We found the dead bird when we were unpacking the trunk. It was amongst my aunt’s things. She usually released them when they died but she had chosen to keep this one. He lay in his box as pristine and jeweled as if asleep. We studied his small remains for clues. My aunt had kept … Continue reading
The Bronsons’ Good Luck
Stunned by the unexpected and horrifying declaration of the hot-dog lady, I’m rethinking my lifelong indignation about the Bronson’s good luck. The Bronsons’ were the idyllic family that lived across the street. Our houses a before and after illustration; our families choppy waters and smooth sailing. After we moved away, I imagined the four Bronsons … Continue reading
Blue Nails
As the funeral hymns droned on, Stella fretted that the stores would close before she could buy a much-needed alarm clock. With the old curmudgeon now a jar of dust she needed something to wake her on dark mornings. The only good thing about the old guy—who was in no way like the man the … Continue reading
Dominant Duo
She was at the gate but entrance, to Tilley’s surprise, was not automatic. The woman ahead of her in line, tousled and troubled, was being held up as the gatekeeper rustled through his cards for her credentials. Cards! The organization was behind the times and, naturally, an eye scan was not possible. Tilley had assumed … Continue reading
Downsizing
Having successfully changed the overhead light bulb, Jessica tentatively balanced on a collapsing packing box, and proudly surveyed her treasures clustered below. She had liberated her small hoard of favorite possessions from the garage. Would they, in turn, liberate her? Changing the light bulb was child’s play compared to her struggles over the last three … Continue reading
The Red Car
Stanley was struggling to get the front door key out of the lock, a sagging bag of groceries at his side, when his wife Moira, sporting her designer sunglasses, confronted him. Her steely accusation, “I saw your car today,” stopped him in his tracks. “You were in Burnaby?” he asked clutching his sagging bag of … Continue reading
Helen
I need time to consider my options and prepare my defense. If I renege on my promise to not run in the next election, my usually mild mannered husband will be angry, but circumstances have changed since my blithe commitment to him. And David has some responsibility. Had he not pointed out the newspaper report … Continue reading
Betrayal
Drifting in and out of consciousness, his raw face pricked by the coarse grass, Evan’s sense of betrayal burned through the pain. His first tears in over sixty years spilled down his bleeding cheeks. His cowardly attempt to escape witnessing her anguish had failed. He had made many promises in his life, some of which … Continue reading
Wait for me
So many emotions rattled around Leslie’s brain—disappointment, irritation, and rejection—it was impossible to sleep. The problem was not a strange bed. Her sister had lived in the apartment for years and Leslie had visited and stayed the night—albeit reluctantly—more than once. However, on other occasions Leslie hadn’t been ripped out of her midnight musings by … Continue reading
Soul Mates
Huddled under a grungy blanket, a threat of rain in the air, and a stomach complaining about a wolfed-down can of beans, Betty regretted where being “interesting” had gotten her. Across from her, looking as pleased as a lottery winner, Trevor grinned at the stars through the open window. “Who would ever have dreamed I’d … Continue reading