Conundrum
By Geoffrey Gaskill. It began with three words in the night. ‘I love you,’ she whispered. Two lonely people. Three words. Spoken by one lover to another in the night. Now here they were in the park. Two of many, … Continued
A Chick with a Dick
By Geoffrey Gaskill. She wasn’t the most striking person I’d ever seen. It proved you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover. She was new to the class and when she walked in she had a certain swagger, a je-ne-sais-pas … Continued
Clearing the Land
By Adrian Brookes. A movement behind the trees. The morning was dead still. The mist had burned off, leaving the fiery orb to roast the earth at its leisure, and the bush, knowing the signs, had already slumped into another … Continued
Henry VIII
By Claudia Collins. Henry VIII woke us every morning at the crack of dawn. He was a handsome rooster with feathers of reddish brown. My sister Polly had named him after the king she’d learnt about in history class. ‘A … Continued
Only In America
I was washing my hands and about to move to the blow drier when a woman burst into the restroom. I stopped in my tracks and stared. She was dressed in cords and carried a large canvas type bag. She had a hat covered in flowers with a tiny American flag stuck in the band.
Xmas in July
By Claudia Collins Nurse June Carson wheeled her patient out onto the backyard veranda of his Daylesford home, taking care to set the brake on the chair. The house, built high on the hill, had commanding views over the township, … Continued
Because I could not stop…
By Geoff Gaskill I went out walking and came home with a black bra. Well, I didn’t come home with it, but the mystery did. I found it on my walk one late afternoon and can’t seem to get it … Continued
Camels Are for Life
By Adrian Brookes Sometimes, as a teacher you get a suspicion you really have helped someone on their way, if not done some outright good. Fifth-year English was the first class of a Friday afternoon. They were a good bunch … Continued
The Third Step
By Sheila Dawson Grey clouds scud rapidly across the sky, the trees start to sway. The weather bureau predicts a deluge overnight. In the meantime, the humidity clings like a blanket. Every shuttered door and window is ready to fling … Continued