(Friday Fictioneers has once again rolled around. Thanks for this totally weird picture Adam and thanks Rochelle for the prompt. Here are my 100 words.)
Sanji despises goats – the smell, the texture of the hair, the creepy eyes.
Too bad he grew up on a goat farm.
One particular ram has given Sanji nothing but grief since he was ten.
For six years it’s chased him up and down the hills trying to butt him off cliffs.
One time it chased him into a warren of Al-Qaeda soldiers who threatened to cut his balls off.
His father laughed. Now his father is dead and so is the ram.
Sanji cries for neither, merely places the goat’s head,
dry grass and all,
on his father’s grave.
Up From the Ashes 
does the ram’s ghost chase him?
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Not yet.
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Strange story! Riveting, too. Excellent ending.
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Strange was what I thought upon seeing the boxes and ram’s head dotted with grass. Thanks for stopping by.
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Oh boy, what a quick turn of events! You really have a talent for writing the engaging and unexpected. Maybe I need more sleep, because I think I laughed a little more than I should have at the part about cutting the guy’s balls off. Such an amazing journey in such few words!
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It’s ok to laugh. I had a hard time deciding whether to write humor, horror …. Thanks for reading Adelie. (I didn’t get much sleep last night either. Maybe that’s what happened!)
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Whew, now I’m relieved. I was afraid I was having a rather immature reaction to a sensitive topic. Gliding across several genres- very impressive! 🙂
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Dear Alicia,
A strange story indeed. Certainly doesn’t speak well of the boy and his father. Well done.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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I guess ram heads bring out the strangeness in me. Thanks for the read, Rochelle.
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Funny 🙂
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Thanks!
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Sounds like Sanji had the last laugh after being the butt of his father’s jokes.
So much going on in this story Alicia, I really enjoyed reading it 🙂
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Ha! Ha! Aren’t the puns fun this time? Thanks for reading!
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I somehow found this terrifying, more so coz this is so much possible to be an actual story !
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Yes, it is. I could see Sanji walking through dry grasslands and running into a bunch of really bad guys.
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Sanji wins!
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At last! Thanks for reading and commenting.
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Interesting story I liked it. Though I have a feeling it’s unwise to get on the wrong side of Sanji.
Minor typo in the last para “is father’s grave” should be “his father’s grave”
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Thanks for noticing that and bringing it to my attention. Will fix. Sanji is an evil little guy.
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I guess Sanji had the last laugh. Lucky escape with the soldiers!
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Yep! They had their laugh and let him go. Too bad Dad laughed, too. Thank you so much for reading.
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This is a disturbing story, but I couldn’t help laughing. I love stories that bring out conflicting feelings. Well done, Alicia.
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Oh! Thank you. It is kind of weirdly funny – that’s what I was going for. Glad you stopped by.
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I with Karen. I crossed my legs at the appropriate moment and laughed when I shouldn’t have. Nice work. Very few people can make me do that.
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Sorry about the leg-crossing thing . . . Glad you laughed, too. Cheers! Alicia
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Poetic justice. Loved it!
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Indeed. Thanks for reading and commenting.
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Dear Alicia, Strange story but I liked it! Curious! Nan 🙂
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Thank you. As I said, the photo prompt this week left ME wondering!
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Dear Alicia,
I loved your story, especially the last line. Perseverance will triumph.
Aloha,
Doug
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Doug, thank you!
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Hi Alicia, Unfortunately Al Qaeda do more than just threaten, so I think he got off easy. Nicely written.
All the best, Zainab
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Zainab, I realize that he was a very lucky boy. Thanks for the thoughtful comment.
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Chilling, powerful story, Alicia. You have captured a place and scene so well here!
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Dawn, you are sweet to say so. Cheers! Alicia
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Both amusing and frightening. The goat’s terrorizing of Sanji is a bit slapstick, but his emotional trauma isn’t. That’s the stuff that truly haunts people.
I had a fragile peace with my father at the time of his death. There were still things I wish I could have talked out, but he was a very stoic person who didn’t believe in overt emotional displays. At this juncture of my life I know he meant well, and that will have to suffice.
Thanks for visiting The Netherworld.
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I am blessed to have a 93 year old father who can never say “I love you” enough. Rare for a man his age, I think. Thank you for reading and responding so thoughtfully. Alicia
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I laughed thinking about the goat chasing him until you got to the dangerous part with Al-Qaeda soldiers. I feel like you took me through a tunnel, starting out softly, hitting danger in the middle, and a kind of relief at the end. Really great, Alicia. Well done.
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Amy, thanks for the well thought out response. I’m glad you stopped by.
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Alicia, Your story was a well-written combination of humor and fear, just like life. Too bad his father had such a weird, insensitive sense of humor. I doubt he would have thought it was funny if it had happened to him. I can understand the son’s actions. Well done. 🙂 —Susan
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Yeah, dad was not a very nice man. Thanks for reading and commenting. Alicia
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Wow – is this ever powerful! And creepily bizarre – you can’t help but winder about the family dynamics that led to that ending!!
This was a great story —
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Thanks for reading and commenting.
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I’ll bet that was the end of the goat farm, too, but what happened with the soldiers?
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To be continued?
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Effective, emotional use of the prompt. Not going to buy me a goat farm, that’s for sure!
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No, it doesn’t sound like much fun. Thanks for reading. Alicia
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I was really impressed with how you managed to sum up Sanji’s life experiences (from growing up on the farm to the death of his father) by following the fairly prosaic motif of the goat. Very skilfully done 🙂
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Sue, thank you so very much! Your comment means much. Alicia
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Your tragi-comic tale moved me greatly, Alicia. The mundane tone of the piece made the events the more horrific. Horror made commonplace. This is the way of the world, shockingly. Not an exclamation point to be seen. This is brilliant writing.
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Wow! Thank you for your kind words. Made my day. Alicia
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And you added something to mine. 🙂
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An appropriate headstone? Ugh, these filial ties!
Lily
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A rightfully inappropriate. Thanks for reading.
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There seems to be a lot going on under the surface, especially between the boy and his father. Nice story.
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Yes, there is. Thanks for noticing. Alicia
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Well told story!
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Thank you, Sarah
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Great story in hundred words! I love the unexpected ending and how you show the scene – and I wonder if Sanji is pitiful or if he is a killer….
Liebe Grüße
Carmen
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He’s not a killer. Thanks for reading and commenting. I appreciate it.
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good he is not- but I really was not sure if he killed the ram…I would have understood this 🙂
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This has such a mix of humour (cutting of balls) and the obvious antipathy between father and son. You’ve packed so much in and I would love to know more about how Sanji got to this point. A story in itself but it leaves room for so much more. Really enjoyed reading.
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Sarah Ann THANKS! glad you want more. Makes me feel good.
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Oh dear! No love lost there.
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Indeed, none.
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must have been a smart goat with either nothing else to do but chase the poor Sanji around or the goat never forgot a mistreatment from Sanji. sounds like the father may have been a bit harsh to his own son as well . . . gosh, good thing Sanji found a way to mend his problems. creative story, Alicia – i like it!
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Or a very mean and evil goat. Thanks for reading and commenting. Alicia
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Brilliantly written.
The words are so carefully chosen and crafted, imparting such a strong feeling — I love the ending – the indifference and cold calculation that seeps through the actions.
Well done. Another fascinating post to this particular FF prompt 🙂
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Thank you!
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