I did not know what rape meant and she did not tell me. But she did want to know where I had heard the word.… Continue Reading
I’m reading Ephesians. It’s so good, I think. I’m not entirely sure. I haven’t had time to read it, but it feels important. Blaise Pascal says there is an empty space in the human heart that only God can fill. That is so true. I agree. I underline.… Continue Reading
Now, in the screen’s glow, he single-taps the keys like a child learning piano until he finds his rhythm and the words pour out of him as quickly as downing a pint or spunking in the shower.… Continue Reading
Long before I knew of ghosts as apparitions, I understood them simply to be the presence of the deceased. In this way, I was raised with death, a silent death that lurked largely unmentioned in corners.… Continue Reading
The humpback is still humping him, pumping like a perpetual piece of machinery, a motion picture on loop.… Continue Reading
Cyrus gave me a reason to unleash my frustrations. My punches were questions. Why couldn’t I go to a private school? Why did my parents not have college degrees? Who was responsible for me sleeping through gunshots, huh? He tumbled to the ground. Before he got up, I had more questions for him. They possessed my reddening fists.… Continue Reading
I watched him hanging there at the perimeter, like a pall at the edge of a dream. In time he became part of mine, just as much as she had been.… Continue Reading
When I think of model trans men, I think of those brave enough to share their stories on social media, brave enough to ignore the comments that say go kill yourself or you will always be a woman. I think of those proudly wearing pink, blue, and white, the colors of the trans flag, those who march in rallies, holding signs that say, “Protect Trans Kids,” those who use their preferred bathroom regardless of how their outsides appear to the rest of the world. I was never that brave.… Continue Reading
A hundred years is as round a number as there is. Ninety-nine actually, if we’re keeping score, considering that the centennial of my birth comes next week. I have outlived all of my friends, both of my children, and my wife. Age is license for truth-telling. Loneliness is a malignant thing and I aim to bring its long run to a close.… Continue Reading
What happens when I encounter my reflection and I’m alone is I look at my torus. She wants to have it grinded down, but I guess I kind of like it occasionally. I run my tongue over it like it’s a sack of rocks at the bottom of a stream, and all my thoughts melt away, just for a moment. Then I open my mouth, look at it, tap it with a fingernail.… Continue Reading