They sat in the sunshine on the steps of one of the old houses. One boy was pale and skinny, he looked as if he'd been ill and was just beginning to recover. The other one was shorter and looked healthier. Both wore the regulatory crew-cut in the fashion of these years, and short trousers. … Continue reading Two boys
America
In the Land of Ago
A reading of 11.22.63 by Stephen King How often do we think: "If only I could change this", or, in whatever form, "if only I could have a second chance, go back, and do something different"? Going back, erasing, and changing the past is an old dream, the subject of countless tales and fiction … Continue reading In the Land of Ago
Yawpa #AtoZAprilChallenge
Yawpa is the Hopi name for the Mockingbird. "The mockingbird fluttered around the bamboo, calling out, 'Pashumayani! Pashumayani! Be careful! Be careful!' This is the way the people departed from the Lower World" (from The Four Worlds: the doorway to the Fourth World, in 'The Fourth World of the Hopis', by Harold Courlander.) From Wikipedia, … Continue reading Yawpa #AtoZAprilChallenge
Help #TheDailyPost
Write a new post in response to today’s one-word prompt. It's no surprise "they" hate you, the establishment, the unctuous banksters, all those who have betrayed the people for many decades, destroying our dreams, our homes, killing us. They will use all their weapons to vilify you, and those close to you, they have … Continue reading Help #TheDailyPost
The search for Cesárea, a #reading of “The Savage Detectives”, Roberto Bolaño
"Roberto Bolaño" by Farisori - Own work. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Commons. From the Golden Fleece to The Two Towers, from the Holy Grail to Heart of Darkness, great works of world's literature are often stories of quests. So goes for Roberto Bolaño's masterpiece, The Savage Detectives, which follows two young poets, Arturo Belano … Continue reading The search for Cesárea, a #reading of “The Savage Detectives”, Roberto Bolaño
#FiveSentenceFiction: Thief
For us this is sacred land, soil enriched by the blood of our ancestors, in their endless fight against invaders. As children we were told the stories, the lives of those heroes, alive today in the trees and our souls, and we were taught how to fight too. So, when they came, huge, fat and … Continue reading #FiveSentenceFiction: Thief
#AtoZChallenge2015: Hegemony
For students of world history, and of world-historical thought, hegemony is one of the Sesame keys: from ancient Greece, to the Italian city-states of the early Renaissance, to the Netherlands of the 17th century, to imperial Great Britain, to todays' United States of America, the presence of "great powers", and among them that of a … Continue reading #AtoZChallenge2015: Hegemony
#AtoZChallenge2015: Exceptionalism
We are all different: human, and national, diversities, cultural, linguistic, historical, are part of our being the species we are. Yet, from time to time, this observation is tainted with delusion: that of superiority, or special destiny... "Exceptionalism is the perception that a country, society, institution, movement, or time period is "exceptional" (i.e., unusual or extraordinary) … Continue reading #AtoZChallenge2015: Exceptionalism
Of Decker and a Goldfinch #amreading
There are novels that seduce at first sight, and get read over a few hours. Others, more severe to approach perhaps, continue to cast disturbing shadows, long after the book is shut. So is The Goldfinch. This is my first encounter with Miss Tarrt, an opportunity offered by a gift at the end of last … Continue reading Of Decker and a Goldfinch #amreading
#DailyPost: Undo
In response to The Daily Post's writing prompt: "Undo." "This is the one event I'd erase," you said without hesitation, "Just think about it, that was the source of all maledictions. Before then, there was a chance, for millions of people there, and across the world. After that, wars, genocides, persecutions... All the way right … Continue reading #DailyPost: Undo
Of Glass & Paper 