communion blanketand sombrerodroppedin a pile,she runsthrough a vacantcity of gold,echoes thuddingagainst eardrums,sweat pouringin a hum. the priestrings a bellto the stirringdust,wipes his foreheadwith the back of his hand,spits,walks back to the bottleand eats the worm. she calls him father.he waves … Continue reading
Palimpsest Now I know who you are, hidden in discarded old paperyou appeared like a distant echo in the nakedness of myscattered dreams, in a room rich in dust and gallantries,where misty light bathes all in a fiery glow, here … Continue reading
About a Schizoid Going (after Philip Larkin’s ‘Going, Going’) I thought I would pass through time –A sense that, against the crowds,There would still be sanity in body-and-mind,Where the nurses shout and climbSuch flowers as freedom shrouds;I thought I would … Continue reading
The Shaman was grim. “The warning is loud and clear! If things are not mended soon, there will be nothing left…except a sun-scorched land without water and an air you cannot breathe!” The listeners shivered. “It will be the Land … Continue reading
Courier Griffith Park in the early morning. Mateo cycles past joggers and dog walkers. A group of elderly Koreans in wide brimmed hats doing Tai chi. Off to the west peacocks in full voice at the zoo. He enjoys this … Continue reading
Art Gallery Amaya can’t suppress a wry smile. An item of gossip has reached her. It seems there are those intent on labelling her a witch. Such an archaic term, unused for centuries, its connotation pejorative. Amaya ponders that maybe … Continue reading
It’s a rainy August in Manchester and music writer Peter Duffy’s life is falling apart. He’s knocking on fifty, his career is flatlining, his marriage is failing, and his teenage son barely speaks to him. And then a friend from university … Continue reading
Adolescence Despite his friends’ warnings,he fell in love with a red-haired girl.He took his feelings outside in the open,beat up a kid who said she had cooties.And was suspended from high school for his troubles. The red-haired girl is in … Continue reading
Harvey Floyd sat on a bench, feeding kernels of wheat to the pigeons that clustered and cooed around his feet. Car horns blared and buses rumbled down the streets. Vibrations from the constant traffic rattled Harvey Floyd’s bones. He twitched … Continue reading
Suffrage My grandmother was asked as a young womanby her young son: What do you want for Christmasbesides world peace? The anecdote survived for decades in my family. Tonight I realize it said more about herthan I had seen: she … Continue reading