A fiction mother-daughter story that may not sound like fiction to you — The string in Marley’s tiny hand felt alive, like a really skinny worm trying to get away. As she stood on the small plot of grass outside her apartment building in the sunny warmth, she only had eyes for the yellow balloon that hovered a few feet above her. “Marley…

Stories Within Stories — My debut novel Woven was written the very day after I retired, during the pandemic quarantine. It is written as a series of short stories of novella length that weave together to tell of the joining of four families through history to present day. …

One of the millions of stories you never heard. — And there are millions. As the population of children directly affected by the Holocaust begins to pass away, it’s more important than ever to get these stories out into the public record. The more we know, the more we can do to prevent similar events in the future. I hope. …

See and wonder — Passing by unseen Chimeras Shimmering on the edge of periphery Fringes of perception Occasional fragment of a conversation or accidental touch brings cognizance opens awareness scratches at understanding A man dressed in rags A child with tear-stained cheeks holding a blue balloon Three girls, heads together, speaking the secret language of teenagers. A woman walking…

I’m of two minds about this. — I need to say at the beginning of this diatribe that I love animals. All animals, truly. …

That is a question that your Apple watch can’t answer — This is a story of the evolution of a life of sleeping. There’s a ton of research out there about the importance of sleep, the necessary amount of sleep, the health issues that result from lack of sleep. This is not that. This is the real stuff that the research…

Excerpt 2 — Find excerpt 1 here: Woven: Six Stories, One Epic Journey Excerpt 1medium.com Now this morning, they had wandered by a long line of people at the back door of a church rectory. Paddy saw that the others held a pan of some kind and told Darragh to get in the line. He was gone for a long while…

Actually, it’s not. — I’ve been on Medium for four months. I have things to say about that. I’m the kind of reflective individual who likes to evaluate what I spend my time doing, and it’s Medium’s turn to come under the Maureen microscope. First, I’ll say that I love what Medium offers for learning opportunities. I get to read articles written by people living lives…

Excerpt 1 — Glen’s Story Padraig stood, filthy felt hat in his bony hand, about halfway back in the line from the door. The line moved a few meters, and he took unsteady steps, almost falling over his little brother who was crouched in front of him, with his head on his knees. “C’mon, will…