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13.3.19

SOUL MUSIC - flash fiction in only 60 words


SOUL MUSIC

She only stopped playing when her arthritis forced her to, but she still dusted the keys and polished every inch each week.
The piano-tuner still came regularly too. I remember his dog would sit underneath – a gentle creature.
Then the day after her funeral her husband banished me to the shed.
Obviously he doesn’t realise a piano has a soul.
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This week's photograph by Anshu is so sad, and my story was written in five minutes - truly flash fiction! 
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56 comments:

  1. Patsy13/03/2019, 15:27

    That's so sad!

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  2. Neil MacDonald13/03/2019, 15:55

    What could be more soulful than growing plants?

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    1. liz young13/03/2019, 16:43

      I think the plant was accidental - to the husband, at least.

      Delete
  3. MkZebra13/03/2019, 16:18

    I think this is the first story I've seen from the perspective of the piano itself, which is a creative way to go! :-)

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  4. Reena Saxena13/03/2019, 16:35

    There are certain connections only the concerned people understand. Human beings do not respect plants and animals. A piano is considered to be an inanimate object.

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  5. iamthewalrus13/03/2019, 16:53

    It's understandable that many impute feelings to an instrument. Guitars can gently weep. Pianos can be like that too

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  6. Helen Laycock13/03/2019, 18:12

    Ooh, interesting concept! I like it...

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  7. Alice Audrey13/03/2019, 19:14

    Maybe he has no soul. A music grinch?

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  8. Jennifer Macaire13/03/2019, 19:25

    Sad - lovely work!

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  9. draliman13/03/2019, 19:34

    Poor piano, from glory to planter.

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  10. Susan A Eames13/03/2019, 19:58

    Gosh, you produced that in five minutes? Amazing. Well done.

    Susan A Eames at
    Travel, Fiction and Photos

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    1. liz young13/03/2019, 21:12

      Thanks Susan - yet there are times when it takes me days to find inspiration - and you are always quicker than me!!

      Delete
  11. Susan Kane13/03/2019, 21:14

    Such a tragedy for a sensitive piano. Oh, the music it must have played!

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    1. liz young13/03/2019, 22:25

      And it liked the piano tuner's dog 💕

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  12. Iain Kelly13/03/2019, 21:24

    An unplayed piano is such a sad metaphor for life. Economically done.

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  13. plaridel13/03/2019, 22:25

    he should have donated it to charity instead. i bet he's ready to move on and get another wife.

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    1. liz young14/03/2019, 12:34

      He should - and I agree with you, plaridel!

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  14. Sandra Crook14/03/2019, 08:46

    Nothing more poignant than an instrument no longer in use. Very evocative.

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    1. liz young14/03/2019, 12:34

      I would like to rescue any I see in junk shops, though I have no room for a piano and don't play well.

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  15. Keith's Ramblings14/03/2019, 10:34

    Perhaps the flowers growing from the piano will make him stop and think. A delightfully different take on the prompt.

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  16. An Introverted Blogger14/03/2019, 10:49

    I loved that this was from the piano! Lovely take!

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  17. Rochelle Wisoff-Fields14/03/2019, 10:55

    Dear Liz,

    What a shame. He could've at least given it to someone who loved music as much as she did. Poignant tale from the piano POV.

    Shalom,

    Rochelle

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    Replies
    1. liz young14/03/2019, 12:35

      He could. He was clearly an insensitive man.

      Delete
  18. Violet Lentz14/03/2019, 11:26

    She brought life to everything she touched, me thinks. Well done!

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  19. Gah Learner14/03/2019, 13:17

    You gotta love a piano that likes a dog. :) What a unique perspective and such an unfeeling husband.

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  20. Linda14/03/2019, 13:49

    Of COURSE a piano has a soul! Otherwise, thousands of people would not have tears running down their cheeks as they listen to the music, the voice of the composer, the performer, and the instrument.

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  21. Anshu Bhojnagarwala15/03/2019, 05:54

    No one thinks it that way.. So sad really

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  22. Dale15/03/2019, 12:53

    Maybe the piano was banished because it was too painful for him to see...

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    1. liz young15/03/2019, 17:16

      That is also a possibility. Flash fiction often leaves the reader to make their own interpretation!

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  23. Jade Li15/03/2019, 22:37

    love brings all things to life. it is the only thing that does. i made a connection between the loving way the piano tuner treated his dog, often thought of as an inferior, and the contrast between the way the husband treated his wife's beloved piano. i enjoyed your story with its ambiguity

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    Replies
    1. liz young15/03/2019, 22:50

      Thank you jade for reading so much into my little story.

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  24. Lynn Love16/03/2019, 12:18

    There is a resonance that comes off old objects, whether imagined or something more tangible. The soul of your piano, perhaps. Lovely writing Liz

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  25. margirene17/03/2019, 08:35

    A nice subtle twist at the end with the surprise reveal that it's the piano's point of view. A sad story, too.

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    1. liz young17/03/2019, 18:08

      Thanks Margirene - not seen you for a while!

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  26. brudberg17/03/2019, 20:31

    Maybe he only saw the sadness of the piano's soul...

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    1. liz young17/03/2019, 22:11

      That's a distinct possibility - trust a poet to think of that.

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  27. Rachel Bjerke18/03/2019, 13:26

    What an awful way to go through life, not seeing the beauty or realizing these things have souls. Houses deteriorate fast after they are abandoned and cars stop running if they aren't driven regularly. Maybe it is us who puts our souls into these things? Who knows!

    Great story!

    -Rachel

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    1. liz young18/03/2019, 16:27

      Thanks Rachel - I agree with every word!

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  28. Dawn19/03/2019, 01:02

    How poetic. <3

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  29. Anshu Bhojnagarwala24/03/2019, 05:28

    Oh, that's not good! But then why would husband understand the importance of an old piano! Good story Liz!

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