Garden Hoe
A half-naked man – the bottom half of his body enclosed in a mountain of earth – breathing on center stage. He is holding a pair of shears.
A rich housewife, perfectly dressed and meticulously manicured, enters from stage left. She is carrying a tray of tea. She puts the tray on a table, carefully serves two cups of tea (the liquid is imaginary) and gives one to the half-naked man.
A large rabbit hops on stage and croaks. The housewife swiftly shoos away the rabbit, waving her arms pointlessly above her head. She picks up her cup and smashes it by the foot of the rabbit. The rabbit laughs at her folly.
The half-naked man finishes his tea and smashes his cup on the opposite end of the stage. He raises his shears and starts pruning some imaginary plants in front of him. The housewife pours herself another cup of imaginary tea and sits in front of the half-naked man. She does not watch him pretend to garden.
The rabbit sneaks in quietly. He tiptoes to the table and tries to pour himself a cup of tea. The housewife spots him, shrieks and throws her cup at him. The rabbit is agile and is able to hop to avoid the glassware.
The housewife, in a fit of rage, throws herself against the ground. The half-naked man sees this and throws the shears at the rabbit.* He then pretends to water the plants with a pretend water sprinkler.
*Whether or not the rabbit is hit, or whether or not the rabbit survives, is irrelevant at this stage. It is the prerogative of the director (or whoever may have the biggest ego in this production) to interpret that scene.
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CARD DRAWN:
SEVEN OF PENTACLES
THIS IS THE TAROT CHALLENGE, a 78-day writing challenge where everyday I pick out a random card from my tarot deck and write something about, against, inspired by, based on the card by the day’s end. The works can range from poetry to fiction to drama. When the card is from the major arcana, the title of the work should be the card name. When the card is from the minor arcana, the title can be different but the card drawn should be revealed at the end.
