Celebrate the darkness

It is a habit for many of us – tying the ideas of light and life and those of darkness and death. It seems logical – sunlight provides the heat for the ground to thaw, the energy for plants to grow, and therefore the power for our biological systems. Light means summer and increase and…

Jolly

This is one of my first attempts at fiction. Please let me know what you think – positive or critical – by commenting below. Sebastian jolted awake from a nightmare, all blood and teeth, hideous laughter and terrified running. "Mommy! Daddy!" he called, but there was no answer. He yelled to them again, but heard…

Rest vs. production

I looked at the clock. It was 2:25am and I hadn’t slept one minute. I had been laying there for four hours, waiting patiently, hoping to drift off to sleep. But the moment I saw the time, I felt my last ounce of patience curdle into dread. I wasn't going to sleep. The next day…

How we see the snow

The snow arrives early this year, before we are ready. The leaves are still on the trees. They had some time to fall yet, we say. We are not prepared. But if we are honest with ourselves, when have we embraced change? It always comes against our will and wishes, Pushing in where it is…

Honoring our heroes

November 11th is Veterans’ Day, when we recognize the heroism of those brave people who have served in the Armed Forces. The word “hero” comes to us through French and ancient Greek, most likely from a root originally meaning “defender or protector”. In many ways those in the military, along with police officers and firefighters,…

Shaping clay

The 2022 election is less than a week away. I know that this fact should make me terribly anxious, but truthfully I’m not feeling it, and I wonder why. Is it the constant rush of news that makes it hard to grasp that the election is, in fact, next week? Is it because I have…

Humility

I was riding home from work on the elevated train through the West Side of Chicago. Feeling tired and a little fidgety, I shifted in my seat and my phone fell out of my lap and onto the floor. I bent to pick it up, but another man who was closer said, "I got it,"…

My fearsome friend

This terror washes over me. I do not know the source. I struggle to protect myself, I let it run its course. I wish now that I could return To time before this fear, But I cannot pull myself away When it would draw me near. It comes to me at night Before I can…