OLD ADDIE • by Donia Strand
Honey, come in, come in. Set yourself down in that old rocker to the side of my bed. It’s good to see a young face around here. Help yourself to a cookie out of that tin if you’re hungry. So… Continue Reading
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BOX • by Keev Kennedy
“Grandpa, tell us the story!” Myles demanded. “Yeah! The story!” Emma added. Charlie Grafton sat with his grandkids in his empty second-storey bedroom. He eyed the younglings through thick glasses. “What story?” From the base of the ladder out in… Continue Reading
UNCLE DON GETS TWITTER • by Benjamin Brandenburg
Don Hartford @UncleDoninIndiana · Sept 17 Today Kyle showed up at house w/mother. Lovely woman. Different than expected/pictured. Kyle been exaggerating? Possibly! Brought cake for birthday. How great to be surprised? Sometimes think seen all life can offer & feel… Continue Reading
INNOCENT • by C. L. Killgore
Innocent? Ha! If actions speak louder than words, she was loud and proud. Finally! Her children teased her about being a pushover, but not this time. This time she’d gotten it right. She was sure of it. Well, she’d been… Continue Reading
WOBBLY MAN • by Jim Brennan
Mort Slavin rushed through the kitchen when he saw someone stumble outside his house. In his haste, he ran full force into the dining room table, doubled over trying to catch his breath, and by the time he got to… Continue Reading
THE 8’46” MILE • by John Mara
A lifetime ago, I smoked a Washington High School record, running the mile in 4 minutes and 23 seconds. Now, at fifty-eight, I want to run the mile again, albeit in twice that time — to prove my angina is… Continue Reading
SIN PALABRAS • by Mike Pemberton
Isabella rises at first light, as always. Fifty years in the same house. Seventy years with the same man, now passed. Nine children. Four boys, four girls, living. One boy dead. Drowned. Or was it a fire? “Aye,” she whispers,… Continue Reading
WHERE MINE WENT • by Kenneth Jakubas
My future went missing at a minor league baseball game. Hurricanes vs. Growlers. It was the hottest day of the summer, and the heat bent the field, putting a mirage over everyone’s head. Then a man turned from the bleacher… Continue Reading
ESCAPE • by Wayne Scheer
The hum of the television, the chatter on cellphones, the unrelenting bass beat of the music made Alex uneasy. His eyesight was going, his hips ached, but his hearing remained fine. One of the little jokes God plays on old… Continue Reading
TO YOU — THE WOMAN ON THE RUN • by Carrie Esposito
I turn my sunken cheek onto the warm concrete and see you down the sidewalk in your fluorescent shorts and tank top, squinting at my fallen body and calculating your odds of getting back to your run. Maybe you are… Continue Reading