Flash Fiction
In March 2020, the Sacramento Suburban Writers Club, held a Flash Fiction contest. The rules for that contest were:
- Size = 200 words.
- Title = ‘I knew it was a lie’.
I won the competition with my submission below!
I wrote it in exactly 200 words (count them). If you remember the hording that was happening in 2020, you will understand how topical this was.
The following story is loosely based on true events.
St. Thomas Aquinas once said, “Playful deeds and jokes are a requisite for life.”
I love a good joke, but one time, I couldn’t work out if I was told a joke or a lie.
I was a young college student. My mother was sending me to Poland, to take Christmas presents to our extended family. My sister told me to take some toilet paper.
“You better bring your own,” she said, “because they don’t have any in Poland.”
I did not get any clarification, nor did I see the humor. While planning the trip I had other priorities, that’s why I knew it was a lie.
On arrival in Poland, I enjoyed much feasting and festivities. Such indulgence eventually finds relief in the household toilet. Before seating myself, I checked if toilet paper was available. It was, so I scoffed at how my sister bullied me with lies.
When I finished, closer inspection revealed a horrific surprise. There was paper, but not the kind I would want to use. This was that old-fashioned medicated paper – you know, more like kitchen greaseproof cooking paper.
I now understood the smirk my sister displayed, but I did not laugh at the joke.
