© irene waters 2014
“Dad stop. You can’t dig a mine under the house.” Janie grabbed the pneumatic drill from Peter and pointed him towards the house.
When her father was out of earshot she said, “You have to put him in a home. The house’ll fall down if he continues. He’s demented”
“Once a mining engineer always a mining engineer. He says he’s looking for rare gems.”
“No Mum. He needs a nursing home.”
“You’re right Janie. I’ll do it today.”
“Demented you think.” Talking to himself, Peter patted his back pocket. His escape route lay snuggly in the plastic bag he’d just excavated.
© irene waters 2014
In response to Charli’s December 17, 2014 prompt: In 99 words (no more, no less) write a story about rare gems. It can be treasure, rough or twinkling, an object, place or person. Go on an adventure, let you imagination fly and kick perfectionism to the curb. You are in pursuit of something greater!
About Irene Waters 19 Writer Memoirist
I began my working career as a reluctant potato peeler whilst waiting to commence my training as a student nurse. On completion I worked mainly in intensive care/coronary care; finishing my hospital career as clinical nurse educator in intensive care. A life changing period as a resort owner/manager on the island of Tanna in Vanuatu was followed by recovery time as a farmer at Bucca Wauka. Having discovered I was no farmer and vowing never again to own an animal bigger than myself I took on the Barrington General Store. Here we also ran a five star restaurant. Working the shop of a day 7am - 6pm followed by the restaurant until late was surprisingly more stressful than Tanna. On the sale we decided to retire and renovate our house with the help of a builder friend. Now believing we knew everything about building we set to constructing our own house. Just finished a coal mine decided to set up in our backyard. Definitely time to retire we moved to Queensland. I had been writing a manuscript for some time. In the desire to complete this I enrolled in a post grad certificate in creative Industries which I completed 2013. I followed this by doing a Master of Arts by research graduating in 2017. Now I live to write and write to live.
Reflections and Nightmares- Irene A Waters (writer and memoirist) 
Nice! It leaves me wondering–what’s in the plastic bag?
LikeLiked by 1 person
I was being a little too obscure I fear – the plastic bag contained the rare gems that he told his wife he was digging for. He was not as demented as they thought. 🙂
LikeLiked by 2 people
It’s hard to get all the details into 99 words! Glad his intellect is still intact. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes, that is why it is such good practice and having readers helps work out what works and what doesn’t. Love it.
LikeLiked by 1 person
That was the interpretation I had 🙂 …. love this story. It was such an unexpected twist on the theme! 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Glad you enjoyed it Joanne. I really enjoy Charli’s flash fictions. It gives you the freedom to invent and twist and turn, which memoir obviously doesn’t. 🙂
LikeLike
Oh, wow! This is like the opening scene to an adventurous thriller! I’m curious, too about what is in the plastic bag, yet if he is demented it may merely contain something only he has the imagination to see in the bag.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I used the show not tell principal but I must have been too obscure. The women who controlled his life thought he was demented and took no heed to him telling them he was digging for rare gems. He was not demented and as the women plotted to put him in a home he had found his buried treasure (rare gems) and was planning his own escape.
I think this could be one of those perfect moments of non-perfection where I will just be generous with myself and say it was okay despite taking a different direction.
🙂
LikeLike
It’s fun to see how different readers interpret what the rare gems might be. I was thinking he was demented or his treasure was a map. That’s part of the fun of interpretation. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes it is great fun to see the different interpretations. It just shows how easy it is to get different meanings from the one piece and sometimes those deviations can lead to bigger and better things. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
I got it, Irene. Not obscure at all – but maybe I can see the husband’s side better!
LikeLike
Maybe that is it Geoff. I can see the husband’s side as well as I become more safety conscious and Roger becomes more laissez-faire.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I got it too – wish I got the gems as well. Wouldn’t mind an escape route from time to time! 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
I know what you mean. Glad you got it also. I’m wondering if it could be one of those subtle differences like English vs American humour or whether it is a male/female age related thing or just simply different interpretations. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Could be any one of the above! 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Pingback: Flashes Like Diamonds « Carrot Ranch Communications
I have shared this on Google+ to my circle of Miners. I just assumed there was something really valuable in the bag, because otherwise Peter wouldn’t have been digging for it! (Unless he just had to have a hole in the yard, like a certain miner I know…
LikeLiked by 2 people
Yes I think the urge to dig never leaves some. Hope your mining buddies enjoy it.
LikeLike