The Thing

It pulsed.

I watched them watch it pulse.

It strobed.

I watched them watch it strobe.

It shimmered, trimmered, mimmered, mummed.

And I watched them watch it shimmer and trimmer and mimmer and mum.

It raised itself slowly up onto its legs and undulated strangely in a way that would never work and I watched them watch it raise itself slowly up onto its legs and undulate strangely in a way that would never work and their faces signalled a mixture of emotions I had never seen there before.

It tottered and flapped to the edge of the table and jumped or fell it was quite hard to tell and it fell to the floor and smashed into pieces and I watched them watch those pieces as they twitched and whirred and whined and wept on the floor until the bell rang and the lesson was over and they all scampered away out into the corridor and I watched the door swing back closed behind the last one and I was alone again it was the end of the day.

I wondered if these would be the lessons they would never forget, and I hoped that they were, for the sake of their exams if for nothing else.

I swept up the remains of my son and put him in the bin and then went to the cupboard and prepared to hatch myself another.

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Notes:

1. Written on August 29th, 2016

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