“Whatcha looking for? Did you drop something?” Catherine said as she saw me looking around my feet on the rug under them.

“It’s just a ring that fell off my finger. I think it’s the wedding ring your mother gave me. I found it among some odds and ends unearthed during my last move. My finger must have shrunk since I wore it last, so it fell off my finger onto the floor. I found it there. It’s 14K gold. It should be worth something,” I replied.

“Let me see it,” she said and I ha...(click to continue reading)

A tiny bird about the size of one’s little finger spent the morning looking at flowers. He wasn’t admiring their beauty, or even their fragrance. He was most interested in the taste treat he could find hidden inside the bloom. He was perfectly designed for his mission. He was sleek in build and had a long narrow beak, just right to slip into the deep throat of a trumpet honeysuckle. His tongue was evidently made to suck the nectar from a flower like sipping soda through a straw.

Perhaps...(click to continue reading)

Telling the story of a Christmas day would be like telling the story of almost any other Christmas day. I can remember them only as Christmas days, not specific to any Christmas day. Of course there were specific events that I can recall but I can’t relate them to any particular time. That said, there are a few events that stand out in my mind.

Long ago, before I had to settle down and go to school, I noticed the fall and winter Sears Roebuck catalog came in the mail. Looking through it...(click to continue reading)

It had been a good party and the hour was late. Charlie and his date got into his car and headed home. On the way to the girl’s house they approached a railroad crossing where the warning lights were flashing and the gates were closing. He glanced quickly to his right then to his left, and seeing no train proceeded in a tortuous path across the tracks. He made it across with time to spare and thought nothing more of it.

“Charlie, you’ve got to be careful. There’s a train coming,” the gi...(click to continue reading)

HELEN: A pretty young woman. Brown eyes and a pleasant smile soft brown, shoulder-length hair. Married. Likes to flirt with men. 

GENE: A vivacious, blue-eyed, former Texan, democrat, opinionated, likable. Mother of four.

MOE: A slightly overweight woman, brown eyes and hair, sharp nose. Kids around with men at work, not serious with them.

JAKE: A young boy of eight or nine who likes weddings.

JACK: A sales rep for the company of the groom. Blond, curly headed...(click to continue reading)

“How is your garden growing, Warren?” I asked.  Warren, who was an avid gardener and kept some hens for his own eggs, ran the store where I was shopping. 

“Pretty good.  Need some zucchinis?” 

“No thanks,” I said, “I just picked my grapes.  What do I do with three bushels of grapes?” 

“Make wine.” 

“I don’t know how to make wine,” I said. 

“It’s easy.  I’ve got all you need right over here,” he said as he led me to hi...(click to continue reading)