RANDOM THOUGHTS
Fortuitous Tide
Reminder: Free short story – see below “A Pearl for Your Enjoyment”
With the unprecedented weather events here in Queensland, my mind contemplates our humanity. When Mother Nature weeps she leaves a path of destruction.
Exposed is evidence of human resilience, goodness, generosity and charity. Bless the “Mud Army”.
On the other hand, slithering out of dark holes, are the not so noble. I ask myself, are their circumstances so bad they must kick a man when he is down?
From here my thoughts catch a flight to Ukraine. I ask WHY? How can man inflict these horrors on their fellow man?
Current Weather and Tides
I must say, ‘Thank you’, to all those who offered up their thoughts on my question on Facebook: “How was I to get my characters across a mangrove-lined river with nothing but a knife, a rope, a bit of canvas and the forest behind them.”
The answers sent me on another quest in Mr. Google’s domain for more answers.
Also, I want to thank all those who enjoyed my latest novel “Rhylla’s Secret”. Your appreciation has spurred me onwards.
Keep safe, Keep smiling, Keep reading, Keep writing.
Elizabeth Rimmington
www.elizabethrimmington.com.au
facebook.com/elizabethrimmington.author
A Pearl for your Enjoyment
This story evolved from a suggestion from our mentor to write of a character in strife and how he manages:
LATHER OF LEGS
Part One
As soon as Teddy noticed the cow heavy with milk pacing back and forth across the cliff face, he knew something was amiss. He pulled the quad bike to a halt and turned off the engine. The distressed moo of the mother lifted above the howl of the winds whistling through the gorge.
“Easy Maybelline,” he spoke softly on his approach to the cliff edge. The bellowed reply of the calf caught up between two rocks far below and only feet above the rushing waters tormented its mother above. Ted’s gaze followed the intermittent sighting of the narrow dirt track winding its way between the bushes and boulders from the top of the cliff into the depths of the gorge to where the thrashing four legs of the calf gave the appearance of the absence of any physical damage.
The path, though steep, would not be too difficult for him to descend or return – often he and his siblings utilized this track when coming to swim in the water when it was not as swollen as it was today. After retrieving a rope from the bike and throwing it about his shoulders, he patted his right-hand shirt pocket to ensure the mobile phone was secure in its water-proof protective cover. He shook the water bottle hanging from his belt – half full, at least. When he gripped the branch of the tree leaning out over the cliff edge, his muscles bulged under the blue hard-duty cotton shirt with its sleeves rolled up above the elbows. He swung his blue-jeaned legs down onto the animal pad leading across and down the wall of the gorge. His booted feet sank into a patch of dark mud.
“Hush, calfy,” Ted discovered the calf’s middle wedged in the narrow gap between the two boulders. “How the hell did you get yourself in there?” He pondered the dilemma. To drag it out would possibly – probably, damage its internal organs – those that may not be bruised already. Due to the terrain, it was impossible to get a secure grip on the animal. Ted resorted to using his rope to make a harness on the shoulders of the calf first before going around the boulders and making a similar sling for the pelvic joints with the other end of the rope. He did not have to search too far to find a sturdy length of timber with a forked end and he used this to place under the middle of the rope and lift the animal upwards out of its wedge. The calf rose into the air like a weird brown shopping bag. Sensing freedom near at hand, the calf erupted into a wriggling kicking lather of legs. Ted’s hands worked in haste to remove the rope but the calf produced a final buck before it bounced off up the path. This unbalanced Ted. His right foot rolled bringing him down with a heavy thud of his head against the large boulder. His body collapsed to the ground where he lay inert with his left knee at an awkward angle underneath him. A small trickle of blood ran down his cheek and dripped onto his shirt.
TO BE CONTINUED
