A constrained writing exercise. Had to be under 800 words and use the following:
Word List
Universal
Sublunary
Sardonic
Doorway
Sentence Block
An accident isn’t always a bad thing.
Once bright passion continued to dim.
Defining Features
A character tends to their garden
Written in 2nd Person.
2nd person is pretty difficult to do, I think. Here was my attempt.
The smell of the flowers is the first thing you notice as you walk. Heavy and sweet on the gentle breeze. It reminds you of a memory that you haven’t made yet. The garden is endless, but it’s bounded by a small white picket fence.
A figure is kneeling next to one of the many beds of delicate plants. He looks up as you approach, and stands up sharply with a smile and a wave. The man looks old but he moves like a much younger man.
“Hello,” he says as you reach him. “Are you coming to visit or to stay?”
You shrug, unable to answer. “What is this place?”
“It is a garden,” replies the man.
“Thanks for that,” you reply with a sardonic smirk.
“A garden in which the world is grown,” the man continues without reference to your tone. He indicates the plants he’s tending and you see that it's true. The plants are just plants, but in the space behind what you can see, there is so much more. There is everything. Life, love, laughter and loss all shaped and cared for by the gardener.
“How can that be?” you ask in disbelief.
The man smiles. “You need to abandon your sublunary mind, and you will see that not only can it be this way, it must be.”
You watch the lives behind the leaves for a time, and eventually you return to his original question.
“How do I know why I’m here? Are you visiting or do you live here?” you ask.
“I have been here for a long time. I wanted to stay forever and help shape the garden, but that faded. A once bright passion continued to dim, and the garden I think is now looking for a new keeper.”
He gestures for you to kneel next to him. “Come, let me show you the work.”
You do as you are bidden, and watch his hands closely as he weeds, and waters and feeds the plants in his care. You see the world beyond it controlled by his touch.
“Are you God?” you ask. “You control the world!”
The man shakes his heads as he works. “No. I didn’t plant this garden, and my influence is far from universal. The garden would grow whether I was here or not. It would grow differently, that is all. Once I tried to bend it to my will, but it was futile. Now I only…adjust.”
Presently he hands you a trowel and a pair of secateurs and you find yourself working happily with him.
“Am I dead?” you ask as you snip away the spent heads of an ancient rose bush, so it will flower again.
“You are in a different place. But I think that 'death' is too simple. You’ll come to see that as well. I think that was part of why I wanted to stay. That I was scared of the next part of the journey.”
You think about this for a time. “I think I had people that loved me. I hope they are OK.”
The man nods sadly. “Perhaps one day you’ll see how they have grown. The garden is large. Do you think you will stay and look?”
You put down the tools of the job and look at him. “I didn’t ask to be sent here. I didn’t even believe in… whatever this is.”
“An accident isn’t always a bad thing. Not if it leads you where you needed to be.”
“Can I have some time to think about it?” you ask.
The man laughs and pats you on the shoulder. “Time and space are two things I can definitely offer you.” He looks past you for a second. “Except it appears that you don’t need it.”
You follow his gaze and see a simple doorway standing in the grass a few feet away. You stand up and take a couple of tentative steps toward it.
“The garden knows you have already decided,” says the man from your side. “I can’t read minds though. This door is either for you if this is just a visit, or for me if you’ve chosen to stay.” He holds out the small fork he had been using. “Is this for you? Or not?”
