When my son was small we went on a glorious beach holiday. The weather was perfect, the sands golden and the water a shimmering blue. Everything was just the right temperature. Things were so good we bought a kite on… Continue Reading
Bill died early Saturday morning. He wanted chicken tortilla soup for lunch. His fever was gone and his throat was just a little scratchy. We were advised home quarantine since his COVID symptoms were mild. He tested positive and I… Continue Reading
Mary is woken by her two little boys. They are already fighting in their bedroom. She can hear objects crashing, bodies tumbling, chaos coming. *** When Julia wakes up, she takes the sheets and the thin summer blankets to shake… Continue Reading
When Buddy asked me to spend an August afternoon at a nude beach, I laughed. One of the things I love about him is how comfortable he is with my blindness. Most people avoid referring to it, as if I… Continue Reading
The sun is stuck. The golden coronal flares tickle the orange clouds that hover over the horizon, but it refuses to climb any higher. The colors stretching across the sky are a painting in soft pastels, and the perfect wave… Continue Reading
They did not ask her, they told her. Be ready tomorrow, light clothing; layers, they said. Bel wasn’t sure they even told her where they were going. Bobby came in, looked at her and backed out. “Mum,” she heard him… Continue Reading
I watched her as much as she pretended not to watch me. My little sister. Wasn’t the youngest the baby? Wasn’t she supposed to be subject to our parents’ worries? Their touches of melancholy? I remember when she would beg… Continue Reading
We wander to the end of the beach, away from the sprawling sunbathers, and sit down on my fraying blue and white striped beach blanket. The turquoise and lilac Cornish sea rolls up the pale fluffy sand, flattening and darkening… Continue Reading
I was driving through the city in a furious, gully-washing storm. It was 2 AM. Someone was waving me down. What the hell? It was a teenage girl, sitting in a wheelchair. Rain was practically dancing off the sidewalk. I… Continue Reading
There is a round man, and every day he drinks three long-necks of Bintang from the same white sun lounge on the black sands of Echo Beach. I monitor him from a subtle five lounges down the row because the… Continue Reading