Gemotions

He'd been expecting the usual – a collection of family photos, maybe a well-worn Bible. Instead, there it was: a list, meticulously typed, in his mother’s precise handwriting. "Learn to play the ukulele." His jaw tightened.

He glanced around the perfectly manicured garden, at the pristine white picket fence, at the perfectly-behaved dog. His mother was the epitome of order and control. The woman who hated any deviation from the norm. And she wanted to… *play the ukulele*?

He felt a tightness in his chest, a sensation of being physically restricted. He'd spent his whole life trying to live up to her expectations. Now, it turned out, she had her own secret, untamed desires.