Eyes of Stone
I look out of the letters of my carved name
The people gathered around
A few speak to me, then they are gone
The cycle begins
Rain, weeds, leaves, snow
I cannot see through the grime and dirt
Then, there is light
A small hand wipes away the dirt
I see a boy
He places a small flag near me
It is my flag, but different
An old man stands behind him
The boy calls him “Grandpa”
The boy asks, “Who is he?”
The old man answers, “He is our ancestor, he fought in the war.”
As they turn and walk away, I hear the boy ask, “What war?”
The answer is lost in the breeze
How long have I been here?
The Midnight Toilet Clog
A terrible problem to face at night
You have the right tools
You have a clear and focused plan
Perseverance and patience are the keys
You will have the inevitable triumph
But it is still a shitty job
The Two Minute Novella
I stood in line at the grocery store and heard, the cashier starts…
Wow, I haven’t seen you in ages.
I didn’t even recognize you.
How have you been?
Great, how about you?
Fine, my youngest just turned twenty.
How many kids do you have?
Six, how about you?
Four, my oldest graduates from high school this year.
high school, that brings back memories… what ever happened to Eddy?
I married him, he is the father of the kids.
Where is he today? Working?
I don’t know, we’re divorced, he lives in Ohio.
My ex lives in Colorado… what happened?
I guess I shouldn’t have cheated on him.
Yeah, me neither.
I guess we both messed up.
looks like it… Well, see you next week.
I look forward to it.
Richard A. Rose, EdD., originally from Huntsville, Alabama, holds degrees in criminal justice, political science, environmental science, urban and regional planning, and education. After more than a decade in the military, he worked as a federal special agent, and as a New York State government administrator retiring after thirty years. He is currently a teacher of research methodology at the University at Albany. With over forty years of study, he has earned Black Belt ranks in four martial arts styles. He predominantly writes fiction and non-fiction short stories about historical events and the military, and an occasional poem about life events.
