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Wraith
My wife drew my attention last night to the signs in front of a house near our place. The local funeral homes place these little signs, reading “Slow — Funeral” on either side of homes where someone has died, presumably to encourage an atmosphere of quiet and to discourage solicitors and other annoyances. This morning when I drove past the house, I looked to see if there was a funeral wreath on the door, and there it was, black and somber and silent. The house usually has a rather festive air to it. The owners keep candles and lights in the windows, they decorate lavishly for Christmas, and they keep…
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Cold Stove
Cold Stove It crouches over there, arms wrapped around the knees drawn up against its chest, dark and mute and staring with its one great eye, reminding me that time has come round again, that I am unprepared, that I have spent my hours staring instead of rending. You are late, it whispers, and it knows its words have hit their mark because it sees me frowning at it, aware, me and my less-than-guilty-but-more-than-chagrined shrug. It knows I’m already casting my thoughts forward to a rushing day when my wife will hold the ladder, when my wife will call to me to be careful while I fit together the long…
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The Lees Of July
Scuffling down the gravel road, head bowed to the sun-sliver across the ridge as day passes into twilight and draws all the shadows along the grass, I watch Jinx crisscross the road ahead, back and forth. He looks back at me every few moments, then trots on, tail curved over his back, his eyes scanning for something to nuzzle or chase or perhaps nibble. My shoes disturb the dust, and it lifts in small puffs behind me, as if a tiny battery of unseen artillery has a fix on my pos and is about to fire for effect. The dust hangs in the humid air, unwilling to settle back to…
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Coming Apart
“And he said to them: Come apart into a desert place, and rest a little..” — Mark 6:31a (Douay-Rheims Version) Time has come for me to step away from blogging for a while, my friends. I would like to put a good, stoic face on things and say that I’m just taking a summer break. But the truth is that I am increasingly weary… physically, mentally, spiritually, and emotionally. The cares of this world have gotten me in a pretty good headlock, and I simply don’t have the force to push back right now. Many years ago, I heard an old Baptist preacher say, “If we don’t come apart for…