Copyright Rochelle Wisoff-Fields
It wasn’t easy, keeping the inner and outer skins together.
When the cracks appeared, we’d try to patch them together, shore up the damage. Sometimes it worked, other times not, and in a certain light, at certain times… yeah, it appeared almost ugly.
One day, after a prolonged spell of frighteningly stormy weather, we rocked up to find there was only a stark shell of the past remaining.
We poked through the ruins, talked each other up, considered rebuilding, but we soon realized there wasn’t enough left even for the foundations.
No shame, no blame.
No preventative maintenance either.
Late for the Friday Fictioneer feast, for me anyway. Our illustrious leader, Rochelle Wisoff Fields is however, always perfectly on time. Thank you, Rochelle.
castelsarrasin 
Beautifully written, Sandra.
Sometimes, you just have to let it go…
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You do indeed. And other times, it can be worth working at. It’s not always clear at the time.
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That is so true!
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It takes a lot of work to keep the past pinned to the present. Nicely observed, Sandra
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Thanks Neil. 🙂
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True story for many, Sandra.
No quick-fixes here.
When we run out of building-material, what else can we use to build?
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Thanks, Anita.
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Completely broken relationships can rarely be rekindled. I very much liked your slant on the prompt
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Thanks for reading Michael.
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Building as metaphor for a marriage. Gorgeous.
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Thanks Josh.
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Dear Sandra,
I love where the prompt took you. Some relationships can never be mended. Nothing to say or do, simply walk away. As always, beautifully written. A heart-breaker. Brava!
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Thanks Rochelle. And for a lovely photo.
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Nothing can save those crumbling foundations, no matter what they try. Lovely metaphor.
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Thanks, Iain.
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Wonderful analogy for the end of a relationship.
The last line made me reflect on perhaps too much.
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Thanks CE. Yes, it’s funny how time and distance lends clarity to what might have been.
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you really showed us process and how some things are churned
and re: “there wasn’t enough left even for the foundation…”
maybe on to something else…
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Perfect metaphor for a sad reality
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Sometimes there is nothing left… you cannot patch if up if the foundation is crumbling.
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This could be a metaphor for a relationship. Sometimes, there’s just nothing left upon which to rebuild.
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Very cleverly done, Sandra. Funnily enough, I photographed some dilapidated static caravans on a collapsing section of the east coast today, thinking they might be a useful prompt for stories about fixer-uppers. My story ideas were much more pedestrian and literal than the one you’ve posted here. Lovely writing as always.
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i could imagine them heaving a sigh of relief. 🙂
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It is true many a time inner and outer do not come along. We polish the outer, insider remains ugly. We mend the inner, outside fall apart. Story of life.
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Great metaphor. Sometime we have to just realise that it’s time to let it go.
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A subtle and masterful piece of writing about the struggle and the letting go. Wonderful.
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Excellent story, beautifully written as always. You give us what at first sight is a very literal take on the prompt, but on closer examination we find that it isn’t that at all.
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Nicely done. And the walls came tumbling down.
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Nicely done. A very nuanced look at relationships and a terrific last line.
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Timely piece. It seems nothing can withstand the destructive force of a determined storm. Nice take on the prompt. I can see it crumbling away, despite their best efforts.
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It is always difficult to know when to attempt a repair and when it is wisest to let go. Great piece.
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A sad take on the picture but its true and happens all around. Good stuff
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You’ve written this so well. All relationships take work, but what happens when the foundation goes? Excellent.
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It’s so much easier to shore up a wall that isn’t ugly.
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Beautiful tale Sandra. It’s definitely healthier to let go than try endless repairs at times, but the heart doesn’t always listen to logic.
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Brilliant analogy. Pity not everyone can walk away from their mistakes like this.
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There are times when you just have to let things go – no amount of effort, time and money can patch things up.
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Every historian’s nightmare revealed! To see a historic landmark destroyed by Mother Nature, or worse… human stupidity. So sad, so very sad.
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And every married couple’s nightmare, watching their marriage crumble through human nature.
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Amen to that.
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Often, it’s the past that keeps couples together, but when “there was only a stark shell of the past remaining,” the underpinning has been ripped away and the relationship is over. Very sad tale but written so well, Sandra.
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Really beautiful!
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Sad when this happens. Beautifully described though. 🙂
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When there’s nothing left for the foundations, it’s time to walk away. An apt metaphor.
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that’s how things and relations wither away, nicely told.
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