For 20 years she had hated him.  Well, perhaps hated is too strong a word.  Maybe just intensely disliked . . . but probably closer to hated.  He had married her daughter, and he shouldn’t have done that.  He wasn’t right for her, his background and life experiences were all wrong.  It was a terrible […]

It was a beautiful afternoon.  The sun was finally shining after days of rain and the blue of the sky was clear and cloudless. The five of them gathered around the smaller than usual grave . . . smaller because it was meant to receive the body of a child, just a few months old, […]

I was headed to the lounge for my ‘leventy-hundredth cup of coffee, a trip that took me down the service hall and required me to punch in the “secret code” that gets the employees through the not so private lounge door entrance—not so private because the employees are the only ones who can use it, […]

When I was but a wee thing . . . ok, maybe not so wee . . . maybe more like nine . . . or ten . . . possibly eleven . . . my maternal grandmother lived in an apartment above what we now refer to as the old funeral home but which […]

That morning she called and offered to come and sit, to keep watch over her child while her son-in-law ran to get breakfast and a shower.  They didn’t want her to be alone, not for any medical necessity but because her time was short and growing shorter—and they did not want her to die alone. […]

Pay close attention, people.  If you come from a dysfunctional family, you haven’t seen your spouse or your children in decades but they still legally belong to you, or you’ve outlived anybody even remotely related to you . . . or you know and/or are caring for someone who meets that description, LISTEN UP.  This […]

This, my friends, is a face that will give anyone nightmares, especially if you’re a child.  And that’s exactly what it was originally designed to do.  The statue, which was named “Mother Bird” was created in 2016 by Keisuke Aiso for an exhibition inspired by Japanese ghost stories; the figure is based on local folklore about […]

“Water, water everywhere and all the boards did shrink . . . Water, water everywhere nor any drop to drink.” So said Samuel Taylor Coleridge in his 1834 epic poem, “Rime of the Ancient Mariner”.  Granted, the reason he couldn’t drink the water was because of the salt content, which was also the reason the […]

I don’t often mention families or their loved ones by name here; I certainly don’t use their pictures.  And if I’m going to tell their story anonymously, I wait long enough that most of you won’t know who they are.  But today is different.  Today, with his family’s permission, I want to tell you about […]

In case you’re one of those date oblivious folks, February 14th, aka Valentine’s Day, is upon us—as in right on top of us if you’ve waited until Thursday to read this.  Or long since gone if you waited much beyond that.  So, in honor of that special day, I’d like to tell you the story […]