Mermaid Palms

Flash Fiction (385 words)

With their roots exposed to the air and their delicate fronds spread on the lawn, the three royal palms looked as helpless and naked as beached mermaids. 

I’d never pitied trees before, but as I’d torn them from the sandy soil I hung my head in shame. I was doing yard work for my landlord in exchange for rent, and re-potting the three palms was the first…