Everyone has that one activity they can do after a horrible day, and somehow it makes everything better. Music is that thing in my life for as long as I can remember. Next to reading, it’s the next thing to go when I get stressed. I always went around campus with headphones in my ears ...

Thirteen years ago we walked across a church stageNow, so many of us are deadIraq, Afghanistan, or from drug overdoses[Mostly drug overdoses]Some of them? farming or fishing accidents – ButMostly drug overdosesShe called me on the phoneCame down the stairsTelephone cord like a nooseDid you hear about William?Did you hear about Carolyn?Did you hear about ...

I have found myself thinking about the way things end. The ending of a television show can affect the entire journey for viewers. I mean look at the Game of Thrones television show. This would be the perfect time to rewatch the show, but the finale was met with such anger that fans refuse to ...

I have spent a lot of time in recent weeks thinking about how one moment can affect the course of a story. The person the protagonist smiled at on page two can end up being the love of their life. This happens, in reality, all of the time. My own best friend and I met ...

Read Parts 1-7 My forehead prickles as a hand lifts the hair away from my face and my eyelids flicker open. Madison’s rosebud lips bloom into a grin, the corners of her eyes crinkling in the morning light. A lock of red curls falls over her face as she kisses my nose.   “Good morning, ...

I recently read the memoir, Same Kind of Different as Me (2006) by and Ron Hall and Denver Moore. This book illustrates the different life stories of the two men and how they became friends, even family, and how they were brought together by Ron’s wife, Deborah. The first part of the book talks about each ...

a twist in your gut marks this violent path a heartbeat taken a breath driven out his smile shadows your memories and the blood that soiled his face when he died father’s ghost taunts you in the night where peace can find no purchase in your dreams thirstful vengeance marks your violent path bodies in ...

Kelgen sat with his legs crossed on the edge of the dead forest where he found Jethus. Branches like twisted arms wrestled in a constant breeze sweeping from the east. Under his breath, he recited a prayer to the Four Gods, the words tapping into a language that could only be understood when embracing magic. ...

Kelgen stood amidst a dying forest, barren in the coming autumn, and looked up. Jethus hung by his neck from the branch of a large oak. The rope that strangled his throat had been pinned down by a stake at one end then tossed over the branch, where he was then forced from this life ...