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Patricia Reding
a book bubble about
Ephemeral and Fleeting
Science Fiction & Fantasy
Author Insight
Bits of Life
When my eldest was first on his own, finding it difficult to make financial ends meet, I told him that his situation was completely normal for someone in his 20s; that his financial flexibility would improve a bit in his 30s; that he'd be able to afford a little better car or washing machine or otherwise in his 40s; that by that time he reached his 50s, he'd be looking around, wondering what to do with all the stuff he'd accumulated; and that in his 60s, he'd be doing all he could to give away or throw away, his excess, while reserving special pieces for his loved ones. But over time, I have noticed something of a generational difference. Mine grew up with very, very little. As a consequence, our accumulating material things became the sign that we had accomplished something. By contrast, our children grew up with pretty much everything. Consequently, they do not value things, so much as experiences. I admire that. Here, we see that Rowena or someone on her behalf, kept just a few bits - the types of things most people do keep and pass down. Have you items of this nature? Do your parents? What do they mean to you?
Book Excerpt
Ephemeral and Fleeting
“I have another item here,” Mara said, removing something more from the box. “This was your mother’s wedding ring.” She turned it around and around in her fingers. “Dixon also took this from her just after she died.” She paused, closing her eyes. “I’ll never forget how distraught he was . . .” She glanced back up. “He cared for her deeply, and I know he’d have done anything to have seen to her safety.”
She held the ring out. “I’ve kept this all these years. I thought one of you might like to wear it, and the other, the locket,” she said to the twins. Then she glanced Vida’s way. “But of course, its up to you all what we should do with these pieces.”
The twins looked at one another and then at Vida. They all nodded, as though each understood what the others thought.
“Actually,” Eden said to Mara, “you should hold the ring for safekeeping.”
“Yes, and I think that one of you two,” Vida said to her sisters, “should make use of the hairpin, and the other, the locket.”
“Are you sure?” Reigna asked.
“I’m certain.”
Reigna addressed her twin. “That’s fine with me. Which would you prefer, Eden?”
“Oh, please, don’t make me choose. We could be here all night.”
Reigna chuckled. “Fine. I’ll take the hairpin then. But I do think we should keep these things safe in our lock boxes.”
“Agreed.”
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