A Stone's Throw

Petunia Pebble shot by Mrs. Sweetypie‘s head just as she stepped back to admire her perfectly hung laundry, missing her by inches.

Petunia yelled, “Looooooook Ouuuuuuuuut”, sending ripples across the elderly women‘s goldfish pond .

“Well, well, you goldfish are a lot less scarier then that Tommy McTerror”! Petunia quickly assessed as she stopped skipping and found herself face to face with a wide eyed guppy.

Tommy McTerror, the subject of this little tale, lived next door to Mrs. Sweetypie. His infectious smile and dancing eyes on any other day made the rambunctious ten year almost tolerable, but not today. Today he would change not only Mrs. Sweetypie‘s life forever but his own family‘s as well. A boy like him had to be watched very carefully and today, well that would turn out to be an understatement..

Petunia Pebbles began to mull over the troubling events of the last few hours,. It all started with Tommy kicking her up and down the street before thrown hard at his sister, just missing her eye!

Hiss sister’s blood curdling screams brought mother and father McTerror running out of their simple white cape within seconds and sent Tommy hiding out another street in this normally quiet middle class neighborhood.

Startled out of her thoughts, Petunia was suddenly lifted by Mrs. Sweetypie off the ground, soon to find

herself amongst some old friends in a neatly kept rock garden

“I knew this lady was nice but never thought she was crazy until now! I mean does she really believe we can grow like a rose or tomato plant for that matter“? Petunia asked mockingly

“You say one more thing against Ms. Sweetypie, and we’ll stone you, whether you believe us or not“

Balboa Boulder sneered.

“‘What, you can lay there and say she isn’t nuts?” Petunia retorted

“Hey, anyone to keep us from Tommy McTerror can believe she is growing money on trees for all we care, got that?” Balboa Boulder added in his gravelly voice.

She started to answer him back when suddenly rocks started to rain down on them. They seemed to be

catapulted from the neighboring yard she and the others surmised. They all without exception believed Tommy McTerror was behind it.

A few mornings later Petunia rolled over in her moist bed, hearing voices close by.

“Mrs. Sweetypie, if I could trouble you to watch Tommy today. Me and my wife have an um…. appointment . We shouldn’t be more than a few hours“, Mr. McTerror reassured her, the tiny lady not missing the pain and regret in his tired eyes.

Mrs. S answered without hesitation, “I would be delighted!”

“I can’t thank you enough” and saying that he turned to go, not wanting her to see the tears that now ran down from his eyes.

Delighted!! Did she say Delighted?????? Petunia’s voice rising with each syllable.

Then turning to her stoned face friends, each one remaining speechless..

“She did say delighted”, her brother Petrified Pebble finally said as if her question needed an answer

“I know what she said, I just cannot believe it!” Petunia said giving him an annoyed look.

“Oh Tommy, I am so glad we will get to spend the afternoon together while your parents are out”

Mrs. Sweetypie said with a genuineness that those in her garden couldn’t understand.

“Is that a rock garden“?, Tommy asked with a mischievously glint in his eyes

“We can look at the rocks later, but first I want to read you a story,” she told the wild boy of Writers Block

She had him sit on one of the lawn chairs and she took a seat on a more sturdy chair and began to read Tommy the story of David and Goliath from her worn Bible. He was transfixed, listening on the edge of his plastic seat until David had the giant’s head in his young hands. He even clapped which brought a wrinkled smile to Mrs. Sweetypie‘s face.

Meanwhile there was no clapping coming from the garden, they were all growing more and more nervous as the story reached its climax.

“Of all the stories she had to read, the one that included five of us and a loaded slingshot“! Petunia again quick to voice her opinion

No sooner did she say that Mrs. S. excused herself promising Tommy she would return with a plate of freshly baked chocolate chip cookies and some cold milk. But as soon as the back screen door slammed shut, Tommy was kneeling before the garden, choosing five smooth stones like his newly found hero David. Tommy already picked her roof top as his Goliath.

“Put us down” screamed five from the garden, Petunia’s voice the loudest.

Before she could protest again, her back was resting on the taut rubber sling and just as quickly flying through the air. Instead of heading towards Tommy’s target she landed smack into Mrs. S as she was coming out the back door, right into her eye, Petunia then fell to the ground, covered with blood.

Tommy’s little brain panicked, as he dropped the slingshot and four remaining stones, running out the side entrance of the house, right into the arms of his bewildered father returning from his um….. appointment.

Later that evening, Tommy sat on his front stoops waiting to hear the condition of Mrs. S. Her son’s threats to sue his parent’s now rang in his ears like the tolling of bells which he was sure would only solidify the reason for his parents divorce now in the process. He was the reason, he knew it and there would be no question of the outcome. Just then his father pulled into the driveway, his face not giving away anything.

“Son I am sorry to tell you Mrs. S. lost her eye, but she will be alright and told me to tell you that.

She also was the avenue for a miracle for our family, again her own words. She told her son he who is without sin cast the first stone. I son, am simply speechless. After receiving her forgiveness which came easily for her, she promised there would be no lawsuits and that her insurance would cover her expenses.

It showed your mom and I if she could forgive us we could forgive each other“ Mr. McTerror said choking back tears.

“But it was all my fault dad” Tommy argued.

“You are forgiven too son” then the two hugged for the first time in many years.

Tommy name was changed that day from Terror to Terrific, for the giant of divorce threatening their family was cut down. From that day on you could find Tommy throwing basketballs, baseballs, party’s

but never another stone and he refused to thrown in the towel.

And by the way a certain rock that wishes to remain anonymous, once bloodied now a shining, polished one,

was placed high on Tommy’s shelf to remind him of yet another Rock greater than any even David beheld.

.

You may not live on writers block and already have a story of your own, or you may not but I bet there is another story like this waiting to be told or even to be written for that matter. For you can be sure there are other Tommy’s playing in a neighborhood near you, probably no more than a stones throw away!