Frozen in time
Copyright © Diane L. Schirf Have you noticed that her face never moves? Were she 2,000, she would be a statue. Were she 500, she would be a painting. Were she 50, she would be a photo. Were she alive, … Continue reading →
Category Archives: Writings
Dad (unfinished)
Copyright © Diane L. Schirf Not long after my dad, Ralph Urban Schirf, passed away on July 28, 2001, in Altoona, Pennsylvania, at the age of 88, it occurred to me that I wanted to capture as many memories of … Continue reading →
My dream place
Copyright © Diane L. Schirf Ten years or so ago, I took a class on journal writing. I think that was the topic (I may have taken a separate one on nature writing). One exercise was to describe our dream … Continue reading →
Incident at Albion
Copyright © Diane L. Schirf Right now, all over the world, a nearly infinite number of things are happening. Hawks pursue rabbits; factions make war; dust filters through the atmosphere; buildings burn; stars shine; children die. Things happen, and everything … Continue reading →
The Train, Part 2: Hair Man
Copyright © Diane L. Schirf Continued from Part 1 For some reason, it seemed to me that Territorial Woman should have filled my quota for encounters of the mundane yet strange kind — at least for this trip. I was, … Continue reading →
The Train, Part 1: Territorial Woman
Copyright © Diane L. Schirf Traveling by train is a gamble — it can be tedious and torturous, or amusing and entertaining. Mostly it depends on your traveling companion. I always travel alone, but whether it’s my neighbour in the … Continue reading →
Where Do You Want to Go Today? (unfinished)
Copyright © Diane L. Schirf Where do you want to go today?” The perfectly modulated voice spoke over a scene of perfect children in a perfect classroom. Stupid question. Stupid, stupid question. Where do I want to go? Everywhere, anywhere. … Continue reading →
The Ghosts in the Closet
Copyright © Diane L. Schirf Inside the closet the air is chilly, as though it were coming through a gateway from the place where the past is buried. A lifetime’s accumulation of old clothes hang and lie there — yellowed … Continue reading →
The House
Copyright © Diane L. Schirf I could feel his body next to mine, hot, clinging, damp, reassuring. Almost instinctively, I pulled away into the void, slowly, quietly, so he wouldn’t notice the abrupt coolness of my absence. He continued to … Continue reading →
Wonder
Copyright © Diane L. Schirf The wonder of words is not in their order is not in their length is not in their sound. The wonder of words is not in who says them is not in who writes them … Continue reading →