Step One: She stares at a blank screen, the unnatural white of the word program flickering like an incandescent bulb about to blow. She adjusts the brightness. The screen plummets into darkness. She adjusts the brightness back up, one click at a time until she is satisfied that she won't get a blistering headache. Step … Continue reading How to Write
Ode to Anoles
Small and downy soft,Glassy, unblinking black eyes,Lengthy tail of green, Scampering around,Pink tongue jutting from white teeth,Hunting for insects,Basking in the light,or jumping from branch to branch,Cooling in the shade,My little anolesalways make my day brighterand my life richer.
All I Need
Jealousy rips through me as I see others with what I want. Emptiness invades me as I think of what I don't have. Self-pity envelops me like a heavy pall, Until I remember where I find my true worth and Strength: not in me, not in relationships, but in you. Contrite heart and broken spirit, … Continue reading All I Need
Love is Not Love Which Alters
The story unfolds in the same manner as the plethora of celebrity couple breakups before them. The couple issues a joint statement explaining how they are getting a divorce due to "irreconcilable differences," but that while the marriage is over, they still "love each other and always will." And not for the first time, I'm … Continue reading Love is Not Love Which Alters
Pedants and Platitudes: Valentine’s Edition
"Remember to get your loved one something special this Valentine's Day." "Hey, Mister Ad Announcer, what if I don't have anyone?" "Sorry, Valentine's Day isn't meant for single people." "Oh good. So I don't have to celebrate it." "That's not true! Anyone can celebrate the day! What about your students? They deserve a Valentine's Day … Continue reading Pedants and Platitudes: Valentine’s Edition
What is Love?
If you've clicked this post and are of a certain age group, chances are the jaunty rhythm of the Haddaway tune is running through your head right now. Hopefully my question is more intellectually stirring than a pop song making a mournful inquiry into the steadfastness of romantic love. Though it might be less entertaining. … Continue reading What is Love?
A Guide to Self-Preservation*
The key to self-preservation is not to look at his azure eyes or his aquiline nose or his lips--hell, just don't look. Chewing your finger only solves half of the problem. Your mouth might be distracted, but your mind is still engaged. Doodling is rather preoccupying...You drew another heart, didn't you? Damn it, you did! … Continue reading A Guide to Self-Preservation*
Bobby the Sheep
I surveyed my students' glazed expressions as I went over the religion lesson for the day. I had been wracking my brain for weeks trying to find a way to engage my students during the first class of the day. But the early morning hour coupled with difficult material had made what was usually one … Continue reading Bobby the Sheep
Looking in the Mirror
There was a poem or lyric that mentioned looking in the mirror and not recognizing your own face. Matthew never understood that trite saying. Even if one underwent a physical metamorphosis, there would still be some semblance of the person one was before. Regardless of whatever life-altering transformation people might experience, people were innately the … Continue reading Looking in the Mirror
Coffee*
He'san acquiredtaste, like a strong, black coffee: bold and hot, with an acerbic aftertaste, prone to scald if taken in too quickly. The kind of coffee that people pour in copious amounts of sugar and creamer, in the deluded hope of masking the bitterness. Butno amount of sweetness, usually of the mollycoddling and … Continue reading Coffee*
Peruse and Muse 