Dragons stalked the streets, puffing out smoke and clattering their mechanical wings. Gulligan sighed. Rush hour. A dragon who had the bad sense to scuttle in front of Gulligan found himself violently kicked. The iridescent creature rolled end over end and hit the curb, sending up a cloud. Brittle things, Gulligan thought, for all their noise …
Book Review: Outliers
Outliers: The Story of Success by Malcolm Gladwell Non-fiction Hardcover, 309 pages Publisher: Little, Brown and Company I grabbed this off the classics section of my library on a whim. I'm not sure how it got shelved in the classics section, except to think that some brilliant educator realized Outliers should be required reading for anyone …
A Jungle Fable, Microcosms Entry
On a dismal November day an election was held to determine who would rule the jungle. This jungle was, in fact, a great laboratory in which a grand experiment was taking place. Only two animals ever got traction as rulers: the donkeys or the elephants. This went on and on in a sort of …
Fiction: Hear No Evil
I decided to try my hand at the assignment I gave my 13 & up class this week: 500+ words using one of the seven basic plot types and using the picture to the left as a prompt. Confession: I didn't decide on a plot type first. The picture was inspiration enough. I just began …
A Volcano Hike: Mt. Liamuiga
A rust-ravaged truck would take us to the base of Mt. Liamuiga. After the 45 minute drive through St. Kitts, our 2+ hour ascension hike would begin. Behind me lay the Adventure of the Seas with its hushed hot tub waters and attendant waiters, plush deck chairs, everlasting soft-serve ice cream cones... What had I done? Across …
Frankenstein’s Teenager
Mary Shelley's classic, Frankenstein, is really an allegory. It's the parenting memoir she couldn't write. Parents of pubescents... follow me. Victor builds what he hopes will be a beautiful, incredible masterpiece. He works tirelessly on his legacy. So intent on accomplishing his ends, Frankenstein doesn't ask, "Should I?" Sounds like many parents I know who …
The Only Resolution You Need: Be Resolute
Resolute: 1. marked by firm determination 2. bold, steady. In a fit of New Year's zeal you wrote a bunch of resolutions. And in a fit of cold reality already broke at least one. Now you're starting 2017 as a failure. Why even bother with the rest? New Year's resolutions are like trains. One car …
Friends & Family: My Favorite Gifts
For years I've sent a Christmas letter, but not this time. Find your name below for my "card" to you. This list cannot possibly contain every one of the people I consider gifts, but as I contemplated whether or not to send the usual card this year, it felt more right to talk about …
Be the Gift You Want to Get in This World
Of all the people turned off by Christians, Gandhi is my favorite. Gandhi was perplexed that Jesus' followers were little crazed antitheses of Him, buzzing about the world scattering judgement like pollen, condemning, wearing the cross and forgetting its dictates. Though he was turned off by Christians, Gandhi didn't discount the Man himself. Imitation is …
The Prettiest. Flash Fiction.
"Sometimes it's better to hide the unsightly with shiny things than to try to fix it," said the mother. "Grab that box of Christmas tinsel from the attic. And a fork." The child's noisy rifling through the silver drawer induced a clamorous tune, followed by staccato thudding on the attic stairs. She returned breathless, holding a …
KL Griffiths 