CJ Woods III’s Story Archive

Darkness And Light

July 13, 2023 | by CJ Woods III

On Thursday, June 29th, I was sitting on my porch when a great wind blew up, bowing trees and stripping branches. Rain came in sideways, and I went inside the house. Through my screen door, I watched leaves being blown across the grass and street. When I turned away from … Read More

A New World Coming

June 29, 2023 | by CJ Woods III

“There’s a new world coming, and it’s just around the bend…” When I lived in Los Angeles California in the early 1970s, I had the good fortune to be able to see Nina Simone in concert. She introduced one song by saying, “There are 12 million Black people in this … Read More

An Offered Arm

June 22, 2023 | by CJ Woods III

The interview with the young woman completed, I suggested that we two go to lunch. The graphic designer was new to St. Louis, Missouri and was in town to apply for a position in the advertising department of the Famous-Barr department store. I oversaw the work of the people who … Read More

Here Comes Archy

June 15, 2023 | by CJ Woods III

When I was an attendant at the Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania, a co-worker introduced me to a book. I was already an avid consumer of books and had previously spent four years as a page in the closed stacks of the University of Pittsburgh’s library. But … Read More

Here Comes The Sun

June 8, 2023 | by CJ Woods III

“Don’t run Clop’s legs off,” my daughter told my granddaughter. Lauren had brought Myah to me to watch while Momma ran some errands. Myah is newly five years old and has found that her grandfather’s house is the “House Of The Rising Yes.” We promptly set off on a game … Read More