My fingers grip and coil around slender shoots as I hoist myself up into the arboreal forest like a feral animal. Tackling the steep incline, I scramble to keep up with the older boys who sprint ahead like sound waves. The mountain air is fresh, and I am invigorated, powerful, and free. Cedar, musk, andContinueContinue reading “Marmoset, Raccoon, and Fox by Karen Schauber”
Monthly Archives: March 2024
Affection by Koss
It was Sunday, summer, hell-hot, and I headed to Grandma’s cottage to pick up some tools I had stored there; Grams let me know that Bill, her second son, was squatting there while waiting out a drunk driving penalty—with no wheels and no apartment. I knew his slippery grip on ownership—he had a habit ofContinueContinue reading “Affection by Koss”
Under My Father’s Tree by Steph Liberatore
From where I’m standing, I can see my father’s mulberry. It’s just a few yards away, on the other side of the thin marsh that runs along the driveway. But I’m not sure how to get to it anymore. The plywood board that crossed the marsh is gone now, and I know I’ll sink intoContinueContinue reading “Under My Father’s Tree by Steph Liberatore”
The Hope Cure: Negotiations with the Peri-fog by Nuala O’Connor
Perimenopausal anger frequently takes me by surprise. The hormonal swill it comes from feels like an alien starburst in the galaxy of my body. I snarl, I rage, I want to disappear to some place – an island – where no one will speak to me or touch me; I want to close my borders toContinueContinue reading “The Hope Cure: Negotiations with the Peri-fog by Nuala O’Connor”
Turn on the A/C by Guy Biederman
Traveling across country, we were four kids plus a friend, a mom, a dad, a grandma, and a dog in the family Falcon wagon, with our luggage strapped on top and a canvas bag of water stretched across the grill. Dad sat behind the wheel with his twitches and tics and Maalox, dreaming of aContinueContinue reading “Turn on the A/C by Guy Biederman”
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