TURNING THE VESSEL was published in Gargoyle Magazine.

As with diamonds and children, burls are wild growths that develop under pressure or stress, from injury, and the infestation of pests. Like a malignant lump, burls protrude where buds have become knotted and tangled away from their normal growth. Most burls grow underground—in secret—only to be discovered when the tree is uprooted in death or by a ravaging storm. It is their rare and wild nature, captured and shaped into something that can be held beneath the hand, which makes them so valuable. A burl grows so strong, like iron forged by fire, that it nearly refuses to split even though its twisted grain is unpredictable and may shatter on the lathe if turned and touched in the wrong way.

Author’s Note: For a short time, I tried my hand at woodturning and some of the metaphors in this story come from that cursory knowledge. I am stunned by the exquisite parallels between turning wooden vessels and developing resilience in life.