People seek closures, accept closures, or are desperate to prevent closures. Grieved or celebrated, closures are human experiences that precede death, life’s final closure. As the stories in this collection reveal, closures can be positive, negative, or both.
The Last Bootblack – A venerable shoe shine man practices a lost art until racism and age force him to give up his livelihood. A young newspaper reporter has a career breakthrough when her story about the man’s remarkable life earns a byline on the front page.
Jury Duty – A man’s impulsive, unexpressed longing for an anonymous woman serving with him on a jury captures his imagination and inspires honest self-examination.
Coach Z – A high school golf coach, grieving over the death of a former player, believes spiritual forces are at work as his team tries to achieve its greatest victory.
Mike and the Psychic – The savvy owner of a successful flea market business becomes involved with a gypsy fortune teller who will be leaving town at the end of the winter season.
Misgivings – A woman invites her partner on a Thanksgiving journey to the distant home of her son and his family, sparking angry confrontations and permanent damage.
1963 – A high school senior celebrating a new identity, first love, and growing self-esteem loses his youthful innocence in a life-changing moment.
Once Upon a Forest – After a local government condemns a beloved urban forest to make room for a gas station, a heartbroken community hopes to save the doomed trees.
My Father’s Son – A father and his first-born son battle each other in lifelong conflict after the father’s strict discipline fails to win trust, respect, or love.
Covid Confinement – His wife lost to cancer, a retired college admissions dean struggles with living alone in their large home while the covid pandemic denies contact with other people.
Miami Beach, 2050 – In a 2050 interview for a documentary, a retired climate scientist recounts decades of failed attempts to keep rising sea levels from inundating southern and coastal Florida.
Bold Venture Press, 2022
