Sally had been marching up and down this steep hill every day since finishing work. Her route started and ended at the holy well. An ancient stone structure with a black caged roof, fronted by a cracked drinking fountain and… Continue Reading
It happened at midnight. I was awake, shivering in the corner of the cave, when the first contraction hit me. I hissed, dropping a hand to the curve of my stomach. It’s just a cramp, I half-begged. Instead of fading,… Continue Reading
Let nothing upset you; let nothing frighten you. Everything is changing; God alone is changeless… — Teresa of Avila She was Thérèse for the French one but the words of the Spanish one saved her. Calm practicality; unarguable truth. Ecstasy… Continue Reading
Maternity wards are noisy places by nature and Dr. Barnes had no desire to add to tonight’s cacophony by arguing for a C-section his patient didn’t want. The delivery room, buzzing with a small sisterhood of girlfriends, one dumbstruck husband,… Continue Reading
She looked out the window as the pain slipped into a distant place within her. She tried to focus on the clouds gathering. It had been months since rain. Leaves, prematurely brown, drifted slowly past the window. The clock marked… Continue Reading