I know, I know—a deep dive into similes isn’t what most people rush to read. Dear Lord, you might think, just how wacked-out has this poor woman gotten that she is now worrying herself silly about the difficulty of a simple figure of speech? Dear, dear, the poor thing needs a vacation where there is…
Tag: Writing
The Friend Who Taught Me How to Love
Yesterday was the birthday of my childhood friend, Patricia Jean Butler. Patricia and I met as little girls at Holy Trinity Episcopal Church, and we spent nearly every Sunday morning together—often followed by long afternoons at each other’s homes. Over those many Sundays, we forged an unbreakable bond that carried us through childhood and into…
Writing Advice: If I Think It’s Brilliant, It Probably Isn’t
I’ve come to understand that real writing doesn’t even begin until the crappy writing is on the page. Only then do I have the breathing room to go back and shape it into something as good as I can make it—at the level I’m currently writing. Sure, part of the process is about refining, growing,…
The “Someday” List in Progress
I have a secret dream of becoming a yoga master. Never mind that I’m not currently doing yoga. Is that a requirement for the dream? I’d also like to learn Spanish, travel to Africa, and figure out how to scuba dive. And then there’s sailing—I’d love to learn how to sail and have a place…
Tommy Wizzims and the Kindness of One Boy
I saw Jana Williams, Tommy’s sister, at the recent Bonhi reunion. I wanted to repost this piece in memory of Tommy. Today, I was cleaning out a closet and came across a large envelope filled with clippings and photos from my mother’s house—items I’d received after she died. I unfolded a yellowed newspaper tucked inside…
Flash Fiction: The Fall of Adam Burlingham
“This isn’t the way it was supposed to be.” That’s all Adam Burlingham could say as City of London police, acting on orders from the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau, shut down his brokerage. “Be careful, you oafs,” he shouted as two officers grabbed the antique stock ticker—his father’s gift, still nestled in its walnut base…
Flash Fiction: The Legacy of the Dance
To my brother George, who gave me a similar statue before he died of cancer back in 2004. Mary Lou Holder sank down next to her brother, the one who was dying of cancer, and started tugging at the bright red bow of the gift he had just handed her. “This is sweet, Jake, that…
Flash Memoir: A Buick, an Embankment, and Grace
This is a story that happened a few years back right around this time of year. I would say this is the very closest I’ve ever come to facing my dying moment – and killing poor Ray in the process. Thank God for a little Divine intervention when we both really needed it. I have…
Be Bold, Be Steady: What My Teachers Have Taught Me
I’ve been thinking lately about the writers who shaped me. My writing path has been a long one—starting with essays, moving into novels, and then finding a home for a while in flash: flash fiction, flash memoir, and flash essay. After my two brothers died of AIDS, I began a memoir that eventually evolved into…
Flash Essay: The Past Five Years
Over the past five years, my life has transformed in some significant ways. First, two and a half years ago, my fourth grandchild was born. This would not be such a huge event (more than the birth of my three other grandkids) but Ethan’s birth helped propel a decision that Ray and I had been…
20 Minutes a Day 