She knew he was still alive. She passed his truck in the bar parking lot on her way home from the cemetery. Earlier, it was parked behind the practice in his usual spot. Before he bought the pickup, it was a pristine luxury sedan with vanity plates. She figured the truck was his midlife crisis. [...]
The pasture sloped gently before him, fruit-laden autumn branches bouncing glimpses of snow-capped peaks. He toed the soil and sat, twisting an alfalfa sprig between his fingers. Nettie, the dog-brained alpaca flopped down beside him for a rub. She was the last of the livestock and spent her days close to the farmhouse. He had [...]
¶ Recycled
She was absolutely normal. She grew up without a dad, but so did they. They crushed her pansies down with shoes she couldn’t name, right heels rubbed commuter raw. There was nothing to envy in those jacket-wrapped silk-satin shells. Her life was exactly what she wanted. The earth accepted her gifts, returning favors with blossoms [...]
The sky was definitely yellow, but the time for agreement had passed. She stepped back through the sliding door, still eyeing the courtyard below. “Did you take out the recycling?” She heard the truck a few buildings down and spun to face him. He wasn’t looking. He spent more time erasing than drawing. The rubber [...]
On parallel paths, they pulsed through the thickening crowd. Swirls of light and color gave rhythm to the coarse, moonless night. She marched toward a dream, glancing off elbows and shoulders, spinning in distraction, but not losing sight of her target. The purple tent in the foothills of the great machines promised forbidden wonders. The [...]
Chocolate. I tasted, then heard chocolate. “Are you sleeping? You never sleep.” The icy phone carried the buttery tones to my ear as my brain discovered the hand connected to my arm. It was James. Jolted awake, I summoned a groggy reply, “How’s your tomorrow?” He almost laughed and my skin warmed at the sound [...]
¶ Any Day
She held the pen lightly between her fingers as she waited for the struggle in front of her to cease. Lips spread wide in a patient grin as the father winked in her direction and proceeded to wrench the slippery menu from the mouth and fingers of the baby in the high chair. A young [...]
I had never been to the cottage in winter and my first thought was to wonder if the pond would be frozen. I was not ready to find meaning in his brief note. There was a part of me that rebelled against the idea of being summoned like this, without a phone call or explanation. [...]