The Catherine Wheel

By Niya White

A trio of short stories featuring women on the verge:
• A teenage girl and her family moves to a small town with a dark secret
• The babysitter for two “friends” comes to terrible revelations about her relationships and life
• A traumatized woman descends into madness with memories of her childhood

Niya White is an author that lives in Chicago, IL. She is currently work on her first novel.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Niya White
• Release date: Jul 1, 2013
• ISBN: 9781301271719

Niya White

Niya White is a middle-age writer currently realizing her teenage dreams of being an author in wide publication.She is currently surviving the modern-day dystopia known as the south side of Chicago.

Book preview

The Catherine Wheel

Published by Niya White at Smashwords

Copyright 2013 Niya White

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The Catherine Wheel

St. Catherine’s was the largest church of the very small town it dominated, dwarfing even the 20- acre St. Martin’s church located just across a creek.

The feast of St. Catherine usually fell around the same day as Thanksgiving, but this uniquely American holiday was always in the background for their annual celebration. November 25th was the day mothers pulled out their fine china, not for feasting on a large bird, but for a simple dinner modest enough for a saint’s day and large enough for an envious neighbor. Children excitedly woke up not for a promise of unyielding gluttony toward the end of the day, but twice-a-year legal fireworks that are available for the only other time of the slightly less festive Fourth of July. And though it was generally frowned upon, a few men did catch a game here and there before helping build small wheels on their lawns. It was a favorite joke in quite a few homes that Thanksgiving was for Protestants.

It was known to the congregation that the removal of their saint from the Roman calendar has made their celebration a liability since 1969. Still, the feast of St. Catherine has been celebrated here since 1869, and no signs of abiding by the recent and very unpopular ‘Cultus- Suppressed’ have ever been noted.

In 1970, there was even a widely reported incident when four long-time members had chartered a bus to the nearest city for a very noisy protest in front of the Archdiocese offices. They were arrested, and following their release, came home to celebrated fame.

But gossip about St. Catherine’s usually didn’t end with the infamous protest. There was considerable controversy over some traditions.

Around late November wheels are everywhere--in windows, on lawns, bumper stickers, bracelets, on gold chains around slender necks--it seemed the wheels took over the last week of the month. It would make a visitor nervous if they weren’t given a quick explanation. And it irked some that other saints recognized by the Holy Church were given almost no recognition by the townspeople; All Saints Day was like any other November day for most people there, and Halloween was considered a threat to a child’s dental health.

However, the real mystery to those passing through was the re-enactments.

Following the protest at the Archdiocese, two world renowned journalists followed the members of the church and were quite violently ran out of town