I don't want to spoil anything here, especially the brilliant title, so I will reserve my comments for later after Don's story "I'll Seer Stone and Raise it a Rock" rests upon its angle of repose* here at RfM.

http://salamandersociety.com/donbagley/

*The angle of repose is the steepest angle of descent or dip relative to the horizontal plane to which a material can be piled without slumping.

Don is brilliant.

particularly religious.

She attended church, and even did some volunteer work there, but I don't think she cared much, one way or the other, about religion. She forced me to attend church until I got big enough to physically refuse to go, but I don't recall that she ever talked about anything in the religious line.

Top 5 for sure!

I stand all amazed.

Very nice, Don.

It's remarkable how some life experiences free us to see our earlier lives in clearer perspective. In some ways it can be liberating, in others lonely.

Being able to say it all with such economy of words makes each single word golden.

So amazed and grateful am I.

I just wanted to humbly add that for the many , many years I have followed the posts, stories and life of Don Bagley, my first impulse is to gather him in my arms and give him the most profound hug !
Daily on other sites we read stories of how others were abused in their childhoods or had love withheld and that was why they became monsters.
Yet here is one who was damaged and overcame and is has been like a light and image of goodness in spite of the hardship and bullying inflicted upon him.
He deserved so much better and I hope now is the time when his beautiful nature is finally validated, appreciated and celebrated.
Don, we love you !

Reading his posts, I always feel moved to send him a candy bar, but I just don't act on the promptings of the spirit as much as I used to.

Experiences outside of the thought bubble we grew up in, which shift our paradigm, are the real gift. It's far more impressive than an imaginary magic rock.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/20/2017 05:57PM by Devoted Exmo.

You really captured the experience of transformation, Don...

...that in-a-moment movement forward, from the last vestiges of the person you once were, to the person you had become.

Very well done!

Thank you.

Just when I think my upbringing was over the top, we have Don's beautifully spare writing for some serious perspective. Wow. Love that one. It's like Don's dad was Carrie's mom's brother.

They said what?

You and them were born on the same rock, and yet you're lightyears apart.

How'd you manage to be related?

Look at it this way: you evolved.

“I saw the two like I'd never seen them before“

This universalizes the vignette. No matter your parents or your background, this is a crucial moment in human maturation. Although my feelings are inconsequential and not asked for, but nonetheless, I feel for those who have yet to meet this moment.

The good news is, it’s never too late.

Human

Thank you all for reading and commenting. This forum has been essential to the development of my writing "voice." The feedback is priceless.

Love and kisses to all.

I've read all your stories that you have made available. I enjoyed them all. This one is my favorite so far. Thanks man. Just don't kiss me.