Carrie leant the brush against the counter and checked the room again. Cardboard was stacked neatly in one corner, bubble wrap in a heap next to it and the twelve black bin bags of crap from twenty years neglect were by the door.
She sighed and dusted her hands off. Not bad for the first day.
The fading sunlight tumbled in through the stain-glass windows as she pattered towards the door.
‘De-consecrated,’ she murmured. ‘Just another word for abandoned.’
She spun and eyed up the old alter, broken and grimy with dirt. She smiled.
Carol J Forrester is a writer and a history geek. Her debut collection 'It's All In The Blood' came out November 2019.
She has a 2:1 BA degree in history from Bath Spa University, enjoys judo at least twice a week, and tries to attend poetry events around the Midlands when she can.
Her flash fiction story ‘Glorious Silence’ was named as River Ram Press’ short story of the month for August 2014 and her short story ‘A Visit From The Fortune Teller’ has been showcased on the literary site Ink Pantry. Her poems ‘Sunsets’ and ‘Clear Out‘ were featured on Eyes Plus Words, and two of her poems were included in the DVerse Poets Pub Publication ‘Chiaroscuro’ which is available for purchase on amazon.Her poem ‘Until The Light Gets In‘ was accepted and published at The Drabble and her poem ‘Newborn’ was published by Ink Sweat & Tears.
She has been lucky enough to write guest posts for sites such as Inky Tavern and Song of The Forlorn and has hosted a number of guest bloggers on her site Writing and Works.
View all posts by Carol J Forrester
17 Comments
Ooh, nice spin on the photo prompt, to make it a church window. And what a great image you paint of those first steps of facing the grime of neglect.
My parents took me to church semi-regularly as a child and I’ve always loved stain glass so the two have always merged in my mind. Thank you for the comment.
Ooh, nice spin on the photo prompt, to make it a church window. And what a great image you paint of those first steps of facing the grime of neglect.
My parents took me to church semi-regularly as a child and I’ve always loved stain glass so the two have always merged in my mind. Thank you for the comment.
Bravo to her! I would have loved to rescue an old building (or store) and turned it into a coffee shop…
I think it’s a really worthy cause. It keeps the history in our towns and villages as well as some fantastic architecture.
Better a bustling coffee shop than a silent church. A delightful image.
Visit Keith’s Ramblings!
Thank you Keith. It’s amazing what can be done with a old churches these days. Sir Kenith Brannon preformed McBeth in one a few years ago.
“de-consecrated” is a beautiful word in this case.
Great take on the prompt! 🙂
Thank you. 🙂
Indeed.. An abonded building is always empty – I agree, make use of those buildings.
Hear, hear.
I’m intrigued. Is she opening an abandoned coffee house or about to reconsecrate the church? Maybe she has black masses in mind?
She’s opening a coffee house in a de-consecrated church.
Good story, Carol. This type of thing is what keeps some of the areas of cities alive when they’re dying. Great description. Well done. 🙂 — Suzanne
Thank you Suzanne.
Happy New Year to you and yours. 🙂 — Suzanne
Same to you.