Category: Uncategorized
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Two men had found the woman of their dreams.Unfortunately, it was the same woman. The dalang lifted his right hand. One puppet stepped forward. “I saw her first.” His left hand moved. The second puppet immediately objected. “You saw the market first. She happened to be standing in it.” The woman sat between them. Silent.…
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Anna had been told the rules were simple.This was the first warning. She stood beneath a red-and-white flag with six other contestants. In front of each face hung one kerupuk. White. Round. Innocent. Suspended from a piece of string. Anna examined hers. “So I just eat it?” The woman beside her nodded. “No hands.” Anna…
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Three tourists had entered an Indonesian Independence Day competition.They had been told the prize was at the top. Nobody had mentioned the pole. Or the grease. Or the fact that gravity had apparently joined the organizing committee. Daniel looked upward. A small bicycle hung from the prize ring. Beside it were boxes, a fan, several…
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Philemon — Prologue Some letters are difficult because they are long. Philemon is difficult because it is short. Paul gives us only one page. A man is returning.Another man is being asked to receive him.Something may be owed.A relationship has changed.And Paul places himself somewhere in the middle. It sounds simple. Until we begin asking…
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Everyone saw a clear morning. He noticed what was leaving it. The young eagles had discovered a new game. They called it How High? The rules were simple: climb as high as possible, return to the ridge, then describe something nobody else had seen. One eagle spotted a distant waterfall. Another found a herd beyond…
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III. The Door Opens The knock came just after nine. Two short knocks. Then one more. She knew who it was before reaching the door. Some people knock like strangers. Family rarely does. She opened it. Her sister stood outside holding a small paper bag from the bakery down the street. For several seconds, neither…
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II. The Winning Side Her sister came back three days later. Not for coffee. She stood at the door holding the old family camera with both hands. The camera had caused the argument—or at least the part of the argument that could still be named without telling the whole embarrassing story. Their father had used…
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I. The Empty Chair The coffee was already halfway into the second mug when she noticed. Her hand stopped. For a moment, she looked at the two pink cups as though someone else had placed them there. One was hers. The other belonged across the table. She almost laughed at herself. Almost. Her sister was…
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Intro-Before the Chair Was Empty There were things the sisters no longer needed to ask each other. The older one knew which photographs would make her sister laugh before the page was turned. The younger knew exactly which stories her sister would correct, although everyone in the family had heard both versions too many times…
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The sky was enormous. He preferred the bottom half. Among young eagles, there were several respectable reasons to land. Catching food was one. Sleeping was another. Being tired was acceptable, provided nobody saw it. The little eagle had invented a fourth: he liked it down there. While the others climbed into the morning sky, he…
