Eye for Eye

You see, there are no pretty pink flowers in the woods at night.

The children seek to resolve the issue amongst themselves, and mete out punishment to restore balance and keep the game going.

But, if we consider, as physicists now claim, that everything is energy—everything we see, everything we think, everything we do—then it is just possible that this same law of conservation of energy applies to questions of morality. A conservation of moral energy, a maintenance of equilibrium… a balance exists and must be preserved. If an action is taken that disrupts that balance, then an action similar in kind and degree is required to restore equilibrium.

She looked to Roy as though she lived in Oz, in the land of color, like she carried it with her everywhere she went. When they began dating, he found that her energy was the perfect counterpoint to the world into which he sank at regular intervals, that black and white Kansas that he inhabited.

This book is dedicated to my children, Pi, Coco, and Jay. When your grandkids are old enough to read this book, tell them how much I loved you.

Yet, all armor—from a lobster’s shell to a Navy SEAL’s flak jacket—ultimately reveals the same truth. All armor highlights vulnerability. It trumpets the fact that below that hard exterior lies an interior that is soft, fragile, and in need of protection.

A good sailor weathers the storm he cannot avoid, and avoids the storm he cannot weather.

The summer of 2019 had overstayed its welcome in Florida, lingering well into September. As if to make a point about global warming, the rabid sun scorched the waters of Biscayne Bay for weeks, generating a haze of humidity that blurred the line between the windless sea and the sky above. Not to be accused of playing favorites, the sun’s rays beat down on the land with equal spite, pummeling grass, palms, and bushes into limp submission. The heat weaponized asphalt roads and cement sidewalks, the shimmery mirages above them a clear warning to all living things to stay away or burn.

Recollections of a loved one often trigger feelings of nostalgia. But, sometimes, the loss is just too raw. The pain too bitter. And recollection triggers nothing but heartache and despair. A pain that burns the soul.

Yep. God’s giving me a second chance at motherhood as a “thank you” for killing a bunch of scumbags. He’s looking down and thinking, “Well done, Susie. You’ll make a fine mommy.

You can’t let people affect you. You’ve gotta stand up for what you think is right... even if you’re wrong. Especially if you know you’re wrong. Fuck ’em! All of ’em!

Tobacco and coffee,” Kristy said. “Man. They smell so good before. Un-lit. Un-brewed. You know?

Mike Tyson: “Everybody has a plan, until they get punched in the face.

In many ways, revenge is much like an extramarital affair. It never just “happens.” Nobody cheats without having fantasized about it in advance, without having savored the idea. Revenge, like seduction, is a process. It is a game of inches.