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Kindness

Before you know what kindness really is / you must lose things, / feel the future dissolve in a moment

The Second-Toughest Son Of A Bitch In East Gary, Indiana

He would have said, sometimes it’s not about the truth. Sometimes it’s about kindness. Especially when it comes to family.

Sunbeams

My uncles . . . are farmers in Minooka, Illinois. I grew up with them and their pickup trucks and mustaches, and to me that was masculinity: big, hairy, sweaty guys who could pick up a bus.

Nick Offerman

Shortcuts

Along the shoreline, through a neighbor’s yard, in a back alley

The Orange Appreciation Award

I keep a few backyard oranges mixed in with the baseballs in the bucket I take to practice. Every time one of my teammates peeks in, he’s like, “Oranges?” question mark, when it really ought to be “Oranges!” EXCLAMATION POINT!

How It Ends

It begins like this: You drop your son off at kindergarten. His first day of school. You think that nothing in your life will be as big as this: the moment he drops your hand, he who has clung to you since birth, since that first breath of air, first scream, first frantic rooting for the breast.

No One Dies Alone

I got the call around 2 AM. I’m surprised I even picked up. “Can you come in?” the voice said. I couldn’t say no. So here I am. Bedside. Hands folded. Lots of silence. Lots of time. Nothing to do but think.