Writing Resources from Fifteen Minutes of Fiction

Bad timing

Bad timing

Mark Hudson

I spent the weekend with good company,
snapping photos of some friends and pet.
i had two photos, and painted the dog,
And hoped to bring it to my friends at church.
There was a photo of the dog, and my
friend's wife, and I had done a painting
of the dog. I hoped to procure a little
money from the painting, just like
the money changers in the temple
that Jesus got mad at. So I phoned
my friend and told him I'd bring the
stuff to church, and then the sermon
was really a downer. The pastor talked
about women shouldn't come to church
looking like prostitutes, it distracts
from the primary purpose. I thought,
"Is he nuts?' and felt uncomfortable.
After the sermon, I approached the
couple with a photo of the dog,
the wife, and the painting of the dog.
Then the women from behind
asked for prayer, saying her daughter
had been kidnapped by human
trafficers and they were moving
into the Chicago area. I told the
lady I would add her to my prayer
list and gracefully moved from the
area. I don't know if they even liked
the dog painting. It seemed like a
case of bad timing. But i noticed
today, on my e-mail, an invite
from the husband who happens
to be a classical musician. So
maybe i'm making a big deal
out of nothing. But I think about
the way i affect people, because
haven't i done enough damage
already? we all have to be
accountable to the same God,
and like they say at my church,
his mercies are new every morning.
Amen to that.

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