The Clothesline

The residents of Baybridge on the west coast of Ireland were forgiving of the damp climate except when the clothes failed to dry on the line. Even on those days, they would not forfeit the stunning scenery surrounding them. Fiona Hannon, a local social worker, shared their sentiments and felt she knew her neighbours well. This belief was brought into question when compelling circumstances wove the lives of a ten-year-old girl, a retired teacher returned from India, a grumpy betting man with a green thumb, and the local shopkeeper into a multilayered fabric. Fiona found herself comparing the events of each day to hanging clothes on a clothesline. It was impossible to know at the start what these items would be. Would they flutter in the wind, drying easily, or remain too sodden to lift? No two clotheslines were alike, not even your own.