The following is my 100 word entry for the Shared Story:Advent Ghosts project proposed at the blog I Saw Lightning Fall. This was fun to write, although it was a challenge to tell the story in exactly 100 words. I hope you enjoy it, and do click the link and read the other entries as well.
An Angel Above
Her crochet angel sat atop our tree that frosty Christmas Eve.
For nine years it had been missing, gone the Christmas she had taken her leave.
Had it really been that long?
Grandma was a crafter. She made things with her hands.
The skiing squirrel, fashioned from walnuts and acorns our family had gathered on our walks for her.
The tiny felt and cotton glove.
And an angel tree topper.
There was no Etsy in her time. Only Church bazaars. And family trees.
The angel was gone that Christmas morning. But I swear it had been there. So had she.
The Struggling Writer 
Very nice Paul. I found it quite poignant. I too found it challenging to get everything across in 100 words but you did a good job with this one. Kudos!
Thanks Thomas. I liked yours too.
Lovely, Paul, and very touching. I enjoyed reading it.
Thank you Diane. Thanks for reading!
I like how you’ve captured Grandma’s spirit through the crafts, weaving a parallelism between her life and her legacy.
Thank you for reading Aidan. I’m glad you enjoyed it. The Grandma is based on my own grandma.
Lovely! What a challenge to fit a whole story into 100 words — but you did it, including a surprise ending. Well done! A very touching story. Thanks for posting it. 🙂
This is really nice! You have a lot packed in here, and I love how the end leaves me wondering. It’s perfect. 🙂
Thank you Michelle. It was pretty tough trying to trim to only 100 words.
I swear we had some of those crafty things. We still might.
Yeah, we still have them on our tree.
Nice story Paul, I loved it.
Thank you!
You evoked the nostalgia and the pain so well in this one!
Thank you Jason. Yeah, I think the pain will always be there.
You have done an excellent job in subtly conveying a strong sense of emotion .
Thank you Craig
A nostalgic read; and I loved the ending. I like how you portrayed Grandma 🙂
……..dhole
Thank you Donna.
sweet story!
Thank you for your comment here and on Facebook 🙂
Really poignant, Paul. You nailed the flow of this kind of super-short story just right and tied it all up with that final line. Well done.
But I swear it had been there. So had she.
And I know she will always be there, Paul.
Very touching 100 words, very well done.
I would like to wish you and your loved ones a very Happy New Year!
Thanks for reading Vesper. This one came from the heart.