Foxgloves Phoebe Sizer I carry my tea into the sitting room, and sit down on the greying old armchair in the corner. I take a sip from the mug. Underneath me, I can feel a lump on my thigh which feels like a rock. I’m sure it’s not a rock, but my mind takes me to a mountain with snow-tipped peaks and fresh wintry gales, rocks and boulders scattered prettily here and there like someone has placed them there with a purpose. I decide to stand back up, putting my mug on the table besides the chair, and look underneath the cushion. It’s not a rock. It’s not even an exciting piece of evidence. It’s just the telly remote. I remove the remote, and sit back down on the chair, relaxing into the folds of age and memories. I sip some more tea. The grate is empty in the corner of the room, the fire gone out a long time ago. But I remember a time when the fire would be alive and well only a couple of weeks ago. Full of joy and happiness. Memories and secrets. I found out one of the biggest secrets once, sitting in this room. Only I was not the one sitting in this chair. That was someone else. ................................................. She sat there neatly in her old armchair, the arms threadbare and grey. As I watched her I could see her whole body relaxing as she gently fell asleep. Her wise wrinkles showed she was tired. Her eye-lashes quivered as she tried to stop herself from sleeping. Her naked arm shifted slightly as her body tried to wake up. It lost its comfortable position on the chair. She opened her eyes and smiled, saying, “I must have dozed off, dear.” She pushed herself off the greyed chair, making it squeak with age. She patted my head affectionately as she passed, bending down to pick up my empty mug of tea with obvious pain, and shuffled into the kitchen. I collected up the other used cutlery and plates. As I walked to the kitchen, I saw some purple foxgloves, smiling in a white jug, filled with water smelling old and foul. I bent down to see if the flowers smelt nice. They didn’t smell of anything. “Granny, I have some more washing here.”
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