A landscape artist had done this arrangement for his parents, long ago. The birth of a grandchild or any happy occurrence in the family was celebrated in that space with confetti, cake and tiny glasses of wine. His mother believed that the fairies had visited.
The door of the shelter was never opened. It was another belief of hers that evil spirits were locked in there, and opening the door would create turbulence. The family had played along with the beliefs of this very affectionate and lovable old woman.
They stepped in on the midnight of 31st December, to wish her a Happy New Year. The grandchildren had some surprises for her, but were distraught to find their Grammy lying cold and motionless on the couch. She was hale and hearty on Christmas.
The door of the shelter was open. A piece of colored paper was found fluttering near the tiny logs, with his late father’s handwriting,
“If you happen to open this, please clean and shut the door again. Let your Mom live with her fantasies. I will take her with me, when she is not needed around here.”
He wondered what exactly was meant by an ‘evil spirit’.
(200 words)
Creative Experiments and More 
I like that. I wonder if she opened the door and it fluttered out, and when she read it, decided she couldn’t go on.
Good story Reena.
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It leaves a lot to the imagination. Thanks, Al!
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Perhaps she thought of death as an evil spirit living in the shelter. Good writing, Reena. 🙂 — Suzanne
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Thank you, Suzanne!
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Oooooohhh, there’s a dark secret behind every closed door!
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We love to imagine so. Thanks, Anurag!
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Ooh-err, that’s a bit creepy!
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So that’s what the old boy’s been up to all this time.
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As long as the old girl is happy to play along, its fine 🙂
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Eerie story. I really liked it.
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Thanks 🙂
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Spooky little tale, I liked it.
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Thank you so much!
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A great twist at the end. Probably best to keep the door closed!
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Secrets and spirits emerge at some point 🙂
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