I pushed the door of my mother’s bedroom and
entered. There on the floor lay one of
her most cherished possessions. It was a
crystal flower vase which my father had given her on her last birthday. She kept it in her room because she wanted
nobody to damage it. Now it lay on the
floor in dozens of pieces with the flowers strewn around it.
I was about to turn and leave the room when my mother
crept up behind me. I turned and our
eyes met. She saw the horror on my face
then she saw the vase. She stood there
for what seemed like an hour. I knew it
could not have been more than a minute.
I sensed what was coming. She
looked at me, then at the vase, then at me again. It was then that she said, “How could you do
this, Tony? You know how I cherished
that vase.”
I replied, “I did not do it, Mum. When I entered the room I saw it there on the
floor.” I tried my best to convince my
mother of my innocence but I tried in vain.
Mum argued that only she and I were at home therefore I must have been
the culprit.
My punishment was almost greater than I could
bear. I could not go out for a
month. I was forced to spend my evenings
after school in my room. I could not
even use the telephone. I felt extremely
annoyed especially since I knew I was innocent.
It was some months after when we all found out it was the cat.
Stewart
Russell © 1997
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