Phil was on the edge of his seat in the front row of the auditorium, hoping to hear the principal call two names. Two of his students who had struggled through their eighth-grade year. The award didn’t matter. He just wanted them to have a reason to give next year a shot. This past year, … Continue reading Growing Pains
Category: Shorts
The Ozark mountains were cold and clear that night, the moon bright. Jill sat quietly in a folding chair facing the campfire, watching the marshmallow turn brown on the end of a twig. Her husband, Bret, sat beside her, laughing at something one of their friends said. She didn’t catch the joke. She couldn’t even … Continue reading Edge of Memory
For so many years I waited to become a mom. In my younger years, it was an extension of playing house, just for the excitement of holding a tiny hand in mine and doing all things first mom’s do. So it finally happened in late July 1969, a precious baby boy, weighing in at … Continue reading Mother’s Day Tribute
Carrie sat against the seawall, her knees drawn up tightly to her chest, looking across the bay waters to the Island. The foam of the first waves of high tide tickled her bare toes. She loved the feel of the water as it came to shore and then retreated into itself again as … Continue reading What Lies Across the Ocean
Charlie Wilson turned around and looked up at his friend, Jack. “Can we do it?” he asked. “We can’t leave him out there,” Jack replied. “If there’s any chance he could still be alive.” Charlie turned and ordered the others to move as far away from the door as possible. “And pray!” he said. He … Continue reading Hold On To Me, The Conclusion
For Jan moving to a new home and always feeling like an outsider had become a way of life. She had figured it out. Every time, her dad would tell them -- always at dinner -- "I've got a promotion, we'll be moving to...." Blah, blah, blah. Some other nameless town with mostly faceless people..... … Continue reading Hold On To Me
As long as Callie could remember, she loved to sit on her grandfather’s handmade glider under the gnarled spreading Oak tree in the front yard of his farmhouse. From that glider, she loved to look out over the lake. That tree and glider and lake held a special meaning for Callie. It was there, when … Continue reading The Kissing Tree
