Larry Benjamin. Wordsmith. Writer. Author.

We lost our beloved Lhasa Apso, Coco , last September. She’d had a heart condition, so her loss wasn’t entirely unexpected but it was devastating nonetheless. Her slow decline was heartbreaking and painful to watch. After taking a cue from her and consulting with her primary vet and her cardiologist we decided it was time to let her go. My husband met us at the vet at the appointed hour. I remember him sitting on the bench in the exam room crying as I held her. “I thought I was ready,” he said between sobs, “But I’m not. I’m not.” My heart broke for all of us: for Coco, for him, for myself. She’d been a great dog, stubborn and regal and difficult, but utterly herself and a fighter to the end. We still had Toby, our silky terrier. He seemed fine, we assured ourselves. He enjoys being an only dog finally and getting our undivided attention, we said. We weren’t ready for another dog, couldn’t face the devastation that would come with another loss. We’d lost two dogs already and I w...

Welcome to Wednesday Briefs―a blog hop where authors post 500-1000 words of free flash fiction every week. In my books, I write about men in love but we all know that love's road isn't always pretty and well-lit and paved. Sometimes it is dark, strewn with rocks, lined in thorns, spraining ankles and drawing blood. In my flash fiction, I sometimes wander down those other roads. Black Cat Felix unlocked the gate remotely. Jason opened the front door and stepped into cool of the hall, a shadow obscuring his face. He looked up, and seeing Felix at the top of the stairs he seemed to falter—it was the tiniest hesitation and in a moment he was cloaked in his usual blistering bravado. “Hey,” he called. “What happened? You never lock the gate.” Their cat, Rover, who had been roaming the upstairs hall with feline grace, now rubbed himself against Felix’s leg. He was a beautiful cat. Jet black, with a splash of white across his chest, he was elegant as a tuxedo. “Where were...

Recently as part of a global volunteer initiative at the day job, I had to schedule three volunteer events for our Global Operating Center in Berwyn, PA. One of the places I chose for us to volunteer with was the Francisvale Home for Smaller Animals , a volunteer-driven no kill animal shelter in Wayne PA. Our job that day was to help clear the large pet cemetery of fallen branches and limbs from trees that had been cut down. It was physically challenging work but didn’t require much thought. To distract myself and because I’m a reader ― I will read anything including cereal boxes at the grocery store if the checkout line is long ― I began to read the inscriptions on the pet tombstones. Some spoke of profound loss: Electra 1989-2010 Forever in my Heart Chief Erny Mother’s Pal 1926-1934 Button Goldstein 1986 – 1998 We love you sweet girl Tyler – Dude “The Best” 3/12/02 Some were starkly simple, remembering a dear friend, a companion, ...