The parking lot felt stagnant as Jude walked across empty yellow lines. The air was weighted with the cold, heavy enough that it almost seemed like the cloud of her breath dispersed down rather than up. The lights flickered above her head with a steady, fly-like buzz.

I feel that if I move from this spot I will die. But I take a step forward and don’t.

Forgive me father for I have sinned.

He carries his equipment
He carries his uniform
He carries his ammunition
And his weapons
But he carries much more
He carries his heart
His memories
Though most importantly
He carries his bandana with Psalm 91 printed on it

I look at your face,
the flowers in the vase,
I never wanted to be in this place,
As I pace the floor,
Searching for the door,
I realize I miss you more,
So I kneel at the cross,
And pray for my loss,
Wondering why you paid the cost . . .

I was blind and you opened my eyes.
I was blind to deceivers, and you showed
me them. I was blind to true love, and you showed
me it. I was blind to forgiveness and you did it for me.
I was blind to the truth, and you revealed it all. I was blind

Get behind the eight ball she said, which I had yet to understand. She said
it meant to look ahead to the future. I sat
there contemplating this saying for a while, and as I fell into
a deep slumber my thoughts ran free. Thinking of our future--

 I killed a tree writing notes last night,
 but the question ravaging my mind
 does not relate to the fine points of progressivism.
 Even I, as little as I live, am too distracted to get this right.
 I take a seat on the steps of my porch

My head hits the pillow
It sinks in
I turn to the left
Then the right
Then back to facing the
ceiling
I close my eyes
Bad things creep around in
my mind
They pop open
I stare at that chair
I glance at my desk

Here Is The Son
that shines through
the
cold
dark
clouds
that herald
a coming storm,
a storm in
the heart
the mind
the soul.
When you feel
alone
forgotten,
the Son rises
to show you
the

Do I dare disturb the universe?
Indulge in the quizzical whims of questioning?
Sit on the throne of knowledge,
partake in the feast of Newton’s apple?
To eat the forbidden fruit,
and cast myself out of the paradise of ignorance,

Uncle Felix grew up in a small town called Shinzhu, located on the north side of Taiwan. His family was not able to afford extra clothing or toys or even to pay for his education. Uncle Felix learned to take what life gave him, and to always look on the bright side of things.