words after

There was a letter waiting for me when I arrived home Friday evening. I casually tossed the pile of mail on the counter and didn’t remember it until Saturday morning. When it slipped from the stack of bills and advertisements, I immediately knew the origin. I held it gently, tracing my name on the front [...]

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§235 · April 28, 2009 · Uncategorized · Comments Off · Tags: , , , , ,


I finished the book, entranced by the personal meaning I gathered from the story. He wrote with passion, and I understood why he had become successful, if not why that success led him to feel guilty for his loss. He sought treatment for grief, but what he perceived of as grief, seemed to me to [...]

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§230 · April 27, 2009 · Uncategorized · Comments Off · Tags: , , , , , ,


On Monday morning, I peeked into Lenore’s office. She inhabited the sunroom behind the kitchen, and it suited her well. She displayed her oil paintings on the wall that used to be on the outside of the house. Each of our spaces seemed to be an extension of ourselves, creating an environment that felt more [...]

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§216 · April 24, 2009 · Uncategorized · 2 comments · Tags: , , , , , , ,


I did not recognize him the next time we met. By then, my partners had returned and we were settling back into our Saturday morning baking meetings. When we had first remodeled the bungalow, the contractor suggested we turn the dining area and kitchen into useable office space. We unanimously rejected his plans, choosing instead [...]

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§206 · April 22, 2009 · Uncategorized · Comments Off · Tags: , , , ,


Rich tones chimed from the cathedral down the street, attracting worshipers to the convenient seven o’clock midnight mass. I had developed a love of ceremony as a young graduate student, trailing my mentor from service to service. At first I had simply sought his praise for my enthusiasm. After I had secured his attention, I [...]

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§196 · April 21, 2009 · Uncategorized · 4 comments · Tags: , , , , ,


I do not know why I was so uncomfortable with our first meeting. From his intake record, I knew he had requested a grief counselor. The service assigned new patients based on a system that could have paired him with any of my partners. Most of our cases involved grief counseling; death, divorce, retirement, and [...]

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§173 · April 17, 2009 · Uncategorized · 2 comments · Tags: , , , , , , ,


My last four stories were set on a beach, the same beach, though I’m not sure anyone noticed.  There are links between the four stories and I did try some new styles and elements.  I’m ready to move on.  I am inspired by the beaches of the Pacific Northwest and have included some of my [...]

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§169 · April 15, 2009 · Uncategorized · Comments Off · Tags: ,


He said she couldn’t take his truck, but never imagined it would become his home.  He didn’t blame her.  He thought there were two types of people in this world, and it had nothing to do with pessimism and optimism.  It was all about blame.  People either took credit, or blamed someone else when things [...]

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§159 · April 9, 2009 · Uncategorized · 4 comments · Tags: , , , , , ,


My toes refuse to translate the nightmares between them. I dig deeper in sand, leaving cells penetrated by my own visions. My body is carried to distant people. Do they speak the language of my dreams? Can they see my visions if they are blind? Do they hear the crackle of the fires that burned [...]

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§155 · April 4, 2009 · Uncategorized · Comments Off · Tags: , , , , , ,


Intuition. Instinct. Trust. Listen. Select. Purchase. Read. Abandon. Experience. Knowledge. Open. Touch. Reject. Escape. Remember. Return. Pain. Fear. Leap. Taste. Reflect. Accept. Release. Inspire. Note: This poem is in response to Bud Hunt’s poetry prompt 1 for NPM2009.

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§144 · April 2, 2009 · Uncategorized · 1 comment · Tags: ,