Take a deep breath. Fill your belly with air.  Feel it extending outwards.  Hold.   Slowly, exhale through your mouth.  Release all tension in your body.  Release all tension in your mind.   ***   To ‘inspire’ is to “fill someone with the urge or ability to do or feel something” (OED). The word stems […]

Flowers of fuchsia delicately adorn the thin and wiry branches of my bougainvillea. Only tight buds last night, they now breathe open in the wind. Gracefully, they sit on the sturdy branches—in full view for all to behold—and in full bloom. My eyes try to trace the movement of the branchesas they creepin and out […]

Tennis rackets strike and clash against the sound of the tumultuous sea. Little feet sink in and out of burning sand, bouncing quickly. Chests golden as the sun, hair wet as the sea. Agile, their bodies meet in fight: thrusting, resisting. Coughing, choking. Pulling, poking. The boys are pirates, their rackets, swords. Deep in seaweed […]

Om augusti shahi-nah. Om augusti shahi-nah. Om augusti shahi-nah.                                 My lips mumble the words compulsively. Despite several months of muttering them each night, their meaning still remains a mystery. Not that it matters though, as I’d do anything to relieve […]

Sitting at my desk after a few months’ hiatus, I replay 2018 in my mind. No remarkable memory emerges, and I slip my hands through my notebook to survey the year’s projects. My fingers flip stretches of barely legible blue ink bursting with names, reminders, ideas, and quotes. Update final revision file. CALL SAMER!!  I […]