an old writer and his words

  • SISTER

    I can picture her sittingin her small apartmentholding a cup of tea.This is Parma, or perhaps,Milan, two of the threecities I visited in Italy.Her hair is long, grayand white, her smile pained.She does not know I existbut we share so much,a father we never metfirst and foremost.We will never meet,for she, too, may be dead…

    Lou Faber

  • MARCHING

    We walkedfor hours a daywe walked goingnowhere exactlythey wantedmarchingwe walked never quitein stepdespite Sarge’scursed entreaties.By the endof the fifth weekwe marchedin stepmostly.Sarge foundother thingsto curse“you will NEVERbe soldiers” he saidWe are inthe Air Forcewe thoughtnever meantto be soldiers.

    Lou Faber

  • SEPPO THE RICE COOK

    If you sitbefore your teacherand she says nothingwhat do you do?Do you speak, doyou ask her a questionor do you sitsilently until dismissedknowing silenceis the firstand last wordof this lesson. A reflection on case 55 of the Book of Equanimity (従容錄, Shōyōroku)

    Lou Faber

  • MISSED MEETING

    On Saturday it will be21 years since I missedthe last chance to meet my mother.If this seems strange to youimagine how it is for me, how itit is to have your mother dieat 82 and you now 70saying you never got to meet.You’ve guessed correctly that Iam an adoptee, but did you knowI waited so…

    Lou Faber

  • SABBATH

    She could not understand whyanyone, really, would willinglygive up their Saturday morningto sit inside and recite prayershalf in a language that neitherthey nor most of the congregationspoke, and when I said some knewthe translations by heart, she added“then why not recite those.”She had a point, I knew, but wouldI easily concede, as if thatwould make…

    Lou Faber

  • AGAIN, AGAIN

    It is the seasonagain.It is always the season,and everythingis now interpretation,relativity rules.Once truthwas absolute,it was notmalleable, fluidseen through a lensno one possesses,only asking faith.Deafnessis an escapeout of its reachand it will bethis way each dayuntil the election.It willagain be the season.Rinse andrepeat.

    Lou Faber

  • TRAVEL THOUGHTS 13

    In this age when facts and statisticsdefine reality instantlyit is comforting to knowthat if all the containerson the piers of the Port of Newarkwere laid end to endthey would still beexceedingly ugly. First published in Exquisite Corpse, No. 43, 1993

    Lou Faber

  • SERVED COLD

    We had better hope that naturedoesn’t adopt that old adagethat revenge is a dish best served cold.Come to think of it, perhaps shehis toying with it now by her actionsgiven the climate changes we have wrought,And us always thinking nature wouldsomehow become subservient to us.But you can only defy the lawsof nature for so long,…

    Lou Faber

  • FRUITFUL

    The world, I am willing to bet,would be a far different placeif couples fully knew what to expectbefore deciding to have theirfirst child, but hope springseternal so why not try and get it rightthe second or third time around?You have to wonder how manytwo-or-more child families there would beif parents were required to waitat least…

    Lou Faber

  • UNGAN’S GREAT COMPASSIONATE ONE

    When your teacher askswhat is your practiceyou may answer mindfulnessand he will proclaim youpartially correct.If you ask whatyou are missingyour teacher will smileand simply sayyou are missing youfor all of you mustbe your practice. A reflection on case 54 of the Book of Equanimity (従容錄, Shōyōroku)

    Lou Faber