The Blocked Shed

The Blocked Shed

On Saturday morning, Leila and Owen were helping at the school garden sale. Ten minutes before opening, they went to fetch the electric mower from the shed, but the door moved only a few centimetres. A delivery van had reversed too close to the shed, pushing a stack of empty compost bags against the outside of the door.

Owen pulled the handle harder. Through the gap, Leila saw a shelf shaking above the mower. “Stop,” she said. If the door opened suddenly, the tools on the shelf might fall. She switched off the mower at the wall, kept everyone back and asked Mr Lewis, the caretaker, for help.

They walked round the building together. From behind a low fence, they could see the bags blocking the door. Mr Lewis unlocked the garden gate, and the three of them moved the light bags away, one at a time. Then he checked that the shelf was steady before opening the shed fully.

The sale began five minutes late, but the paths were soon neat and clear. Owen tied the bags securely beside the gate, where the wind could not scatter them. When the first visitors arrived, Leila was already guiding them towards the plants.