Fred tiptoed into his room and slid into his desk chair, casting a worried glance over his shoulder as he opened his laptop. Typing as quietly as he could, he logged onto Artium Obscurorum and ... [+]
Deborah L. Davitt writes acclaimed poetry, short stories, and novels. For more about her work, please see www.edda-earth.com "From a High Perch, Waiting" is in Short Circuit #05, Short Édition's quarterly review.
He climbed a telephone pole first;next, a cell phone tower,because he'd heard of ancient saintswho clambered up pillarsto be closer to god,or at least, further from humanity.People thought he wanted to jump,shouted that he had so muchto live for, got the police into talk him down—the cops accused him of trespassing.Reporters asked if he was protestingthe hidden dangers of microwave rays—they finally forced him downwith a tranquilizer dartand a net spread below.It's not just the challengeof the ascent,that much is clearfrom his few interviews,not just a matterof testing himselfagainst the heigh