The Faded Tapestry: A Collection of Short Stories

by Burkley, Christy

• ISBN13: 9781462046027
• ISBN10: 1462046029
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2011-10-17
• Publisher: Author Solutions

Summary

From a mysterious, fading, historical tapestry to a fish that speaks to a confused, grief-stricken boy, author Christy Burkley offers wickedly comical tales of eccentrics who collide with the limits of reality in The Faded Tapestry: A Collection of Short Stories . In "The Escape," an old woman must find a way out of her miserable existence. At first she thought that living with her forty-seven-year-old daughter Virginia in St. Louis, Missouri, would be better than a nursing home, but the brick apartment building where she now resides is no better than a prison cell. Her only wish is that she be buried in Tennessee, a wish that her daughter deems too expensive. "Mexican Invasion" tells the story of May Sanderson, a loyal cleaning lady for the well-to-do, charitable Mrs. Taylor. May begins to have doubts when Mrs. Taylor brings a Mexican family on board to help revive the farm. When something bad happens to one of the children, May isn't sure how to react. A compilation of eight fictional tales, The Faded Tapestry: A Collection of Short Stories presents casts of characters who come alive through their words and actions.

Excerpts

"What happened when he found out she was cheating?" Diane, the Dazzler, asked. "He nearly beat her to death. Then, he fell into pieces, cryin' and goin' on and on. All of us told him she deserved it. Daddy said it shouldda taught her a good lesson." Mary Rose's eyes glazed over with remembrance. "Good God, Mary Rose! I swear I don't know what to make of you. One minute your as hard as nails and the next you seem to have all the sympathy in the world." "You're the one puzzles me, Diane. Don't cha think it's wrong to have an affair?" It was hard for her to explain to this beautiful creature how warped her thinking was. "And what about family honor? What about self-respect?" It was if Diane had taken the Bible, ripped out the pages, shuffled them up like a deck of cards, and handed them out as she pleased. "Phhtt." Diane blew out her lips. "Honor and self-respect can go to hell. One must be happy. It's the only sane state to be in--happiness, that is. So, she slept with another man? It's only a great fool who thinks he can possess someone exclusively. If she would never have been caught, I bet he would have been perfectly happy. Sometimes husbands and wifes need breaks from each other. It makes the marriage stronger." Mary Rose stared at Diane. "Happy at all costs, huh? Lemme get this straight--you're standing there tellin' me it's O.K. to commit adultry?" "I'm standing here telling you it's alright to forgive," she hesitated and said in a lower voice, barely audible, "for most. Why make things worse by blowing what hapened out of proportion and making everybody in the family suffer?" Suddenly, Mary Rose jerked. The last thing in the world she expected to see was a tear roll down the Dazzler's marble face, but that was just what was happening. There was no doubt it was real--it started at the corner of her eye and slid down her smooth cheek in the most graceful swirling motion Mary Rose had ever witnessed. It was so transparent that Mary Rose could see her startled reflection in it. It took her a minute, but she responded, "Well, I can an'ser that one. When one Davis suffers, all Davis's suffer. I can see we got some real different ideas, Diane. It bends my mind 'round to listen to ya, it sure does."