Wednesday's Words on a Friday (Saturday)

On Wednesdays, Delores, from Under The Porch Light, has a word challenge meme which she calls “Words for Wednesday”.

She puts up a selection of six words which we then use in a short story, or a poem.

I’m hopeless at poetry so I always do a story.

It’s a fun challenge…why not join in?

This week's words are:

1. shorebirds

2. boardwalk

3. sprinkle

4. refrigerate

5. margaritas

6. flash

or: "the lovely lilting lullaby of the waves"

Here is my story: 

Chapter Three

Carlos and Isabel reached Jimmy at the same time, each wrapping arms around him from either side, Carlos still with the basting spoon which was now dripping sticky sauce onto Jimmy's shirt. The three rocked and turned in a small circle with the momentum of the hug, before standing back with huge grins on each face. 

Jimmy mentioned the plaque he had brought to present to them in a small ceremony set for the next morning. They'd known it was coming of course and excitedly told Jimmy the plans the town had made. The local camera buff had even made sure to get new flash bulbs for his camera, the event was to be recorded for posterity in the local newspaper.

When the first excitement died down, Jimmy went back to basting the ribs and Isabel got a damp cloth to clean the sauce from Jimmy's shirt. People came up to be introduced, many already knew Jimmy from the dig, but there were a few new families in the area who wanted to know who this handsome visitor was.

Finally things quieted as families got busy devouring sticky ribs, spit-roasted chicken, salads and the local sour-dough bread. Jimmy took the moment to ask Isabel about her cousin Rosa. They'd met a few months before Jimmy returned to Alaska and had corresponded by mail since then. 

He learned now that Rosa, a photographic journalist, was in Australia, making her way around the vast coastline, photographing beaches, boardwalks, which the Australians called 'piers' or 'jetties', and taking notes about the history of each. 

Usually such trips were magazine assignments, but this one was Rosa's own idea, she planned to write a coffee-table book about the great Australian coastline, the sands, the rocky cliffs, the shorebirds, (so many pelicans and gulls!) the lighthouses, even the people were to be included. Rosa was particularly fond of many of the elderly fishermen who spent hours each day sitting with a rod in the water, not caring if they caught any fish. 

Isabel told Jimmy Rosa had been in Australia for almost a year and Jimmy pulled out the latest postcard he had received from her a month ago. "You already knew!" Isabel exclaimed.

Rosa was in Western Australia, taking photos of the Albany and Esperance coastal areas before heading off to a long section of coast in South Australia called the "Great Australian Bight". 

Her book was going to show how even rough, rugged, storm tossed coastlines could be peaceful, (hence the fishermen photos), and she had decided the title would be The Lullaby of the Waves. With Rosa's lovely lilting style of prose it was sure to be a best seller. 

Jimmy's face  softened when he spoke of Rosa and his eyes had a faraway look to them, a small smile on his lips. Isabel saw this and resolved to tell Carlos when he had a spare moment, that Jimmy was in love with Rosa, she was sure of it!

When the dinner rush was over, Jimmy helped Carlos and Isabel clean up the cooking area out back, putting utensils to soak, leftover sticky sauce in the refrigerator, bone scraps in the big bucket to carry out to the woods where stray wild dogs waited for their share of the feasting. 

While Carlos carried the bucket across the yard, Isabel began to make the customary "midnight margaritas", with Jimmy helping by clearing tables and setting out glasses. Carlos came back swinging the empty bucket announcing a sprinkle of rain and hoped it would become more than that as his vegetable patch sorely needed more water.

Isabel caught his eye and he knew there was news to be heard. She took him aside and mentioned her certainty that Jimmy was in love with Rosa.