If you’re up for a story about far-future Buddhists, ecological devastation, and what our descendants might think of us, check my most recent publication, “The Bodhisattvas”, which is now available over at the latest edition of Subterranean Online, guest edited by Jonathan Strahan. (Also, stories by Maureen McHugh and Tom Holt! I think more stories will be going online throughout the month so do check back on it, too.)
It’s especially wonderful to share a TOC with Maureen, who I count not just as one of my teachers and a literary hero but also as a friend.
Excellent story, Gord.
Truly wonderful. I linked to it and pointed others in its direction, and they’re enjoying it as much as I did.
Gord,
Grand. I really like the theme of being so angry at our ancestors, who really are our family, and how understanding our own mistakes leads us to begin forgiving them.
I also saw an echo of your Lester Young story, in that moment where she sees all the multiple possibilites of the hand holding. Neat.
Also there were just a couple of breath-taking lines.
It’s nice. Congrats.
Thanks, y’all. :) Took me, oh, about ten years (off and on) to write that story — first draft was in 2000 and very different — so I am glad it turned out as it did. :)
And Mike — yeah, there was an epigram to the original draft of the story from Joanna Macy’s writing, in which she said something along the lines of the fact that the one thing our descendants will have to struggle to do in their relationship with us, their ancestors, is to find a way to forgive us for what we did to the earth.
And Asakiyume — wow, that’s a very flattering comment thread on your blog!