Patrick’s Theory
‘You can laugh, but here’s proof.’
I hated to admit he was right, but Patrick’s experiment was working: two garden beds, one lavished with love, the other merely watered and fertilised. The difference was remarkable.
Patrick was delighted – he doted on his ‘lovelies’, stroking their branches, murmuring soft words. He spent whole nights with his arms entwined in dangling foliage, his face pressed into spongy mulch.
Enough was enough. I needed some of that affection. I stormed outside, hedge-trimmer ready, then froze. There was Patrick, delicate green fronds shooting from his fingertips, his legs furrowed, woody, rooted in soft soil.
*****
Another story for Friday Fictioneers. Thanks once more to Rochelle for hosting the weekly link-up. You can read all the other hundred word stories here.
Onto the page 
He must be happy to have become one with his beloved plants… or not!
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Let’s hope so. Thanks, Dale.
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I love plants but I’m not sure I’d want to become one!
My story – Billy and me!
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Me neither. Thanks, Keith.
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Will she still use the hedge trimmer? My guess is yes
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Now there’s a question I hadn’t considered. You might be right.
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Sounds like he went too far. Hedge trimmer on standby!
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He always was a man who threw himself wholeheartedly into his projects.
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Oops, too late. You are what you love, I guess.
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Yes, too late. And I thought it was more that you are what you eat – but that wouldn’t have helped in this story. Thanks, Russell.
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Yikes! I loved the way this twisted into something sinister, Margaret.
Susan A Eames at
Travel, Fiction and Photos
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Thanks, Susan. I like the yikes.
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Dear Margaret,
That had to have been a shocker. Guess Patrick loved his lovelies a little too much. Good one.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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He did. He always was a bit obsessive. Thanks, Rochelle.
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Magical, I enjoyed this
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I’m so glad you enjoyed it. Thank you, Michael.
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Patrick seems like a true son of the soil. I liked this.
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That’s a great way to describe him. I like your comment.
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A case of getting a little too close to the thing he loved! Excellent story.
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He had boundary issues for sure. Thank you for your encouraging comment, Iain.
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This reads like one of those fairytales I read as a kid… now you have to go to the witch who loved east of the sun and west of the moon…
https://www.pitt.edu/~dash/norway034.html
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I do like stories with a bit of a fairytale feeling, so I’m glad this one has it. Thank you, Bjorn.
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Horrific! She lost her man to a plant, literally!
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She did. Maybe it wasn’t such a loss if the truth be told.
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🙂
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Oh, no. That’s going too far, way too far. A great story with a real surprise ending, Margaret. It reminds me of The Twilight Zone. Well done. 🙂 — Suzanne
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Patrick was obsessive, and one has to be careful about obsessions. They take hold. I’m glad you were surprised, and I like that you found echoes of The Twilight Zone in my story. Thanks so much, Suzanne.
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Reblogged this on Vijayagiri views.
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Glad you liked it. Thanks for the reblog too.
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