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
“It’s your call,” said the demon, in his reasonable, man of the world voice. “No skin off my nose.” Bob ran his razor along his upper lip. “Let me get this straight,” he said, peering at his reflection. “When Ethel…”… Continue Reading
At seven that morning, as she did every morning before work, Alma Day lit a candle for her husband and set it on the small altar she had made for him in her grief support group. Then she walked to… Continue Reading
She kept Allen’s ashes in a hexagonally shaped enamel box decorated with a mandala of inlaid mother-of-pearl. The workmanship was splendidly intricate and when light played upon its face the box was lustrous, each diamond piece of the pattern shining… Continue Reading
General Abraham Dewey raised his furry chin, his feline nose catching the fragrances riding the soft Florida breeze. He scrunched up his nose and his eyes softened as he savored the moment. Dewey is my black and white tuxedo cat.… Continue Reading
Tegan and Raul. They kissed a lot. They were that kind of couple. The ones that lonely house wives fantasize about while they scrub piles of dirty dishes over their kitchen sinks. They talked a lot, joked a lot too,… Continue Reading
She was already dead, the doctors told us. Had been dead for quite some time. There was nothing to do about it now, nothing to do but what had to be done. It wasn’t sinful, they said. We were just… Continue Reading
As I walk the boundary of my property after dusk, I don’t trust my eyes. I’m trying to make sense of various shapes around me. Shadows lurking behind trees are like people hiding from me. Bushes, jutting out from the… Continue Reading
Jazzy had first learned English by reading and her vocabulary could sound strange to my American ears. Words like suitor, betrothal, nuptials. But when Jazzy meant love, that was the word she used. As in her final message, just before… Continue Reading
“Excuse me, sir. Is this your shoe?” The woman was dressed in a loose hibiscus-orange gown, sitting on a stone bench, beneath a matching orange umbrella. I hadn’t seen her at first when turning the corner in the path, but… Continue Reading