the old place

photo: jetheriot

ode on a thistle crayon

This is a scan of a page from my journal circa 2002

lighting mood the in

to from condescend

made the once mention

the of thistle then

papered an over

in mid the her air

ever me never

the of thistle there

in an mri

As we die we progress through deeper and deeper states of unconsciousness. The ego falls away, layer by layer, and only the clear light of the mind remains. If we fail to recognize this luminosity at the hour of our death, the Buddhists say, we fade into oblivion and re-enter the realm of human suffering. If we recognize the clear light of the mind, and rest in it, we can break the chain of suffering and awaken into a new rebirth. 

dust jacket idea

Proposed design for the dust jacket of my forthcoming book of dreams. The woman on the back cover is my great-grandmother, Regina Doiron. The man on the front cover is her father, my great-great-grandfather, Louis Doiron.

further proof that photographs are ghosts

photo courtesy liz gary

Tim: What do you mean when you say that?

a thing she left behind

When I was a neurology resident at Grady, I was asked to consult on a one-hundred-year-old woman who'd been admitted for a cardiac work-up. (She had a history of seizures, and the medical team wanted recommendations regarding seizure medication.) I remember doing a double take when I saw her birth year in the chart -- 1902.