Day comes and he brandishes a small pocket-knife, silver and whetted; he sticks it in my back and the blade twists in my body, drawing not only blood but a soundless cry as well. It’s hard to practice indifference and even harder to let a wingless bird go, so I cut myself open and this…
Category: Another World Within
Ties that Bind
I’m going to tell you the story Da told me, and he says he got it from his own Da, Bill Verling. I don’t remember him – he died when I was about two – but Da swears up and down that Granda always spoke about what he saw that night in awe. Granda wasn’t…
“leukemia,” “die doktor,” “process & finale”
leukemia blood ate from his body wrapped in radiation. his tongue embrace the nectar that his mouth spills out. a hummingbird hovers above his lips—still nothing new. still the body caves onto itself. still there are little whispers to find the sick dying, & sick are dying. worms detect his eyes; sparrows discover the worms….
What about the Rain?
It was misting again. It felt like it was always misting, making everything constantly damp and unpleasant while weighing the air down. The young woman quietly pulled out a cigarette and lit it, feeling guilty and rebellious at the same time. She knew smoking was bad, but she didn’t care. It gave her an excuse…
Our Father
CW: Medical stuff. Grief: a universal language, and yet when spoken, nobody speaks back. A silence that echoes, and who to hear if one is without faith? Aimless prayers and purple knees, the concrete floor is cold, the silence is colder. Nobody is listening, but I’m not ready to stand up just yet. Odours of…
Albi Querci, Florida
Let’s get pebbles in our boots As the motionless sky gradients And the mountains turn grapefruit Let’s get out of our dents And escape from faux wood panels, scuffed beige walls, the popcorn ceiling, the off-white cracked molding, and our haphazard decor Before the sky petals white Upon a bright blue canvas Let’s take a…
First Big Night
CW: Today’s story is a work of fiction which deals with intimate partner violence and its aftermath. It is also suggested that one character may be a sex worker. Please skip this piece if you need to. If you’re comfortable sharing it, pass it along. If you or someone you know has questions about, or…
“Homeland” and “Death, if you were a Lover”
Homeland I went to summer camp on old Keyauwee ground. We called returners Weekaya, as if we had been on a long journey away Though I could have driven it back and forth Sixteen times a day. And I would Just to feel like I was home Even though it was a home I stole….
Life During a Good Time
Q: Where do you work?A: I’ll tell ya.Q: Where do you live?A: Attempting to live at the intersection of stoicism and chill, wherever that is.Q: What did you have for dinner?A: It needed a little more depth.Q: What are you watching?A: A new car wasn’t even $10,000.Q: What are you reading?A: Sometimes you grow up…
“When the Future Appears”
Remember, the time of year when the future appears like a blank sheet of paper -Jackie Kay “Promise” “Five hundred twenty five thousand six hundred minutes…” -Rent “Seasons of Love” Theater kids, or at least theater kids of a certain age know exactly how much time that is. Maybe you know even if you weren’t…