Bloggers Blast 2017: The Big Bash Competition

bloggers-bash-comp-2017

Last year I was thrilled when Linda’s Book Bag won the award for the Best Review Blog in the first Bloggers’ Bash Awards and you can read my thoughts about that here.

This year the Annual Bloggers Bash Awards have grown so much that there’s a raft of new elements, one of which is a writing competition with the theme ‘Connections’. Perhaps stupidly, I’ve decided to give it a go!

If you’d like to enter, time is running out as you have until March 1st. More details can be found here.

So, with a knowledge this is very sentimental (but which is based on my parents and the events of last year) with sharp intake of embarrassed breath here’s my effort!

Almost Time

It was almost time.

He looked at her lying there shrunken in the bed and felt sorrowfully glad they’d won the fight to move her to the peace of the hospice away from the clamorous and impersonal ward of the local hospital.

Her thinning hair left a smudge of brown dye on the pillow from a failed last ditch attempt to stay young and cover the downy grey. Once it was a sheen of chestnut. Her skin, wrinkled in lines across her face like the road map of their lives, remained silky and soft to his cautious touch. He wanted so much to touch her one last time. His hand, still large, but gnarled now, navigated the tubes and wires and he brushed the pad of his thumb across her cheek. A precious contact.

It was almost time.

She opened her hazel eyes and looked at him steadily. The fading light in them was still a blazing beacon to him. Sucking in air with effort,  her voice was wispy like smoke although the memory was strong. ‘Do you remember,’ she asked, ‘Our first walk along the brook at dusk. The bats were circling and I was so afraid. You laughed at me and I was cross. Our first tiff on our first walk.’ Her lips curved upwards and his heart soared to see the smile he’d known for almost seventy years.’ I’m not afraid now.’

‘I remember,’ he said, the corners of his eyes crinkling at the recollection. ‘I’d waited weeks to pluck up the courage to ask you to walk out with me and when I finally did you laughed and asked me what took me so long.’

She smiled. ‘We’ve laughed a lot over the years haven’t we?’ But he still noticed the wince of pain that speech caused her. ‘I’ve loved you every minute of our time together.’ With effort she moved her arm and clasped his hand in hers. The connection seared his skin with memory.

It was almost time.

‘And I’ve loved you too.’ He was fighting the urge to weep, not wanting her last memory to be a sad one.

‘I know,’ she told him. ‘I always knew.’ Gazing steadfastly into his eyes she allowed her lids to close slowly. The pain in her face seemed to smooth away and he was aware of a silence in the room. He realised the sound of her wheezing breath had stopped.

It was time.

36 thoughts on “Bloggers Blast 2017: The Big Bash Competition”

  3. Pingback: Bloggers Blast 2017: The Big Bash Competition – alisonbrodiebooks

  9. Beautiful Linda it reminds me of all the times I sat with people when it was”almost time” although heartbreaking I often wondered about their younger life’s, the people who loved them. You’ve made me cry 😢

    Liked by 1 person

  19. Fionnuala says:

    Oh, Linda – I was right there, in the room, feeling the loss.
    Beautiful and sad. And never apologise for emotion – one person’s syrupy schmalz is another’s real experience of grief… Keep writing! Xx

    Liked by 1 person

Leave a comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.