FLASH

Small but mighty, these short, incisive pieces cut to the core in a just a few words.
Swoon

Jenna says that he typically goes for redheads, so I run to Target and buy a box of hair dye.

Little Cow

A man with a fistful of showbags said, “That cow sounds like a person trying to sound like a cow.”

Sisters of the Divine Apparatus

The day does not conclude with the gentle exhale of the earth, but with Mother Superior flipping the hourglass over, again.

The Sweetness

I’m dancing with my best friend’s husband, under the influence of his jaws and thighs.

First Boyfriend

I run with a pack of older boys from our neighborhood, the only girl.

Alan Rickman and the Mermaids of the Conch Republic

Sound engineers believe Alan Rickman possessed the perfect male voice. Early acting teachers told him he sounded like he was speaking from the back of a drainpipe.

Post Pregnancy Examination (Shortened Form)

Infant’s Name: A
Delivery Date: August 1, 2002

dead roses
The Cycle

It all started with the curse of my tits. Women’s bodies are cursed. Everyone tries to look at them, everyone tries to ignore them.

Forest Walk on a Friday

Every time I come to the forest, it’s different, but so am I.

Athena, the Octopus, Solves a Puzzle

The new octopus at the children’s aquarium was named Athena, and as we waited for her to emerge, I thought of the almost-too-faint second line on the pregnancy test three days before.

The Bird That Carried One Hundred Messages To America

At the end of the meeting, the villagers agreed to contribute shillings and pounds to sponsor Elochi to a university in America.

Laika Came Home

When Laika the space dog comes back, bulleted to earth in a tiny white escape pod that dissolves upon opening, nobody can believe it.

Ruminations

Through the dusty window in my parent’s bedroom, I watched the neighbor’s cattle graze.

graffiti on cement
Slabs

We drifted junk with a sledgehammer looking for juice. Sometimes the rage.

Damn Good Listener

I know you shouldn’t keep wild animals as pets, but I’ve had the same spider in my bathroom sink for over two weeks.

photo of windshield
Mother and Her Remains

Mama sped along the highway, unbothered by bits of gravel that flew up from the front tires and struck the windshield of the sedan.

Teeth and Boyfriends

With great reluctance, I agree to meet a cousin for an outside lunch…

forest fire
When The Ten Thousand Ton Trilobite Attacked

We said, Heck, that’s really something.

Out of the Harbor and Into the Open Sea

I’d never heard of anyone having a second baby right after the first one, but everything was so strange in those early days of motherhood that I just acted on instinct.

The Rift

None speak of how the streets collide in coarse seams like scars, the fresh cobbles unable to level with the ones shaken from their mortar by uncountable seasons.