Evince Magazine

Essays

May 10, 2024

An Unpalatable Truth

We think we know the people with whom we forge deep friendships. However, we only know what our friends choose to reveal. We might discover a greater truth later or even after they die. Then we have a choice: whether to let it shape how we feel about the person. I’ll call my friend Janet. ... Read More

Essays

April 11, 2024

In Plain Sight

On a recent Sunday, I parked next to the grounds of the Danville Museum, as I usually do, and walked along the white picket fence surrounding that museum to a point where I crossed the road and entered Danville’s First Presbyterian Church, to which I belong, and sing in the choir. Standing out against the... Read More

Essays

March 14, 2024

A Grand Day Out!

You often see “Christmas in July” store sales. Well, this is my “July in March” writing (four months apart, but only two seasons apart). When my little family lived in Yanceyville, we frequented two more-urban areas: Danville and Greensboro. In those days, before the existence of Danville’s marvelous Science Center, the Greensboro Natural Science Center... Read More

Essays

February 13, 2024

The Stink Bug Having Crawled, Crawls On

While walking down one hallway of Danville’s First Presbyterian Church on a Sunday a while back, I saw something small and shadowy which stood out against the wall’s white paint. I dared not touch it, squash it, or even try to find some container in which to safely transport it back outside (as I am... Read More

Essays

January 11, 2024

It’s OK to Play in Your Good Clothes

The other day, on my way to my car, in Danville’s Westover Drive Food Lion parking lot, I saw something which “jumped out at me” (not literally, though). It began with something we all do (or should do) with our grocery carts when we’re through with them, but morphed into a sort of game. A... Read More

Essays

December 12, 2023

Thoughts on a Good, Rural Man

We recently lost a truly good “rural man,” whose country upbringing centered him in the tradition of hard work, particularly in working with wood. His name: Joe Hammack. He and his family were “one of a kind,” harkening back to simpler, “frill-less” times, and denoted by dedication to the basics of hard work and the... Read More

Essays

November 15, 2023

Pyramid of Values

A few days ago, I felt as if I had suddenly entered a security-camera film in which someone is caught stealing at a store. But It wasn’t me! If this video had existed, it would have been made at ALDI, with me in the background and the “purloining star” in the foreground (well, an “extended... Read More

Essays

October 12, 2023

Graveside Commission

The other day, I attended a graveside funeral service for the brother of a fellow choir member and friend at Danville’s Highland Burial Park. Years ago, Lester Flatt recorded “Won’t You Give Me My Flowers While I’m Living.” So, in that respect, you can also give me my friends while I’m living, too. At a... Read More

Essays

September 12, 2023

Chain-fishing and the “Greater D”

I’m sure you’ve seen parents with their kids on a leash and kids who “need to be on a leash” (not the same meaning). The nicer term for “leash” is “tether” (however, I don’t think there’s a nicer term for “need to be on a leash”). But this article isn’t about the behavior. It’s about... Read More

Essays

July 19, 2023

Auf Wiedersehen Erma’s

Back in the April edition of Evince, I wrote about a house that is no more. This month, I write about a restaurant that is no more: “Erma’s Restaurant.” My writing about these two demolitions within a specific range of time only reflects the specific range of time in which they occurred. It doesn’t mean... Read More

Essays

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