Maybe Even an Air Horn

Jan Ackerson is one of my favorite writers. She can do more with 100 words (exactly 100) than most can do in that many pages. Her brief stories leave you wanting to read more, to become more acquainted with the character or characters. And, her unique twists always make you smile. Thank you, Jan, for sharing your special talent at A Softer Voice today and for so effectively tailoring this original tale to the theme of my blog. You really nailed it.

     Great-uncle Jerry frightened Rochelle when she was little—his voice always entered the room a long time before he did. She didn’t know him well; he only showed up once or twice a year, at Christmas and (with increasing frequency) at funerals.

     He outlived nearly everyone, holding off death until the age of 93. It fell to Rochelle to empty his apartment. She’d never been there; she imagined gongs, power tools, perhaps macaws.

     Instead, she found an encyclopedia with notations in every margin. A collection of hand-tied lures. A bonsai tree. In the bedroom, a fat tabby regarded her, silently.

You can read more of Jan's (very) short stories at http://www.1hundred-words.com