This week on Romance Writers’ Weekly, Tracey Gee  is asking for a Flash Fiction with no set length, but must include: Kevlar, elbow(s), pinking shears, and a copy of The Great Gatsby. For bonus points we can intro w/ a haiku or limerick.  Hope you had a chance to visit Brenda Margriet and read her flash fiction.  Here’s mine:

Blinding sun

Nose to the hot desert sand

Leash jingles and kind words guide

Home awaits us

Tyler guided the pinking shears along the pattern outline on the Kevlar fabric. Never had he’d imagined losing an arm at the elbow or become a seamstress of sorts.

He placed the material on the computerized sewing machine and rotated as it bound the edges, finishing a chest plate for a K9 vest. Gratitude to the dog who saved Tyler from being blown into multiple parts made assembly line work gratifying as well as knowing he might help other dogs and their handlers.

Named after the title character in The Great Gatsby novel, Tyler’s retired war dog lay at his feet as he worked. Another perk of his employment. He could only assume whoever named Gatsby had been a lover of the story, but thankfully, unlike his namesake, his Gatsby received a happy ending.

Hop on over to author, A.S. Fenichel’s blog to see how she uses pinking shears.