Yoga can be a religion. But so can Netflix. Not that I'm converting, but I've never heard of a yoga practitioner who donned a suit of explosives and took out a plaza... Yoga people, the religious sort, are usually wiry, elven, stoic folk who don't talk much and never eat. Being only elvin, I'm more …
Tag: a to z writing challenge
Z is for Zero Regrets
Made it to Z, folks! *thunderous applause* When I decided to participate in the A to Z Writing Challenge, I was apprehensive-- not at the thought of putting out words at firehose pressure, but at the thought of my perfectiosis regarding those words. I've spent more hours on a handful of words that will get …
W is for Writing Class, 5000 Words Style
As soon as I had an open room (Katae went to college), I began teaching a writing/literature class in my home. I called it 5000 Words because I promised the students would write a minimum of 5000 words over a six-week period and that they would do it with a smile. My credentials were a …
V is for Victim
It was 1981. Even reasonable people feared impending doom by a nuclear duel between the USA and the USSR. The Cold War had everybody wondering how to prevent the total extermination of humankind when the sabers stopped rattling and started their deadly slicing. Fallout shelters were born. My 6th grade teachers came up with an …
U is for Unexpected
True Story. Science class in the ninth grade. Film day. The lights are off, the bubblesque TV perched atop a rolling stand soothes the room with flickering glow. Students slink down into their chairs, rest their feet on other chairs. For a few sacred moments, school is not a jungle. We put our masks away because …
T is for Tory
Tory was an easy baby, the easiest child, the hardest teenager. I think each phase caused the next. You see, Tory was so breathtakingly sweet that losing her to the atmosphere was that much more bitter. By atmosphere, I mean adolescence. When a rocket re-enters earth, there is a gap in communication while it makes …
S is for Solution
The Solution The reflection of his summer whites blinded the navy man. He closed his eyes to shut them out, to shut out the harrowing workday he'd just finished. A naval hospital ER had sounded so exciting in the recruiter's office. Now, slumped against the smudged trolley window, he tried to lose himself in the …
R is for Raveled
Raveled See the kite assembled, tied, stretched taut on a bone frame, its colors a brazen flutter in a blue-white sky. See the kite coveted, owned, loved. New-toy perishable love. Kites are frustrating. Without wind, without a hand on the string they fall. See that. Or this: a dropped kite sliced by leafless branches, …
O is for Optical Delusion
Optical Delusion "We all know he's going to set himself on fire one day," Robert said, throwing up his hands. He was sick to death of these department meetings. "So... what of it? They all set themselves on fire sooner or later," General Irri answered. "Exactly. Sooner or later we lose them all. I'd …
N is for Norman
I asked my high school writing class to complete a character draft, but I introduced a twist (I always introduce a twist). Each student received the worksheet with the same unfinished sentences. We began by filling out #1. Then we passed the paper to the right and filled out #2 and so on. What that …
KL Griffiths 