Eddie didn't favor anyone in his family. Fair, blonde, and green-eyed, he stood in sharp contrast to the other darker-complected, dark-haired, blue-eyed members. The difference created a rift in the family fabric and his mother singled him out for abuse, irrationally holding him responsible for the family's turmoil. Little Eddie struggled with the severity of his maltreatment but, by age eleven, could no longer handle the circumstances of his life. He decided his only escape would be to die, that by conscious will, he could simply resolve to give up life and cease to exist. Eddie's mind, alerted to his decision, and believing the ultimate goal for any entity was to continue, regardless of form or quality of life, was determined to survive. Panicked at the threat of cessation, his mind made a desperate decision -- it fractured his personality and created Randy from traits that had been repressed in Eddie. Randy, a tough, defiant individual, was created to bring new energy, new life, and stand in defense of the defeated, accepting Eddie. Rising to the challenge, he accepted the responsibility of his creation and was fiercely focused to protecting Eddie while endeavoring to create new circumstances for the life they shared. Randy was proud of his efforts to save Eddie. He knew he was Eddie's paladin, his champion, created for a noble purpose -- to bring Eddie back from the brink of oblivion. After many struggles, Randy's efforts appeared to be successful and the mind considered the possibility of enjoying the existence he'd insured. It pondered the idea of Eddie being involved with the world, rather than merely persisting through the time allotted for the life. Aware of Eddie's inability to interact with the world around him, the mind again fractured the personality creating Jesse, a new facet, an aesthetic personality, focused to tender feelings of love and friendship -- and aspects which determine quality of life. Jesse felt he was created to experience emotions and appreciate beauty, to evolve the repressed side of the personality, to bring stability to the entity. He believed he was born to search for love, to find the emotional equilibrium that would bring the separate identities into harmony. Developed from suppressed characteristics, Jesse was creative and confident, loving and inquisitive, charming and fun loving. And he was on a quest -- determined to achieve his goal. Without Eddie's awareness of them, Randy and Jesse sought to balance their existence and hoped they were achieving what they saw as a normal life until Jesse experienced an incident which shattered that belief and forced them to realize they had not progressed as far as they thought. Jesse's realization that he had made a terrible mistake was devastating. Jumping to a conclusion, Randy, the controlling personality, in his determination to fend off any challenges to them, felt he must take over to handle the crisis in an effort to protect them...

As her grandmother’s health declines, a young girl begins to lovingly take the lead in their cozy shared autumn traditions. Poetic prose paired with evocative illustrations by Mexican illustrator Claudia Navarro make for a beautiful celebration of life and a gentle introduction to the death of a loved one.

Merriam Press Vietnam War Fiction Series. Although written as fiction, this work is based on the author's personal experiences as a Vietnam veteran encountering other vets at the Veterans Administration (VA) in New York City at Fort Hamilton in Brooklyn. The author served in the U.S. Army, Security Police, and Soc Trang, Vietnam during his 1967-1968 tour of duty. Some of the chapters: The Bunker; Welcome to the VA; A Soft Gauze Over Their Wounded Minds; A Mentor: A Case Officer's Case Officer; The War Hero; Thousand-Meter Stare; They Wear Their Ribbons Inside Their Hearts; Psychiatric Trauma Unit; Shrapnel Was Deeply Embedded in His Psyche; Dirty Business; Phoenix Program; Anything for You, My Brother; Just Before the Spring of the Betty Went Off; Flashback; You're My Friend, I Won't Question It; Clenching and Unclenching His Fists; The Face of the Nameless Would Appear Before Him at Night; Green Explosion: The Vietnam Experience. Includes 41 author photos depicting his time in Vietnam.

In the search for meaning, we often travel through the inner caves of being to discover the true value of in our lives. When at last the search turns within, it is there that we find the real guide, and then we can travel the road to mastery. Autumn Leaves Dancing in the Wind is a collection of personal reflections written at a time of search for meaning. There are times in our lives when we search for truth and must delve deeply within to find the true value of life. May the inner wisdom be of assistance to others in times of doubt, of search and uncertainty. If we let our inner wisdom guide, we learn that we already know the source of truth.