Stories from the Stringam Family Ranches of Southern Alberta

From the 50s and 60s to today . . .



Thursday, March 27, 2014

War Wounds

My little soldier.
My kids belong on a stage.
Case in point:
It was a hot, sunny, summer afternoon.
We sometimes get those in Edmonton.
Seven-year-old Erik was riding his bike on the sidewalk.
Next to a street that closely resembled the frenetic scramble of frantic ants when someone has stirred up their nest.
Dozens of neighbourhood kids of every size and variety screamed/shouted/laughed.
Scenarios were being enacted.
Dares carried out.
Counter-dares being proposed.
And through it all, Erik rode his bike serenely up and down.
Up and down.
Up and . . . oops.
Right at the foot of our neighbour’s lawn, in an effort to avoid a collision, he turned.
And toppled off his bike.
I had just come to the door, carrying a bowl of freshly-washed raspberries to offer as a mid-afternoon snack. I watched him go down.
In slow-motion.
Scraping one knee.
He rolled onto his back and, for several seconds, lay there. Then he looked up at me. “Mom!” he shouted. “I fell!”
“I saw you!” I called back. “Come on! Let’s get you fixed up!”
Slowly, he rolled over onto his stomach. Then, with kids running back and forth and even leaping over him, started crawling – crawling – up the lawn toward me.
Dragging his wounded leg.
He looked like a soldier crossing a battlefield.
My little cardboard soldier.
I shook my head and watched him.
Finally, he reached the steps and flung himself onto his back, now looking thoroughly trounced.
“Mom! I hurt my knee! I think I have gangrene!”
I handed him the raspberries and went to get the bandaids.
Two minutes later, he was back on his bike.
Dangerously inflamed, obviously-going-to-fall-right-off knee pumping madly as he rode.
Yep. A stage.

Every week, Delores of Under the Porch Light posts a six-word prompt for her neophytes. 'Do or die!' she tells us.
I did.
This week's words: Cardboardvarietyraspberrytrouncedinflamedgangrene

12 comments:

  1. It took me a while to read your post because his photo stopped me short. Adorable and devilish looking, the photo tells it all! I'll bet he was a handful growing up!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. He was (and still is) a cutie! And yes, he definitely stirred thing up a bit... Now he's a cop. He gets to really stir things up!

      Delete
  2. He still is a handful! ;) and his three boys are just like him :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Well, if you can't have fun with an injury, when CAN you have fun??

    ReplyDelete
  4. Takes after his Mom methinks.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Gangrene...love it! :)

    ReplyDelete
  6. I love these posts where you incorporate Delores' words into stories of your family life.
    Erik is a tough kid...riding with a gangrenous knee and only a bandaid to hold it together!

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for visiting! Drop by again!

Real Estates: All Murders Included in the Price!

Real Estates: All Murders Included in the Price!
My FIRST murder mystery!

Blessed by a Curse

Blessed by a Curse
My very first Medieval Romance!

God's Tree

God's Tree
For the Children

Third in the series

Third in the series
Deborah. Fugitive of Faith

The Long-Awaited Sequel to Daughter of Ishmael

The Long-Awaited Sequel to Daughter of Ishmael
A House Divided is now available at all fine bookstores and on Amazon.com and .ca!

Daughter of Ishmael

Daughter of Ishmael
Now available at Amazon.com and .ca and Chapters.ca and other fine bookstores.

Romance still wins!

Romance still wins!
First romance in a decade!

Hosts: Your Room's Ready

Hosts: Your Room's Ready
A fun romp through the world's most haunted hotel!

Hugs, Delivered.

Compass Book Ratings

Compass Book Ratings

Ghost of the Overlook

Ghost of the Overlook
Need a fright?

My Granddaughter is Carrying on the Legacy!

My Granddaughter is Carrying on the Legacy!
New Tween Novel!

Gnome for Christmas

Gnome for Christmas
The newest in my Christmas Series

SnowMan

SnowMan
A heart warming story of love and sacrifice.

Translate

My novel, Carving Angels

My novel, Carving Angels
Read it! You know you want to!

My Second Novel: Kris Kringle's Magic

My Second Novel: Kris Kringle's Magic
What could be better than a second Christmas story?!

Join me on Maven

Connect with me on Maven

Essence

Essence
A scientist and his son struggle to keep their earth-shattering discovery out of the wrong hands.

Essence: A Second Dose

Essence: A Second Dose
Captured and imprisoned, a scientist and his son use their amazing discovery to foil evil plans.

Looking for a Great Read?

E-Books by Diane Stringam Tolley
Available from Smashwords.com

The Babysitter

The Babysitter
A baby-kidnapping ring has its eye on J'Aime and her tiny niece.

Melissa

Melissa
Haunted by her past, Melissa must carve a future. Without Cain.

Devon

Devon
Following tragedy, Devon retreats to the solitude of the prairie. Until a girl is dropped in his lap.

Pearl, Why You Little...

Pearl, Why You Little...
Everyone should spend a little time with Pearl!

The Marketing Mentress

The Marketing Mentress
Building solid relationships with podcast and LinkedIn marketing

Coffee Row

Coffee Row
My Big Brother's Stories

Better Blogger Network

Semper Fidelis

Semper Fidelis
I've been given an award!!!

The Liebster Award

The Liebster Award
My good friend and Amazing Blogger, Marcia of Menopausal Mother awarded me . . .

Irresistibly Sweet Award

Irresistibly Sweet Award
Delores, my good friend from The Feathered Nest, has nominated me!

Sunshine Award!!!

Sunshine Award!!!
My good friend Red from Oz has nominated me!!!

My very own Humorous Blogger Award From Delores at The Feathered Nest!

Be Courageous!


Grab and Add!

Search This Blog

Ghost of the Overlook

Ghost of the Overlook
Need a fright?