What if there was absolute proof of the soul? Would you ever have yours removed? Would you be friends with someone who had had it removed? In this work of philosophical short fiction, science has definitively discovered that your soul resides in your appendix. Sometimes, when your appendix is having issues, it is for medical reasons. However, sometimes it is because your soul, residing in your appendix, is having issues. The solution in either case is the same, remove the organ. Rolly is a young boy, like all other young boys, who likes to play with is friends. However, his appendix was inflamed and had to be removed. Now, the other children call him “No Soul” and refuse to play with him. Feeling left out, he goes to a neighbor’s house to visit another friend Cioran. However, Cioran’s parents are far more religious and, when their child had appendix issues, they refused to have it removed as they didn’t want to remove his soul. Because his appendix was not removed Cioran, unlike Rolly, died.

Should a bipolar person go on medication if doing so limits their ability to do “great things?” In this work of psychological fiction, Irena is a bipolar piano player that fled, years ago, from an eastern bloc country. Her troubled relationship ended, and her partner died shortly after their breakup. This put her in a deep depression and sent her to therapy for years where she was treated with medication for being bipolar. One day, her dead ex comes to her and tell her she should enter a world renowned piano competition with a $400,000 prize. Her therapist reminds her about her stage fright that ended her career, but Irena insists. She practices, and wins the competition and the money. She decides to move to New York and leaves the $400,000 prize money as a thank you gift to her therapist.

Is the specter of death the greater motivator of life? And, without that specter, would humans lack motivation to work and achieve? In this work of philosophical short story fiction, Peter wakes up to a warning from his computer that the nanites in his grandmother’s body are failing, and she is slowly dying from kidney failure. He spends the morning working to find the source of the sickness and issues. After some work, he realizes that the nanites are producing a product that is slowly poisoning his grandmother; it’s murder! He goes to his 150-year-old grandmother’s house to tell her, only to find out she knows about the issues, and she is the one who created them. Even though she is the creator of the nanites, and is a celebrity scientist of sorts, she has come to the conclusion that without the fear of death, humans lack motivation to excel.

Is it okay to give credit to an unknown person? Is there value in taking credit for the success of your own hard work? In this work of philosophical short story fiction, the narrator is on a road trip and decides to stop in for breakfast at a small-town diner in Gardenia. Like most breakfast diners, the local community is there. He strikes up a conversation with an older gentleman sitting next to him and learns about Elroy Goddard, the most powerful, wealthiest, and probably the kindest, man in their small town. He owns practically everything, and has helped out practically everyone in town at one point or another. Many of the streets and parks are named after him as well. The waiter says he’s her “uncle,” of a sort, and even helped her get the job. However, after additional questioning it becomes clear nobody has actually ever seen Elroy, and his actions and support of the town are more indirect than they seemed at first. The narrator leaves town wondering if Elroy is real at all.

What might you learn by walking in another person’s body? In this work of body swapping philosophical short story fiction, Empathery has perfected the technology to move the consciousness of one person into the body of another. To promote their business, they have partnered with the local school. Carol, the narrator of the story, is surprised when her daughter and son both come home in new bodies as part of a two-day assignment for school. Later, her husband Dave comes home in the body of a co-worker as part of a work team building exercise. Carol is offput by the entire thing, but when Dave decides to take the kids on a weekend fishing trip, she comes up with an excuse to stay home. Over the weekend, she goes to Empathery and gets the body a younger and fitter woman than herself. She finds the entire process disturbing, never leaves the house, and takes the body back as soon as she is able.

How would you live if you knew there would be no tomorrow? In this work of philosophical short story fiction, the earth is coming to an end. A free-floating planet, dubbed the “black sun” is on a collision course with earth. The narrator goes out into the darkness of the streets to walk, lost in thoughts about his life, about its happiness, and its failures. He hears a tv on and wanders into a house to find a little girl, watching the tv. She is alone in the house, she explains. Her mother left years ago, and her father left earlier in the week, leaving the house stocked with food for her. He talks to her, and they decide to face the end of the world together.

What would you do to ensure your soul continues forever? Does comfort with death require truth? In this work of philosophical short fiction, the narrator goes to a pseudo-scientist/cult leader who says that by consuming the ashes of the dead, you are consuming their souls and spirit. She is visiting to seek her revenge because her mother and father got wrapped up in the ideology of the man. She tours the facilities, and learns about the “science” and faith behind the process. In the end, she exacts her revenge for what was done to her family.

How do you deal with a family member with a severe mental illness? To what extent do you allow them into your life, when doing so causes stress and harm to your well being? In this work of philosophical short fiction, the narrator is suffering from a severe mental illness, but clearly loves her daughter. Her daughter has suffered the attention of her mother’s mental illness for years and has done her best to limit her mother’s effects on her life. The narrator correctly intuits that her daughter is getting married. She is not invited to the wedding so to prevent there from being a scene, and drama. No matter, she continues to focus on “planning” the wedding until she is eventually arrested.

How can a son receive the attention of his father, when they don’t share similar interests? Should a child change in order to find common ground with their father? In this work of philosophical short story fiction, Gregory is a young, sensitive child, looking for approval from his father. However, his father’s only interest seems to be hunting. His father correctly understands that Gregory is not old enough, and does not have the temperament, for hunting. However, Gregory wants his father’s approval and his mother insists he at least take him out for target practice. Finally, after much waiting, Gregory’s father agrees, not to take him hunting, but out for target practice. While at target practice they find a sick kitten, still alive, with ants crawling over it. Gregory’s father has Gregory shoot the kitten to end its life.

What causes some people to struggle to find love? In this work of philosophical short story fiction, Monique is on an online date when Leo, her ongoing booty call, contacts her. She ends her date, finding out their mutual friend Jace, and her first love, recently died. Monique arrives at Leo’s place, they have unloving sex, and she leaves. Later, they see each other at Jace’s funeral and Leo’s would-be girlfriend asks Monique to back off. She refuses. The following day she goes for her annual mammogram only to find out she is pregnant with Leo’s baby. A few days later she miscarries, and goes right back to her life of wine, grading English papers, and online dating.

What is the purpose of defending yourself in a fight? To what ends should you go to stop getting bullied? In this work of ethical fiction, a pre-teen Rusty is sent to the general store on his bike to buy alcohol for Walt, the local drunk, in exchange for ice-cream. While at the store Rusty is attacked by two older boys trying to steal his bike. He holds onto his bike, but is badly beaten in the exchange. Later that day, Rusty gets a metal pipe and tells his friend Gene to meet him that night. They meet and Rusty tells Gene his plan, to toss the pipe into the bushes, distract the boys who beat him up, and get in a quick punch before running away. Gene gets scared and leaves, just as Bill, one of the boys that beat him up, sees him. In a panic, Rusty swings the pipe, hitting Bill. Rusty goes into a rage and continues hitting Bill. The next day Bill is in the hospital, and the police are at Rusty’s doorstep with questions.

Why does society seem to support the leadership of bully strongmen? In this work of philosophical short story fiction, the narrator is visiting his friend Tomas. They have been of-and-on friends for years, but now Tomas is dying. Over drinks, they reflect on their lives while Tomas retells the story of a baboon tribe he read about. The baboon tribe was run by vicious leaders and violence was common. Until, one day, they found a trash heap. The largest, most dominant members ate from the heap, while the less aggressive were denied access. Eventually, the trash gives the baboon’s tuberculosis, and all the aggressive males die off. The passive males reform the tribe as an egalitarian paradise of sharing. As soon as baboons from the outside tribes try to enter, they quickly learn they will be pushed out unless the adopt the kinder ways. This goes on for six generations. Plato argued humans were too stupid to trusted with voting in a democracy. The baboons might tend to agree.

Are all religious leaders who say they know the will of God, a cult? In this work of philosophical short story fiction, two young boys, Fletcher and Mark, throw rocks at rusted cars in the local dump. While throwing rocks they discuss the recent proclamation of “the Sister” who has told them the end is coming in just two short weeks. The boys discuss if they believe the Sister, and the unfairness of their lives ending before they have had a chance to fully live. They discuss running away from the group to get additional time before the end, but decide the few extra weeks is not a good trade for an eternity of damnation. In the end, the decide to spend their remaining time in each other’s company, trying to enjoy life and be happy.

Are you simply what you repeat? In this work of philosophical short fiction covering the power of repeated action in changing ideas, a weak spirited loser is contacted by the government and informed he has a twin that is the head of a powerful mafia organization. The government will pay him $1 million dollars if he goes through their program to learn the mannerisms and speech of his mafia twin and replace him in the organization. As the twin learns how to act like the mafia boss, he becomes more like him until he escapes the training program with the money and a new personality.