11:55 pm
That’s really nice to hear. And it’s awfully lovely to have you following my blog. I am much impressed with your ability to write brief pieces of fiction that convey so much in so few words. It is not easy!
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July 12, 2014 at 11:15 am
You are welcome!
Thank you new friend. With encouragement like that I might manage to scribble a few more. I’m only a couple of years into writing.
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July 14, 2014 at 6:47 pm
Really? I would never have guessed that; you have a graceful style, everything flows very well, and I like the way you leave much to the reader’s imagination.
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July 15, 2014 at 9:47 am
Thank YOU. I’m always worried the reader may not see the picture. 😉
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July 15, 2014 at 10:27 pm
I wish I could remember which very famous author it was, perhaps Tolstoy, who said we must give readers room to guess, to figure out the story. I am very much paraphrasing, but that was the gist. Have you ever noticed in literary fiction, everything is not spelled out? There are hints, and readers work to draw their conclusions. For example, if you read a short story by Chekhov, everything is not laid out completely for the reader. We are meant to think about the story, turn it over in our minds, draw our conclusions. I like that.
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July 16, 2014 at 3:22 pm
My game plan sometimes backfires. When a reader asks or tells me something about the story which isn’t there, I panic. 🙂
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July 18, 2014 at 9:33 pm
I don’t want to hog your thread, so I’ll just quickly add this. Harlan Ellison, sf writer, once said something to the effect that certain stories connect with readers in ways he sometimes hadn’t foreseen. Because we are all so unique, we see different things, sometime intended, sometimes not. Hey, when someone asks you something you hadn’t intended and you’re not sure what to say, consider saying, “Well, what did the story mean to YOU?”
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July 19, 2014 at 10:01 am
*smiles* Yes, I have. 😀 Thank you for your time and help..
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July 16, 2014 at 3:22 pm
BTW, I appreciate your generosity in taking time to discuss this. Thank you.
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August 13, 2014 at 8:15 pm
A very touching story.
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August 14, 2014 at 12:04 pm
Thank you for your kind words and for visiting. ❤
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September 14, 2014 at 5:02 am
Chilling! And beautifully unexpected.
I like the details about colour too.
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September 15, 2014 at 11:14 am
Thank YOU, K. Yes, chilling I was hoping for.
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