How can they expect any sane man to live under these conditions? That was the only question left on his tired mind. He’d lost all hope. His world consisted of a small, windowless concrete room with a single bed and a round-edged side-table securely bolted to the floor. A small, filthy toilet and plastic hand basin occupied the corner opposite his bed. A red button on the wall was his only connection to the attendant somewhere outside, who rarely responded. After five years the world beyond those grey walls was just a memory, and well out of sight. But who in their right mind would want to see the world in such a shattered, desolate state? It’s only a dream, he told himself with all the doubt and disbelief of a man approaching the end of his miserable life. The fact that dreams could come true, as well as nightmares, had become just as real as the cell he now called […]
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Let’s Dance
It was the same thing every Saturday night. Rosie prepared an early dinner and handed it to her husband who sat quietly staring at the television. “Why don’t you come too?” she’d always say. “It’s never too late you know.” Bob never dignified the question with a response. Between shovelling fork loads of food into his mouth, he silently reached for the remote control, selecting his favourite show. He couldn’t imagine anything worse than going with her. Rosie shrugged as she applied a final shine to her pretty red dancing shoes. She put on her very best dress, the same one she wore every Saturday night. It made her feel like an angel as she glided across the dance floor. With her bag packed, she gave Bob a loving peck on the cheek before heading out. She paused at the door and tried one last time. “Life begins when you learn to dance.” “Off you go,” grunted Bob. He loved Rosie […]
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