Martin thought a Toddler Zombie Walk would be a fun introduction to the complexities of death. He got all the costumes from one shop, the one opposite Poundland.
The kids went along with it to please him – looked deadly, walked slowly, whatever. Ten laps around Bunhill graveyard with Blake, Bunyan and Defoe. Plus jelly, and chocolate. But it all felt a bit flat, as death is probably meant to.
Then, out of the blue, a line of grown-ups filed in, headed by community police officers Christine and James. Only up close did anyone notice they were crying tears of blood.
What is a drabble? A piece of writing exactly 100 words long. Fiction? Yes, most commonly but not always. I try to give my drabbles a story structure (beginning, middle, end) and use other fiction devices such as point-of-view, setting, character, etc.
I'm originally from Liverpool and worked as a national magazine journalist for more than 30 years before suffering a stroke at age 53. I started blogging as part of a neuro-rehabilitation programme and wrote the very first entries with one finger of my disabled left hand. Later, art became another therapy for me at Headway East London's Submit To Love studios. I blog regularly and volunteer as a teaching assistant, coaching schoolchildren in aspects of journalism.
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