Magpie Tales -- No Pictures!

This is my second post of the day, but it is a departure; it is not about our house or our family, but part of a blog party sponsored at Magpie Tales, a new blog from the owner of Life at Willow Manor.

For the usual That Old House blog post, click here.

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Here's how this new blog party works:
There's a "prompt" given on the blog -- today's prompt is this picture:

Participants write something -- fiction, poetry -- inspired by the prompt, and post it to the blog party.
So, I gave it a shot; results below. Links to other Magpie Tales at the bottom!

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"Why are you afraid?" She leaned forward a bit, her head tilted slightly the better to hear, her tea cup resting on one sharp knee.

The younger woman sighed deeply. "I like to know things," she said. "I like to know ahead of time that something will work out, that I have all my ducks in a row, that I know what's going to happen. With this, I can't. There's no way of guaranteeing a good result."

"You want a crystal ball? You want to gaze into all the far corners of the future and know what's waiting for you, is that it?"

"Yes." A pause. "And I know that's silly."

"No, not silly. Impossible, and unnecessary." She smiled. "Can you see the immediate future?"

"Yes. Yes, I know what I want right now; I can see having it work right now."

"Then that is enough. My dear," and the old woman put her tea cup down, and took the younger's hands between her own cool and brittle fingers, "you needn't see everything at once. It's like looking into the big corner cupboard that was in my dining room. Do you remember it?"

"Yes, of course I do. I spent hours in front of it."

"Then you remember how deep those shelves were. The light from the room touched just the pieces right in the front, but the silver and china in the back were in shadow. They gave just hints of what they might be, but you knew, from the beauty of the pieces you could see, that what was lurking in those dim corners would also be lovely.

"We don't need to see it all at once. Sometimes just that first shining glimpse of beauty, or happiness, is enough, and the rest comes with time. Sometimes you have to trust that what is in those shadowed corners is also wonderful, and of great worth."

The younger woman stood, bent, and kissed the finely crinkled cheek. "You are right. I will do it!"

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For other Magpie Tales, visit the blog! Click on the icon below:

For my normal That Old House post, which today features choosing a new, vintage dining table, click here!