It should go without saying that death, in its current form, is undesirable to the human condition in as far as its presence arouses questions of a spiritual nature that are no longer useful to civilization. As we move away from our pagan past and embrace the scientific reality that…
I’d been a month at my new job in the city, and I was done. I wanted to go home. So as soon as I clocked out Friday, I threw some clothes in a bag and started driving. It was a five-hour drive, a bit less if you took the…
Josh double-checked the laces on his shiny new shoes, slung his backpack over his shoulder, and headed out into the night. Mr. Benton was waiting in his beat-up truck at the curb. The old man gave a terse greeting, waited for Josh to buckle up, and started out into the…
Samantha woke. She thought she heard a cabinet door shut. Ben was off for the weekend with his guy friends, so Samantha slid on her slippers and went to look. There was a girl opening the fridge when Samantha entered the kitchen. She stopped guiltily. ‘Hi, Mom.” “What are you…
Walter sat on the edge of his bed and watched the snow drifting down outside his window. He’d have to go out in it soon. His costume was laid out beside him, waiting for him. He had seen the door when he pulled the hanger out of the closet. He…
I haven’t mentioned it for awhile, but in real life, I help run the youth group at my church. (But I don’t know this particular youth.) Every year, I write a new Christmas script in the hopes of helping the youth understand the Christmas story in new ways. This year…
I think it’s safe to tell this story now. When you’re a youth leader, you meet lots of kids. There’s lots of loud ones, and always a few whose necks you wouldn’t mind wringing. There are quiet ones, too, though, especially those in junior high who don’t know who they…
Dennis had seen airport bathrooms bigger than this place. A few small wooden tables pressed up against the faded wallpaper, and a counter ran across the far end, where Jerry stood behind the cash register. A sign read “Cash Only,” and the menu above Jerry’s head was handwritten and messy….
The creature was huge and descending rapidly from the clear sky. On Earth it would have been called a dragon, with its huge wings and long, sinuous neck. It was more bird, though, than reptile, with feathers that caught the sunlight and refracted it in an ever-changing pattern of colors….
“Pizza’ll be here in a few minutes,” Toby said, lowering himself into the couch. The springs sagged deeply. The couch had been used and abused by various apartment dwellers for years. “Wanna beer?” The wizard shook his head, thoughtful. He was not one of those wise, wizened, white-bearded wizards, but…
“Honey, could you get that?” Paul extricated himself from the small boy hanging onto his ankle and stepped over a pile of Legos to the front door. Outside was a clean-shaven young man in a suit, which worried Paul. What young man didn’t have a bit of scruff these days?…
Charles lay awake in bed. He had woken up with the same thought that had pursued him for weeks. He had made the preparations. Now, while his wife slept, he could do it. She would never know. He turned in bed toward her, trying not to disturb the covers. She…