Red bougainvillea made a splash against a white wall as Tom wondered where he was.
When his mind wandered he’d sometimes get lost in imagined disasters he could do nothing about. Fortunately, although they seemed determined to mess with him to the extent they still could, he had enough sense to reject dark demonic misdirection.
Then Tom saw Phyllis wave to him in the distance. He hadn’t seen her in a decade, not since the funeral. Her smile and the joyful brilliance of the bougainvillea told him his journey was finally over and a new, better one had just begun.
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Denise offers the prompt word “mess” to be used in this week’s Six Sentence Stories.

What an interesting six! Well done
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Thank you, Paula!
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Interesting and intriguing story Frank.
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Thank you, Sadje!
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You’re welcome Frank
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I have such great memories of bougainvillea. What a beautiful plant. Glad Tom is on a new journey.
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It is a beautiful plant. Thank you, Michael!
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Powerful. Entering into eternal life
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Thank you, Jim!
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YW FH!
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So Frank, what is Heaven really like?
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I don’t know yet, but I am glad you noticed that was where Tom met Phyllis again. Thank you!
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Getting lost in imagined disasters can mess up life like no other.
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Those imagined disasters are the worst. Thank you, Reena!
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You are welcome.
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A story that ends, then begins anew.
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Thank you, Keith!
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Paper flower is such a fitting center piece of your Six, Frank.
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Thank you, Nick!
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Enjoyed employing the lesser-used meaning of mess. (Tried to find a story using ‘mess’ as in ‘attempting to trick or misdirect a person or their thoughts… no luck.
Good Six
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Thank you, Clark!
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Oh, man! Is Tom dead, Frank? Somehow that is the sense I felt reading your story.
Would that our “transition” (popular term for dying these days) as experienced by Tom, be how it really is – a peaceful journey begun with the knowledge the next leg of the trip would be a whole lot better.
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Yes, that was my intent, although one could read it differently. Thank you, Denise!
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I’m glad he was able to keep enough wits about him to resist evil until the end. May we all have a beautiful transition when the time comes.
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May we all have such wits about us to the end. Blessings to you and thank you, Mimi!
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This brings memories back of this six.
I really love finding your blog .let’s follow each other. Anita
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Thank you, Anita!
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Nicely done, as it could be read either as a road trip to finding a new life, or the everlasting peace we seek when we die.
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Thank you!
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I love the opening line which sets up what’s to follow wonderfully. A real “splash,” a real change.
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Thank you, Dora, and blessings to you!
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And to you. 🙏
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When I started reading this Frank, I thought ‘Yep, that’s me!’… especially with the mind wandering part. Then, you mentioned Phyllis, who is someone I met years ago and haven’t seen since, which made me sit up and think… how would you possibly know? Then, I read the end and realised it wasn’t about me at all! Uncanny connections, and a nice twist to this six. I enjoyed reading it! 🙂
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I am glad to hear there were so many coincidences. I didn’t know about you and Phyllis. I just picked some name that popped into my head. Thank you, Tom!
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An excellent Six, Frank. It’s not good to focus too much on things / disasters outside of your circle of control. Loved the positive ending!
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Thank you, Nicole! I like positive endings also although I don’t always leave the characters in a good position. Hopefully the reader is encouraged.
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I’m glad Tom found a positive alternative to his fear and brooding. Well done, Frank.
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The fear and brooding was not good. Thank you, Mark!
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