Father's Stories
50 Word Story | Fiction
The campfire crackled as my terminally ill father shared family stories with my teenage son. The Milky Way above us witnessed the transfer of traditions. My chest puffed up with pride at my son’s rapt attention, until the final story.
That’s when I found out I’m not my father’s son.
© Copyright 2020—Present, Jenise Cook, All Rights Reserved Worldwide.
Published: 17 February 2023, Fifty Word Stories
First Published: 31 January 2020, The Friday Fix (RIP) on Medium.com
Image Credit: René Rauschenberger on Pixabay.com
About this Story
Families have stories they pass down from one generation to another. The image inspired this tiny story. The story’s final line came to me first.
Yes, the end has quite the twist, which is one of our favorite features of a 50-word micro flash fiction story.
February 3, 2023: Our community’s dedicated promoter of 50-word stories, Justin Deming (Along the Hudson on Substack), read my tiny tale on his “Fifties by the Fire: Duck Calling with My Sons”. My story received plenty of “Likes”. Justin recommended I submit this tiny tale to Fifty Word Stories.
I did.
And Tim (the Editor) published my story! on February 17th!
Your Turn
Did the twist at the story’s end catch you off guard?
Let me know your thoughts in the Comments.
❤️ And, to bless the “Algorithm Angels”, please select the “heart” icon to like this story (if you do), even if you’re not a subscriber. That will help me, so thank you in advance.
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Yes! But you’re right, that’s what really makes a 50 word story great!
Well deserved publication. Amazing story.