Writers Harbor

Author: Francis Meyrick

  • A Blip on the Radar (42B) “The Peacemaker who tried – Part 2 “

    A Blip on the Radar (42B) Part 2: The Peacemaker who tried Our net boat bumped against the hull of the purse seiner, and a sailor, alerted by the noise of our arrival, poked his head over the side. He recognized me. I had worked a three month vacation spell there, covering for the resident…

  • A Blip on the Radar (42A) “The Peacemaker who tried – Part 1 “

    THE PEACEMAKER WHO TRIED – Part 1 Part 1: Three Little Words I don’t like fighting. It seems such a primitive, savage, somewhat crude pastime. Whether it be physical, emotional, psychological or the result of business competitiveness taken to the extremes of what Testosterone charged males are capable of, I find it unsatisfying. Politics increasingly…

  • Sergeant ‘X’ Part 2: The Soccer Field Ambush

    Safidar, Afghanistan – civilian distribution – building bridges Sergeant ‘X’ The Second Bullet: The Soccer Field Ambush Let me be honest, and not try and pull some kind of a lip service John Wayne act, or a shallow and unrealistic Dirty Harry. This isn’t a movie. A screen flick. Bang-bang, and afterwards we all get…

  • A Blip on the Radar (41) “Dropping a Missile “

    “I always do a good pre-flight. Always. Yep. I’m good…” A Blip on the Radar Part 41: Dropping a Missile I soloed some forty four years ago. If there is one thing I (might) have learned by now, it’s that we always seem to do stupid sheeee stuff. No matter how hard we try, no…

  • An Introduction to Sergeant ‘X’

    Sergeant ‘X’ His story. As shared with a fellow pilgrim. Through many a long, sleepless night. Dawn over Eastern Afghanistan – preparing to move out From within I am drunk. But I have only started. I know it’s going to be a long night. I know my head will hurt. Later. I know I will…

  • A Blip on the Radar (40) “The Duel “

    A Blip on the Radar Part 40: The Duel Of all the duels I have fought, including a strange, oddball jousting session with another helicopter, and sundry other Testosterone indulgence events, the one that comes to mind tonight is one I lost. My opponent, more resourceful than I, although knocked backed against the ropes, recovered…

  • Dis-Missed as a Fool

    Dis-Missed as a Fool I knew they dismissed me as a fool. It was okay. Mostly, I really wasn’t too worried. Occasionally, I felt a bit hurt. An honest emotion. But then I would just kind of smile to myself. It was the way of my road. The ambient color and resonance of my immediate…

  • My Previous Incarnation

    enlightenment is a narrow and rocky path, so beware of flip-flops “I’m the King of the Castle!…I’m the King of the Castle!…heh-heh-heh! “ My Previous Incarnation The story of my previous incarnation, when I was a Buddhist monk, in a temple in 8th century Ancient China, is, indeed, a simple one. Like me. Not very…

  • Of Helicopters and Humans (28) “Beauty and the Wind “

      I gaze in rapture At a thin gaseous layer With which our home Fragile and small Is blessed by Forces slightly understood And by a Great Cosmic Kindness Whom we, noisy and unseeing Barely acknowledge. from: “The Blade of Damocles “ Of Helicopters and Humans (28): Beauty and the Wind (Seeking Beauty, a hint…

  • My Hut in the Sky

    My Zen hut rests upon rocks at the summit clouds fly past and more clouds arrive a waterfall hangs in space beyond the door a mountain ridge rises like a wave in back I drew three Buddhas on a wall I put a plum branch in a jar for incense the fields below might be…