Madame Sable was almost 150 years old when she died, though she looked no older than sixteen.
Each of her fifty thousand days was caught in a grain of sand within a vast hourglass, and every day before turning it she would pick out a single grain and take it to the seashore and leave it for the sea at the place where the hard sand softened.
When finally she brought the last grain she held it tight in her hand, and when her feet reached the waves the sea remembered her gifted days and he rose up and took her away with him.
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This is a 100-word (just about) flash fiction story, prompted by the picture you can see up there, as part of Friday Fictioneers.
Click here if you’d like to take part, and click here to read other pieces.
Simon John Cox 
That was really bittersweet and charming!
Thank you!
A beautiful fable. I guess we should appreciate every single day.
Thanks Claire. I think so too, but it always seems to be easier to say than to do…
Somehow this reminds me of Dorian Gray without the sinister part..
What a beautiful story. I love the fairytale element. A wonderful gift from the sea.
This is simply delightful!
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This was fable-ous! I like how you personified the sea, and how – despite this being a sad story – you kept it light and good-natured.
How lovely – like a little fairy-tale. One of my favourites from this week’s prompt.