Donald Carreira Ching was born and raised in Kahalu‘u. He received his BA in English from
the University of Hawai‘i at Manoa and is pursuing his MA in Creative Writing. He recently
completed his first novel, Between Sky and Sea, excerpted in Hawai‘i Review and Bamboo Ridge
(Issue #98). His work has also appeared in The Star-Advertiser, Cirque, Rio Grande Review, and Honolulu Weekly as the runner-up in the 2012 fiction contest. Forthcoming in Chaminade Literary Review, Bamboo Ridge #100.
THIS IS A YEAR OF THE DRAGON CONTEST ENTRY
Chameleon Johnny
Published by BETWEENWATERSUNSEEN | Friday, August 31, 2012 9:53 AM
100 words.
Likelike, town bound, Uncle always on the shoulder searching with broken limb. He is spider-thin in loose fabric. His moustache wears his face like his hair, thick with sweat.
We joke about his origins as if he were some newborn myth. Give him names. Give him life. I heard from a friend of mine who works at American Savings, who knows the teller that handles his accounts. You wouldn’t believe the withdrawals.
Every day, searching. No car. No cage. Likelike, Kane`ohe Bound, I thought I saw him in the trees. Creeping across the branches, hand over hand, hiding his tail.