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101 Word Short Stories

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We Owned an Island

March 28, 2026 1 Comment

By Johannes Springenseiss

For years, it had been our weekend treat to hike the trails of Constitution Island. Then last month the old faded sign was replaced, and the new one said, ‘Welcome to Conservation Island.’

I confessed I’d known the real name all along.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” she fumed. “What possible crazy reason could you have had to let me keep calling it ‘Constitution’?”

“Simple: by using the wrong name it became our island. To all other people on the planet, it was Conservation Island.”

We still go there regularly, but now that she knows, it’s all shifted…the illusion’s gone.

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Toni Brayer says

    June 11, 2026 at 10:22 am

    I like this so much. “ Now that she knows…”. Well done.

    Reply

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