The thorns of midwinter — All my holidays are marked by death or tragedy. All of them. Even my birthday. But nothing is like the period between Halloween and New Year’s. I’ve lost many loved ones during what I have called “The magic-weighted end of the year.” The time when we are supposed to be…

With ‘perfect victim’ spelled in neon on my back. — I still wonder what was I thinking. Walking alone in the dark in a neighborhood known for crime. It was a dumb thing to do. How could I possibly get out of the trouble I landed in? I had left a concert at a venue not so far from my…

A poem —

in which your writer finally learns something important — I did not realize that I had a bad habit until a Vietnamese Buddhist nun I love dearly told me. “I don’t know what you’re saying. Can you tell me, straightforward?” I was stunned. I knew there were times when she couldn’t understand me. But I did not know how…

Simple objects with profound meaning — When first seen, they are a puzzle. Then, a wonder. There are times people decide, “Oh just some clay things,” turn to walk away, and but right back around. Then the questions begin. And I know I am about to lose another child of my own making. …

Thank you for writing this. I was so sad when I started searching for stories about modelling clay, search kept bringing up nothing to see! Using the word creativity for search focused on digital creation. I like being able to create for a living on computer, but I am alive creating with my hands! We need more stories by artists and craftsmen. I have recommended your story on mine, about making clay sculptures.

I read your memory and remember: a drug filled party. So much shallow brightness and color and pretty people. I am with one of the prettiest men. Someone asks him why he is with me, while offering him LSD. And he smiled, and said, "She doesn't need this." Very gently. And the shallowness died. Not us. Your lesson was hard but a good lesson. My lesson was soft, but still the same kind of lesson. Go to the place where life with someone is good, and long, not over in a flash.

Good for you! It took a long while for me to learn that if they were going to invade my space, I had the right to lay down "house rules." That happened during a time when my housemate could out-dark my thoughts, to a point where he could somehow project…

Nicola, my whole life has been full of periods where mental illness ruled me, because I could not feel the power of choice. …