Deirdre flexed her arthritic fingers. Today they’d have to do exercises to move their hands. She wheeled up to the door and shut it. Craft Day could stay outside. A moment later, Gerlinde knocked and walked in. Tall, square-jawed, fine… Continue Reading
The crunchy lettuce in her sandwich resounds in her head as she chews, so it’s not until she swallows that Maggie hears the song threading its way through the fug of damp clothes and coffee steam. The melancholic voice conjures… Continue Reading
“God gave us memory so that we might have roses in December.” —J.M. Barrie The question isn’t, can she do it? She knows she can, just as that every morning her son wakes, she hopes it will be his last. Such thoughts are evil,… Continue Reading
A tall, ruggedly handsome man gingerly picks his way through a bazaar, trying not to be jostled but failing in the thick crowd. One hand steers a path between patrons of the mem dealer, while the other hand stays protectively… Continue Reading
“Madam President, the delegation is ready.” Gloria didn’t glance towards the doorway, instead stroking the smoothness of a shot glass between her thumb and forefinger. “I hate Awakening Day celebrations. Have I mentioned that, Clarence?” “Every year, Madam.” She sighed.… Continue Reading
She keeps the sun inside her pocket, front right, just underneath the Moon and Mars. If you ask to see it, she’ll smile and tell you to be careful and hold out her palm. They won’t look that big, really,… Continue Reading
“This house is too big,” Nora said at breakfast. Craig turned away from the TV, puffy eyes magnified by his bifocals. “Those retirement communities are maintenance-free. We should think about moving.” Moving? She meant hiring a cleaning service. “Oh, please,… Continue Reading
More than forty years, now, and if I knew how to draw I could draw you every detail of the scene. Maybe it was that look he had about him of the young James Coburn, and his perfect timing. Must… Continue Reading
“Will I tell you yesterday?” The child mumbled against encroaching sleep. “You will.” His mother stroked his sweaty forehead. “I don’t want to forget.” He rolled away and shivered. “You won’t.” The mother pressed her eyes shut. She refused to… Continue Reading
My Aunt once told me that love comes uninvited. She offered no context, and because of my young age I did not demand one. She was a widow who fell in love at an inopportune time. My disapproving family called… Continue Reading