Tuesday 28 April 2009

My Father Had a Face That Could Stop a Clock

It was the writers group meeting today. Sadly I’ve been too uninspired and busy to write anything for it. Listening to everyone else’s was still interesting though.
Then Anne gave us a set of first lines of novels from her flat – the task to use that first line as a starting point. Of course you can’t use the first line – it’s someone else’s work, but there is nothing to stop you being inspired by it.
I used the line ‘My father had a face that could stop a clock.’ I’m afraid I don’t know whose first line that is.


My father had a hammer, and knew how to use it too.
It’s the ticking you see. He just can’t stand it. Even the tiny tick from a watch is enough to drive him to his hammer.
My mother deals with it very well, she keeps a drawer of old wind up clocks for occasional use but otherwise she uses digital.
It makes the house look very modern and there’s never that uncomfortable silence where you all sit and look in your tea cup listening to the tick of a dozen different clocks.
I found one in the freezer yesterday, maybe my mother hid it or dad put it in there when he couldn’t find his hammer. Wonderful sound proofing and the cold soon stops them.

As you can see I was in a bit of a silly mood, but it made me smile.
Homework - to use one of the other lines in a similar vain. Wonder what I’ll choose next time.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I think freezers should be used for more things like this.
I like it.