This short story focuses on the experiences of one man that finds himself unwilling to deal with the rest of humanity and his decision to leave society. After a time, strange things begin to happen in the skies above him, and he eventually finds himself wanting to reconnect with the people he had once abandoned. It was originally published in the inaugural issue of the Texas Texas University Honor’s College journal in 2003.
In a time before Ground Zero meant something else, After our cousins Einstein, Teller, and Oppenheimer, In an empty desert guarded by squat mountains, Humanity took its first step into another age With the detonation of a bomb named Trinity. We viewed the Opening from miles away, As creatures with fragile bodies must do. Even [ Read More ]
God, protect me from your people, With closed minds and blind third eyes. Misinformation and half-truths Are barely discernable from the lies. I’ve felt your presence and your power, My biology is impossible to deny. But I do not fear to think these thoughts, I’d rather know uncomfortable truths than reassuring lies. I appreciate all [ Read More ]
Information is important to Life, and Earth is positively rippling with both. Quasi-intelligent beings that never see the light of day live on inside us, While mindless molecular machines copy our biological biography With the guided precision of a skilled craftsman. All living creatures store libraries of information in their genes, But many beings are [ Read More ]
Before the Sun rose and set in the sky of Earth, A giant blue-green rock spun lazily around its star. Then a being, mostly calling itself Man, Gave names to these gods of the ground and sky. Our solitary sun floats with its family of planets. A grain of sand in a beach too massive [ Read More ]
Ethereal lights in the sky, unexplainable phenomena, And alleged astronauts older than any nation Lead many to believe we’re inundated with uninvited guests. Though I wish it were so, it probably just isn’t true. It could be that we have not been discovered, And our xenophobia causes us to see lights in the sky. Besides, [ Read More ]
I imagine the Cosmos, infinite and remote. I reflect on our sun, the perfect planetary host. I consider our world, the pale blue home of the Earthlings, I think of this forest, and of this path I tread. Intentionally lost among Appalachian giants, I wander a chaotic, forkful path. Willfully losing myself in the grandeur, [ Read More ]
10. Cracking down on Terrorism With the horrors of terrorism reaching so vast an audience, the world’s new focus on defeating terrorism may one day save us from each other and ourselves. 9. The Odds Are in Our Favor The chance of anyone dying today (or any other day) is always the same. The people [ Read More ]
I wish that when people saw a wedding band, it meant more that showing to other people that they are no longer “available.” People should see the band and smile to know that they have a significant other somewhere in the world for them. Some people use the band like a magical shield against possible [ Read More ]
Some people fear the idea of some form of artificial intelligence taking over the world and killing everyone. While this is probably the most extreme outcome, it is generally our worst fears that motivate us most. If we were to create a true kind of artificial intelligence that was actually able to think for itself [ Read More ]