1 post tagged “distilled prose”
Since Mark had passed away ten years ago, Karen had done her best to survive, and even move on. She missed him though, and she wished the twins had known their father. Instead, he had died in a plane crash four months after Karen and Mark had been married. She had been planning to tell him she was pregnant that night when he came home, and had a romantic dinner cooked. She was just finishing her makeup when the phone call that shattered her world had come.
Shaking her head to break herself out of her reverie, she smiled sadly. Rolling her shoulders against the tension that had built up throughout the day, Karen grabbed the mail from the box, flipping through the envelopes. A postcard fell to the floor, and she bent over, smiling at the bright picture on the postcard. She was curious about whom it was from—no one she knew was in Miami right now. Flipping it over, she felt her stomach drop at the sight of familiar handwriting through suddenly tear-blurred eyes. “Mark…” she whispered, her fingers running over the words. She could feel her world shatter once more.
Karen,
I can’t do this anymore. I love you, but not the way I should, not the way you deserve. I had an affair—with another man. I can’t live a lie.
Mark
The postcard was dated March 10th, 1997—Karen pressed her hand to her mouth, choking out a sob—the day before the crash.
Written for: Distilled Prose
Assignment: Write a 500 word postcard narrative. Then revise and shorten the story to 250 words.
