“Come step into my parlour,”    He says with charmed guile.    I shift my weight, the slats of the wooden bench a stark testament to how long I’ve been sitting out here. Am I even in the right place? I check the message on my phone one more time, even though the chances of it reading any different to the other thirty-something times I’d read it were slim to none... ‘Entrance to the park on 5th and Main, tonight at 7 pm....

This is what they meant when they said ‘dark as pitch’. Clarissa shuffled along, one hand on the clammy wall to guide her, the other held out to keep her from bumping into something or – much as she hated to consider it – someone. She felt confident that if she kept along the wall, she would soon encounter a door. Surely every room had to have a door, albeit that she’d come to the conclusion that there were either no wind...

You are more than your skin – Hiding in shadows Beaten down by a world Driven by men whose  Prowess you threaten You are more than your painted lips – On a journey without a map A quest with no magic wand Instruction manual not included Destination unknown You are more than your ruffled skirts – Trying in vain to please the masses Pouting at camera lenses Swaying your hips seductively  In your endless pursuit to be adored...

The package arrived at his home on a Monday morning, 10:42 am to be exact. George remembered this because that was the day his assistant, Clarissa, was late to arrive. She had called to apologise, there had been a smash-up on the freeway and while the four vehicle pile-up had not been her fault, he would have docked her pay if she had been remiss in informing him. In fact, he found himself trying to justify doing so anywa...

Stanley fell to the ground as the sound of gunfire rang out louder than he had ever heard before. He crawled on arms and knees until he was clear of his bedroom window, just as his mother had taught them to do at times like those – and there were many in their neighbourhood.“Joey! Stanley!” His mother shouted from the other room.“I’m okay, Mamma. I’m safe,” Stanley shouted down the hall as he rose to his feet.“Oh thank th...

Mary turned to look back one last time at the only home she had ever known. Leaving had been the hardest thing ever – yet she had no doubt that harder things still lay ahead. She had packed hurriedly, wanting to be gone before the townsfolk showed up with their kindness. She took care while packing, not wanting to take anything that would be missed. Her plan would only work if the town believed that she had been taken aga...

The woodsman had many talents, but caring for newly-born baby girls was not among them, so he did the only thing he could think of – he took the child to the village church. The pastor’s wife was in the garden picking tomatoes for their breakfast when he rushed from the woods holding the screaming bundle. “Oh Lord! What is this, Tom?” She rushed from the tomato beds and took the child from him. “Ma’am, I have no clue. I f...

Once upon a time, in a long forgotten land, there lived a young woman whose name struck fear into even the bravest of hearts. She lived in a tiny cottage at the edge of a deep forest, near an old dried up creek. Her name was Arwyn. Please indulge me as I turn back the clock to the night Arwyn was born – it was the night of the full moon, late in October. You see, that was the night a druid girl, heavy with child, was trav...

I’ve once again been given a task by a friend in the hopes that random writing will somehow lift the huge block that’s been weighing down my work of late. In all honesty, I think that he’s only giving me these little tasks so he can get me to shut up about how much I miss my laptop - it crashed about a week ago. The task is for me to write a musing about anything. Now while I’m really good at musing, I’m not in the habit...

“A Native American elder once described his own inner struggles in this manner: Inside of me there are two dogs. One of the dogs is mean and evil. The other dog is good. The mean dog fights the good dog all the time. When asked which dog wins, he reflected for a moment and replied, 'The one I feed the most'.”   ― George Bernard Shaw   *****   "Could you rephrase that, please? I'm not sure I understand the question." She s...

I hear you calling my name, But I can’t come home to you. I feel the wind blow across my plains,It’s calming my fears. I listen to the river tell me its tales;It’s soothing my soul. Under these starry skiesMy thoughts are of you. Remember me like I used to be.Remember me when my soul was still free. I’m ready to follow the voiceThat’s calling me home. Sound the bugles for me.I’m coming home. 

An intro to a story I am working on...  They buried me today. Everyone always told me that this was how it would end for me. I never believed that it would. I was more than just street-smart; I was smart. I was young and vibrant. Charmed and charming. Untouchable. I remember mum saying, “Your thoughts and actions are what define you, Stanley.” I called it bullshit to her face. How could I have been so wrong?

He hears the elevator doors open and close, the click clack of high-heeled footsteps drawing closer, then passing his door on their way to the next apartment. He waits. Jacob had always been good at waiting. He hears the jingling of keys, then footsteps moving back toward his door. His door is unlocked. He had been expecting her. She had always been easy to predict. The front door opens, then clicks softly shut. The carpe...

“What happened in there, soldier?” The sergeant nodded toward the concrete cell behind them. Vince needed to find his voice, he knew that. Any voice would do. He stood in silence, his eyes trained on the sergeant’s scuffed boots. A regimen doctor was examining the body – her body – no doubt trying to confirm her death, rather than the very obvious cause of it. “She’s dead.” The doctor handed the palm-sized monitor to the...

A father toiling beneath a sky of gruesome darkness  Merciless sun on his back, a storm in his heart. A mother burying her child with dignified acquiescence, Body too beat-down to spare more than a single tear.  A child marching with a village song in his heart Cold comfort found in a loaded carbine on his back. A country raped, blood seeping from her every pore, A land at war, a land of dearth, a people dying to survive....