August 23, 1955

My mother's account of the day I was born is that it was very hot. 100 degrees. August 23 was the only day that year that Cedar Rapids, Iowa (where I was born) hit 100. Not sure what that may have portended, but it's a fact nevertheless. My parents lived…

…a poem ought to be written…

The following poem was buried in old archives and I thought I ought to resurrect it as a reminder to live deliberately and appreciate every small moment in life. Reading student poetry in Cedar Key while looking out at the Gulf of MexicoApril 3, 2006A poem ought to be written…

The only real second chance is today

In March of 2026, I published my third novel The Death and Life of Edward Reed, a genre-bending look at the afterlife. In this book I strove to answer some pretty weighty questions, not the least of which is "what if we could have a real second chance to live…

The Present Moment

First published through my Water's Edge Press newsletter When I first read Tolstoy’s great fable, The Emperor’s Three Questions, I knew I would use it as the first work we read in AP English Literature and Composition each year. My premise was that AP English was hard work, so our…