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Oscar and Gus

Oscar comes to stay with Gus. Gus is a good host. Oscar is a difficult guest. Gus holds it together until it's time for bed. "Osacr and Gus" is a story about sharing and tolerance. 

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My short story,"To the Top," appears in

Rubber Ring, an anthology for young

readers.

Jonah has decided to climb Big Mike, the tallest

tree in the woods. He gets up, but how does he

get down?

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My story "Enough is Enough" appears in Oasis, 1/24, v215, Down in the Dirt, Scars Publication. Available on Amazon.

Silence in golden, but in the face of injustice, silence is complicit.

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"The Hair of the Dog"

 

My story, "The Hair of the Dog," appears in the "An Element of Mystery, sweet, funny, and strange tales of intrigue," an anthology produced by the Bethlehem Writers Group. "The Hair of the Dog," is a medical mystery.

Is someone trying to poison Michael Johnston? Leave it to the neurology resident to figure it out.  

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Two of my stories appear

in "Seasn's  Readings," an anthology from the Bethlehem Writers Group:  "Lake's and Sour Cream" and "Ringing in the New Year."

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Blog: "Getting in Touch with the Right Side of Your Brain"

An essay on a soft science. Appeared in A Slice of Orange July 13, 2022.   

Copy available contact Pete below.

Home: Features
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GUS ON LIFE


LOVING KINDNESS


Loving-kindness, Chesed. “Sustain others without the thought of reward.”(Greg Marcus)  
 “Life is not about every man for himself. To be someone is also to be for the other, and the expression of that virtue is loving-kindness.” (Alan Morinis)  
The key to loving-kindness
 is to not only do acts of kindness but to love doing them – Love kindness,  then the acts of kindness will be frequent and natural.

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PATIENCE

Recognize what is within your power to change and what is not.  Practice patience with both.   Remember, “This too shall pass, and you have the strength to get by until it does.”  

            Ask yourself, does the watched pot ever boil? Eventually, of course, it does.

Home: Featured Work
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TRUST

In the study of Mussar, Bitachon more specifically means trust in God. Although we may disagree on how God acts in our lives, Alan Morinis, "Everyday Holiness," suggests, that it is a wise person who internalizes an accurate sense of his or her own limitations and, to the extent they can, channel their burden of anxiety by trusting in God. 


 “Trust in God but tie your camel.” (Greg Marcus, variation on an Islamic theme.)

Home: Featured Work
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EQUANIMITY

Maintaining the inner calm of the soul.  Afloat on the sea of life, riding the waves, neither too high nor too low, avoid getting swept away.

Home: Featured Work
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 Honor

Honor is finding the balance between too little, judgmental/rude, and too much, flattery/obsequiousness.  With humility we strive to take up the right amount of space. Honor focuses on giving others their due. Sometimes by giving acknowledgement, even just saying hello, is enough to show honor. Recognize the humanity in others. 

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ORDER

Order, Seder, is how you put structure into your life,  just like the Passover Seder. Too little order and you have chaos, too much and you may be smothered by obsessions (Greg Marcus).  What is the balance, and how might you achieve it?

Home: Featured Work
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SILENCE

Silence is golden, and speech is silver. While you speak, you may not hear, so you should only speak when you have something meaningful to say; otherwise, you should always listen. That is a good way to learn.

GRATITUDE

Gratitude, Hakarat Ha’Tov, recognizing the good. That is mostly easy. The trick is appreciating good when things are bad and recognizing the opportunity it affords to make change. Show gratitude for what you have and to the people in your life every day.

TRUTH

Emet, truth is complicated, Truth is not always  black or white but is somewhere in-between.  The Torah says, “be distant from falsehood.” It is much easier to distance oneself from falsehood than to strive for a shifting and complex canopy of truth. (Greg Marcus)  Is truth a perception with the potential for change?  What is true today may be false tomorrow.

LOOSE ENDS


     The heartbreak and love that can bring families together and tear them apart. Joseph is lucky.  He is blessed with a strong , supportive wife who is able to help him heal old childhood wounds and ultimately confront years of anger and resentment.  With her help , Joseph is able to tie up the loose ends of his life and move on.

     Loose Ends is written in the form of a memoir, told from the first person point of view.  Available on Amazon.

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Home: Welcome

SHORT STORIES

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LUKE AND DUKE

Piker Press

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THINGS CAN ALWAYS GET WORSE

Piker Press

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THE FORT
THE ALMOST ENDLESS SUMMER
WHOSE RIGHT TO DIE
HOLLYWOOD PHIL
HEAVEN'S DEVILS: PARTY NIGHT

Storystar.com

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ON A SUMMER'S DAY

Rue Scribe

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THE FATE OF DICKIE PAPONOVITCH

Piker Press

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"MESSYMAN"

"SIMPLICITY"

"ENTHUSIASM"

"OUT ON A LEDGE"

"THE FAIRY RING"

"SHIPWRECKED AT SEA"

"SILENCE"

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A MAN NAMED HAPPINESS

 Short-story.me

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OTHER SHORT STORIES NO LONGER ACCESSIBLE IN PRINT OR ON THE WEB.

"Things Can Always Get Worse" Being 4:4; 9-10 1992.(reprinted, see above) 
“Big Rock”.  Raconteur 1:  9-13, 11/93.
“Luke And Duke”, Raconteur. 1995; 2: 27-29.
“Henrietta And Lucinda”,  Raconteur. 1995; 5: 5-8. (reprinted, see below)
"The Fate of Dickie Paponovitch" Raconteur 1:10, 1994; 21-27. (reprinted, see above)    
“Fishing with Nick”,    shortbreadstories.co.uk,  2015
“Dad Stories”,  shortbreadstories.co.uk, 2015.(reprinted, see below)
“Earl’s Lake, Home to the  Big Bass”, shortbreadstories, 2015
“How to Brighten the Night”, Short-Story.me, 2015
"Henry Smith's Seasonings", Artpost Magazine, September 1, 2018 (reprinted, see below)

No link

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HENRIETTA AND LUCINDA

The Starlit Path Magazine, Summer, 2019, page 52  (out of print)

Reprinted  Bethlehem Writers Group Roundtable October 2024

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THE GUARDIAN OF THE WELL

Piker Press

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TERRITORIAL

Piker Press
 

Her Beautiful View

Bethlehem Writers 

Roundtable, Spring 2021

SCROLL DOWN,

the story is below Henry Smith's Seasonings

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Henry Smith's Seasonings

Previously appeared in ArtPost September 1, 2018

Reprint BWG Roundtable Summer, 2023

By the Light of the Moon

MockingowlsRoost Magazine and Blog

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"Unsolicited Advice"

Do really want to learn the hard way?

Piker Press

Illustrations

 A Sharp Edge

Piker Press
 

Heaven's Devils: Saturday Night, 1965
(Prequel to A Sharp Edge)

                   Piker Press

"An Unwanted Guest"
Short Circuit #13 (Short Editions)
A nice day of fishing is interrupted by an unwanted guest, a bird with a menacing stare. What does the bird want?

 

"Enough is Enough"

Silence is golden, but in the face of injustice, silence is complicit.

Down in the Dirt Magazine, a Scars Publication

Dad Stories
 

The Bethlehem Writers Group Roundtable Magazine

Best Not to Skip Class

Rue Scribe Short literature
April 7, 2025

Illustrations:

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CONTACT ME

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©2018 by Pete Barbour Stories and Illustrations. Proudly created with Wix.com

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