The Dog Outside the Hotel
Esby and Julienne skirted the periphery of Piazza della Rovere toward the entrance of the Hotel Rovere. A lone dog with a short, black coat sat on the sidewalk. The dog was completely motionless,...
Category: Europe
From Congo to France
He never would be able to escape the burden of the past, a heavy weight of poverty and oppression originating in Congo but always close at hand in France as well.
Esby in Rome
The sun’s rays blinded him while its heat radiated from the black asphalt under his feet and burned him. Esby walked, and as Julienne walked beside him, they turned the next corner and entered...
Julienne in Rome
“You are one lucky man,” the street vendor said. He leered. Esby, looking closely at the man, didn’t feel lucky. He didn’t know what he felt. Maybe he still felt the effects of a...
On the Way to the French Capital
The stone houses painted white or gray or brown with small yards attached to them gave way to fields of tall grass as the 10:35 RER D train from Combs-la-Villa-Quincy station sped toward the...
Morning Train to Paris
The small boy took a bite out of the doughnut he held in one hand and extended the remainder of the half-eaten, chocolate-glazed circle toward Sylvere. The boy, who was seated on a yellow...
The Big, Brown Car: Paris
Sylvere opened the back door of the small car, placed the saxophone enclosed in its case on the back seat, and closed the door. The air outside El Bulle Petite was fresh. He could...
A Congolese Man in Paris
“Watch where you’re going, Little Man,” Sylvere said, speaking in Kikongo and placing his hand on the head of the small boy. Sylvere stood next to the open drawer of his desk inside the...
Eternal Goodbye: Rome
Esby looked away just for a moment from the streams of cars with the image of her face appearing before his eyes. The digital watch strapped to his left wrist showed 7:15, its round...
All the Innocent Ones Back Home: Paris
Sylvere placed his saxophone next to its case on the small stage, walked to the bar, and sat on a stool near one end, staring into the black, heavy night. Outside it was hot...