Author Archives: John Swinburn

What is the difference between a response and a reply? Exactly.  And thus I have evidence of subtleties too sophisticated for people like me.

Kindness is not an automatic benevolent behavior. Rather, it takes practice and repetition. It requires regular exercise to fully develop into a disposition. It seems to me that developing a kind disposition is akin to training a dog; it takes … Continue reading →

The rumble of distant thunder roused me from a restless sleep. I turned to look at the clock: three forty-seven. A few minutes later, the rumbles became bone-jarring cracks and flashes of blue and white light lit up the room. The … Continue reading →

The stories we tell ourselves are mirrors. The stories we tell others are masks. But, sometimes, we confuse ourselves about the audiences for our tales, telling ourselves lies and confiding in people we have no business trusting.

As I remember, my habit of using sugar in my iced tea was a brief departure from good taste, perhaps a year or less when I was a child. Today, just the idea of putting sugar—or any sweetener—in tea causes an unpleasant … Continue reading →

The options are to build a bridge, walk across a bridge, or blow up a bridge. Fewer and fewer are willing to build it and meeting someone in the middle conveys weakness. That leaves just one choice.

I light a stick of incense and watch the smoke, in a gyrating dance of slow-motion chaos, rise gently and disappear. The smoke, just a smudge in the air, leaves behind aromatic evidence of sensuality and longing, a search for tranquility … Continue reading →

I wonder if my wife would indulge me by allowing me to experiment with shrimp spring rolls for breakfast one morning soon?  I would have to buy some of the ingredients for the rolls (rice paper wrappers, mint leaves and basil … Continue reading →

I remember staying the night at a bed and breakfast in the New Mexico desert. It was a stout and stately enclave of faded, cracking adobe and distressed cedar, a place rich with the musical traditions of New York. Owned by … Continue reading →

A heavy steel sledgehammer swings with full force, striking a piece of sculpture made of thick strands of gold and yellow and green glass. The glass, woven together in a rich tangle of color and form, is a work of … Continue reading →