The Caretaker
Microfiction in under 150 words
Short and sweet this week. I recently wrote this microfiction story for Story Lamp Reviews on Medium and decided to share it here too. Enjoy!
The cemetery was in a large grassy field way out of town when he started working here. Now it was surrounded by buildings. He wasn’t even sure how long he’d been here. Decades? Centuries?
He couldn’t explain how it happened. Over time, everyone around him died and came into his care. He just kept tending the graves.
The mourners never noticed him. And by the time they were buried, their descendants were too caught up in their own grief to pay him any notice.
He’d seen many changes over the years. These days, mourners often wore bright colours. Ceremonies featured music - even laughter. He liked it better this way.
For a hundred years, he’d listened to celebrations of life and stories of humanity at its best.
Maybe that’s why he’s still here. Maybe his purpose is to tend stories, not graves.
Prompt: A town’s cemetery caretaker who hasn’t aged in 100 years.
If you enjoyed this, check out my recent short story. or read more of my stories on Medium.
I have also created a Medium publication called Little Fictions where all my stories live.