Before I tell you about the free story, I want to share some pictures of flowers that I have taken over the past few weeks. Some are easily recognized. Who doesn’t know a pansy when they see one?
Really? There are people who have never seen one?
Oh, right, I guess I didn’t think about all the places in the world where this pretty little flower doesn’t grow.
Pansies hold a special place in my heart, as they were one of my mother’s favorite flowers. When I was a child I would buy a couple of the plants as a Mother’s Day gift and dig a hole on either side of our concrete steps leading to the front porch and plant the flowers there. That they grew there was a miracle, as the dirt was more clay than dirt, and they were in full sun. But they did survive, and my mother always called them “the people flowers.”
Next up is a wildflower. These blue flowers pop up all over my front pasture. My husband used to laugh at me when I mowed out there because I would never cut the flowers down. There were interesting circles in my pasture.
I did not know what these flowers are called, but some of my Facebook friends stepped right up. “Tradescantia, commonly called spiderwort.”
Next are some pretty yellow flowers that grow along my fence line. I won’t cut them down either.
I have no idea what they are called, so if you know, please do tell all in a comment.
I got lucky and got a nice close-up of these little beauties.
Again, I don’t know what they are called, but I enjoy finding them in different places in my yard. If you know, please do share.
Last, I have a white flower. It caught my eye because of the contrast with all the colors around it.
I do know what this one is. It is a wild blackberry flower. It was all by itself, well away from the berry patches, so I snapped a picture.
Now, about the free story. The Gift, the short story that I wrote last November is going to be free from today, Sunday, until Thursday, April 28. If you have not grabbed a copy yet, now is your chance. It is on Amazon Kindle, but you can get a Kindle app for any electronic device. Grab your copy HERE
“The Gift” is a story to warm your heart at the holiday season, or any day of the year.
![The Gift cover optimized 400 wide](http://test.maryannwrites.com/itsnotallgravy/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2015/12/The-Gift-cover-optimized-400-wide-188x300.jpg)
Here are a few comments from satisfied readers:
“Maryann paints pictures with words that create a lasting impression long has reading the final sentence. I loved this timely story and it could certainly be a true story. Thank you Maryann for THE GIFT.” Jan
“Just finished reading this delightful story. It was short, sweet, and left me feeling good. I will definitely looking for more by Maryann Miller.” Linda
“I highly recommend The Gift: A Short Story, as a great thought-provoking, sweet read. The author does a marvelous job of getting into the minds of everyday people facing real problems.” Morgan
“A nice short story with a twist. I liked “The Last Dollar” too.” James
Excerpt
Stacy paused, glittery gold garland in one hand and tape in the other, and glanced at her husband. He was in his favorite chair, engrossed in his favorite pastime – watching television. By his expression, she couldn’t tell if he was enjoying the program or not. She never could tell. He often just sat there with no movement crossing his face to send any messages. She sighed. “Ralph, come shopping with me. We can go to the mall and see the Christmas decorations.”
“What for?”
“Just for fun.” She taped the garland on the posts of the half-wall. “And we can buy a present for Lucy.”
“You already bought her presents. She doesn’t need another.”
“You can never have enough presents.”
Ralph didn’t respond. He just sat in the old brown recliner that had seen too many years, one eye on the TV that was showing a rerun of Miami Vice. Stacey stepped over and dropped a hand on his shoulder. “I wish you’d come. It would do you good.”
He shrugged off the contact. “You go. I want to watch my program.”
God how she hated seeing him this way. His sour mood was almost an every-day thing now, and most days she alternated between great sadness and even greater anger. Sometimes she just wanted to shout, “Get over it already.”
After you read the story, I would love for you to leave a review on Amazon. It doesn’t have to be a long one, as you can tell from the reviews I shared, and it does help an author quite a bit.