The Nice Thing About Strangers

Creative Non-Fiction Short Stories. :) Travel, Oldsters, Love, and Compassion.

Bunnies.

“Hi bunny. Oh! Two! Hi other two bunnies!” Yes, I greeted the bunnies aloud on my evening walk. I smiled as I said it, and felt another presence near by. … Continue reading

July 14, 2014 · 7 Comments

Up, then Rocks, then Up

I’ve been remiss. I noticed that in the last few weeks, I’ve been looking less at strangers and more to loved ones and old friends. This is important, of course, … Continue reading

July 11, 2014 · 16 Comments

Corner Pocket

It doesn’t seem fair to give too many details, since she didn’t know she’d be on the record. She challenged my friend to a game of pool, she challenged everyone … Continue reading

July 4, 2014 · 13 Comments

The Whatever Grandpa

Though there are dozens of food carts outside for the Midnight Sun Festival, she sits with Grandma and Grandpa in an air conditioned restaurant with tall tables. She gazes at … Continue reading

June 30, 2014 · 13 Comments

An Apple A Day

She’s been silently enjoying her lunch. Though she’s consuming soup she blows quietly to cool it, like whispering over a sleeping child, and she eats from a breadbowl, which makes … Continue reading

June 25, 2014 · 16 Comments

Pout

The little girl with a hot pink jacket runs the wrong way on the airport’s moving sidewalk. She’s on the phone. “Frozen and Superheroes, Save me! Grandpa’s trying to get … Continue reading

June 23, 2014 · 2 Comments

In Mom’s Garden

Mom and I are on a little trip and I have to hustle, so I don’t have a story today. Actually, I’ve been collecting tons of stories for you all, … Continue reading

June 18, 2014 · 16 Comments

Car Dancing

The boy is a teenager, but also a boy. He sits in the passenger seat of a truck and dances in his spot. He sit-dances with the best of them, … Continue reading

June 11, 2014 · 13 Comments

Guest Post: The Huffy Prophet by Sarie Fischer Norval

I hope you’ll enjoy this guest post from my dear friend Sarie. I think her story helps explain why we’ve been friends for 17 years…whoa. Teaching a summer class has … Continue reading

June 6, 2014 · 4 Comments

Do Envy the Oldsters

From this one may see that there is no reason to pity the old people. Instead, young people should envy them. It is true that the old have no opportunities, … Continue reading

June 2, 2014 · 11 Comments

Way Far Away

He is tiny in Timberland boots. He holds the orange plastic bat over his shoulder, as his father shows him. When Dad tosses the light, white plastic ball the little … Continue reading

May 30, 2014 · 12 Comments

Learning to be Cool

The father wants to take a photograph of his daughter at the large airport window, in front of the airplane they will take to Vienna. He’s removed his shoes and … Continue reading

May 23, 2014 · 4 Comments

For the Hard Days

“Too often,” [Bear Hayes] said, “we lose sight of just how much we have to be grateful for. And we must be grateful for our hardships. We must be more … Continue reading

May 19, 2014 · 5 Comments

The Anticipation of Memory

To a certain extent he took comfort in the inevitable and when they sat down to dinner he could already, a little, look upon her as a lovely fragment of … Continue reading

May 14, 2014 · 7 Comments

The Nod

Waiting in the Arrivals Lounge, they stand, they gaze toward the gate area. A woman in bright white shoes tugs at the hem of her shirt in the wait, adjusts … Continue reading

May 7, 2014 · 11 Comments

The Day We Flew a Kite, Read Books, Hid Under the Lilacs…

I spent the day with my oldest niece. We flew the butterfly kite she got for Easter. Both of us kept breaking into the tune from Mary Poppins, “Let’s go … Continue reading

May 2, 2014 · 18 Comments

Get It Back

“Happiness, that’s what life’s about, it’s your job to be happy, not to spread gloom and despair all round. Don’t be so selfish. Get your courage back, get your narcissism … Continue reading

April 30, 2014 · 7 Comments

Hip

A little old man offers to take their picture. He’s exiting the restaurant with his wife. Outside, a woman is snapping a shot of a very tall man who just … Continue reading

April 23, 2014 · 12 Comments

The City of Strangers

He had this voice so deep it rumbled along the back beams of the bench we were sharing. I arrived very early for an appointment and thought I should sit … Continue reading

April 16, 2014 · 12 Comments

So, Thank You.

Originally posted on The Nice Thing About Strangers:
Flirting with the narrator was a sure way into the story. He must have known this, though certainly half her age. He…

April 14, 2014 · 1 Comment

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