More Than Words

Many years ago, while living in San Diego, CA, and serving in the US Navy, I attended a "Psychic Fair". One of the things they did there was to read a person's past lives in the patterns of wax, dripping into water. The woman told me of several lives she believed I'd lived, but one - in particular - resonated. She said I was a librarian, in Alexandria, and that I was there when the library was burned... That stuck with me. I have had an obsession, ever since, with Ancient Egypt, and that period, in particular... I wrote a short story - this story - because I was never able to get that woman's words out of my mind. The cover is from the collection where you will find this story - Defining Moments. It was nominated for the Bram Stoker Award - I lost to Peter Straub, which I can live with... my story "The Gentle Brush of Wings" won the award that year... This story... I have always loved.