Messes We Made is a collection of eighteen short stories grouped into three categories according to the narrator's stage of life: Maturing, Adulting, and Aging.Maturing stories contain elements of young love characterized by impetuousness. In "Daredevils" a character likens his and his girl's frenetic lives to an airplane performing dangerous mid-air stunts. "Zany" follows an up and down relationship with advice for the male coming from a crippled and violent institutionalized biker. And in "Can You Hear Me?" a man is consumed with regret and anger because his girlfriend is raped while he is away for a long weekend. Adulting portrays protagonists with more sophisticated ailments. In "Accidents" a husband and business owner is gripped by unreasoning fear and anxiety. "Do They Dance Close in Paris?" finds a lady bartender who copes with her drab social club by dreaming of escaping to the romance and mystery of Paris. And in "Spring Back" a daughter foresees her mother's recovery from a burst aneurysm.Aging gives way to episodes of loneliness and finality. Two teachers deal with their recent retirements in "Mr. Anders" and "Loose Change." An estranged cancer survivor becomes the unexpected protector of a precocious and very intoxicated fifteen-year-old girl in "Beach Voices." And in the title piece, the narrator recalls the "Messes We Made" after the death of his dearest friend due to alcohol abuse.Stories containing unusual conflicts finding ordinary people. How these characters find quiet victories and face silent defeats make up the contents of
Messes We Made.
