Slow Descent and Other Little Stories

"July called up a sultry afternoon

She must have been waiting for the call

Wind chipped away at the boredom

Trying to chase summer into fall"

A collection of ten poetic, dynamic and unpredictable little stories in both English and Spanish. Many of the stories were influenced by the writer's experiences growing up in central Texas in the 1960s and 1970s a couple of hours from the Rio Grande and the Texas-Mexico border. Others were inspired by the writer's love of the southwestern United States and an increasing infatuation with Latin America and the Spanish language. Others simply fell out of the sky without explanation.

"The bright but crooked sign above the swinging door read "Caf?Adentro"

It teetered on the outer edge of Quito's chaotic centro

Room for only two tables and a three-stool bar

In the corner a weathered llanero strummed his cuatro guitar"

The first story, Slow Descent, was written in 1977 before it went into hibernation for 45 years. The PBS Ken Burns Country Music Documentary and a push from friends inspired the writer to dig it back up. It ultimately evolved into a song recorded by Dennis Welch to be released in the summer of 2023 on his album entitled "If I Live To Be A Hundred". The reawakening of that story and its transformation into a song caused the author to look inside and see if other stories might be lurking in there. They were.

"I have never thought of myself as a writer and certainly not a poet. I would rather be a painter because I like to try to paint pictures with words and phrases. I hope these stories will conjure up vivid, colorful and lasting images for each reader."

Many of the stories take place in Texas, the southwest and the west. One takes place in Ecuador and the others could happen anywhere. Interspersed among the stories are photos taken by the author during his travels throughout Central and South America.

"The boy's skin was as pale and thin as fine white porcelain

His eyes as gray as an overcast sky on a cold December day

He never showed any emotion but inside his world was a raging ocean

No word or sound - just a frozen stare like a clock unwound"

The title "little stories" is more descriptive of the content than poems or poetry. While all but one contain some sort of rhyme scheme, that scheme varies among the stories and even within them. Certainly they do not follow any archaic or strict poetic style. Some are sad, some are happy and some are left to the reader to decide. Different readers will hopefully interpret the stories in different ways. All are written from the heart, the soul and the passion of the author.

"He came from the east Texas piney woods

A poor kid destined to do no good

She came from a north Dallas neighborhood

A privilege unspoken but understood"

The book is approximately 100 pages in length.