The wet slap of the whip. One red splash after another, speckling the air, slowly painting the ground, slowly plowing his now shapeless back. Meat and bone, shreds of skin. Blood welling, soaking, trailing away into the dirt. His army, pleading, inches forward but he...
I’ve been a judge too long for that trick. I saw their faces as they dragged him in – their sneers and burning eyes, the angry spittle on their lips. “He’s a criminal!” they sputtered, shoving him toward me with sharp jabs. Well, maybe he was, but I saw more. They...
There is an ache in his gut, a whirring in his head. The hollowness of this place – a dead, empty desert – feels like the hollow inside of him. Sharp rocks and grit. Shivering, then sweat. Hunger and loneliness. He sinks onto a rock, head spinning, the merciless sun...
The warmth of his kiss, the soft glow of the candle – all smashed in an explosion of light and noise. A stranger had burst through the door, shouting, and ripped open the curtains, exposing our nakedness. In that instant, I knew many things I had tried to forget. As...
I leave my beautiful house, wearing my fine clothes, step into the dusty street, and it begins again. People see me coming and scurry to the other side. It is always like this. At synagogue, they wrinkle their nose and shuffle away. At the market, they raise my price...
“B-b-but…” I stammer, knowing I will lose my job – and maybe more. My eyes are wide, but Mary’s son just smiles and nods, pointing toward an important man in the crowd who is holding out his cup, calling for wine. But we have no wine. We bought all we could afford,...
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