Friday 27 April 2018

Ghostly Inspirations X is for Xenial #AtoZChallenge 2018


Welcome to my offering for The A to Z Blogging Challenge 2018
My theme this year is Ghostly Inspirations
a collection of spirits that have been prompted by my encounters with places and times. Some are spooky, some more about atmosphere. I'll be describing each inspiration and the phantom that came to my mind, and then I will share a drabble, which I hope will entertain. :)



Disclaimer: The places and experienced I have used for my inspiration are real, but my ghosts and drabbles are complete fiction, linked to nothing and no-one, alive or dead. When writing about my inspirations, I may have changed names and obfuscated specific details to 'protect the innocent' :).

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X is for Xenial




Inspiration:
My inspiration today is a very personal one from my childhood. I have talipes, which means  I was born with a deformed foot. When I was seven, I had two operations on my foot to straighten it as much as possible, and I have a very distinct memory of going home after one of the operations. I was in my nightdress and was carried by my father out of the hospital into a bright sunny morning in a sloping car park that looked down the hill towards the sea, which was sparkling in the sunshine. 

Ghost:
Sister Gayle lived for her job in the children’s ward at St Christopher by the Sea Hospital. Single with no children of her own, she did everything for her patients and they loved her. Yet, even though Gayle looked after her young patients, she failed to look after herself, and she ignored the bad headache that kept returning until one day it became a shooting agony for a split second and then blackness.


Sister Gayle died of a brain aneurysm and her funeral was attended by hundreds of those she had tended. Now she still tends the lonely, the frightened, any child who needs her.

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Goodbye

Bella rested her head on her daddy’s shoulder and looked down the hill at the shiny sea below the hospital. She was fuzzy from the medicine the nurses had given her to stop her arm hurting, but the water and sun were pretty. She watched them for a while, but then turned her head and looked behind.

She smiled when she saw the nice nurse in the funny clothes standing by the exit. She had been so kind when Bella had woken after her operation, talking to her when she was scared. Bella waved her thanks. Her friend waved back.


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Other paranormal and spooky stories by Sophie Duncan.


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6 comments:

  1. Hi Sophie ... oh I can believe that ... we see things and we love knowing that people will look after us ... I hope the ops helped somewhat ... take care - cheers Hilary

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  2. Okay, so when you said talipes at first I thought you were talking about the fish, tilapia.

    ~Patricia Lynne aka Patricia Josephine~
    My A to Z’s of Dining with IC
    Patricia Lynne, Indie Author

    ReplyDelete
  3. This story gives me a warm embrace - thanks, Sophie.

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  4. why Bella rested on her daddy’s shoulder, looked down the hill at the shiny sea below the hospital in the evening...professional course

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Thanks for stopping by - I'd love to hear from you. :)