ZAYDE • by Julie L. Whitehead
I did not know my zayde was a writer until the day of my bat mitzvah in March 1989. Everyone was congratulating me on my bat mitzvah but also him on his newest book. For my bat mitzvah, he gave… Continue Reading
grandparents
THE GAME • by Anita Roberts Soupir
“If you can guess what I have in my pocket, you can have it.” I looked into the faded, cornflower blue eyes of my grandfather, as he sat across the table from me. Today they seemed remarkably clear as if… Continue Reading
GRANDMOTHER • by Patricia Correll
“Grandmother?” Rossa reached for the weathered door. There was no answer from within, but Grandmother was old. She was often sleeping when Rossa brought her supplies. The rough wood slab swung inward at her touch, and she frowned. Grandmother lived… Continue Reading
BALLOONS FOR GRANDAD • by Luke Saldanha
My old man’s dad died just a month before I was born. I always wished I’d met him. He was, by all accounts, a real character I’d have enjoyed talking to. Ma’s dad was still with us, so to differentiate… Continue Reading
UNPLAYED • by Lucy Stone
The butterflies were in Anna’s head, not in her stomach — a swarm of glorious, golden images she couldn’t seem to suppress, even when she told herself to count sheep, or recite nonsense rhymes, to try and lull herself to… Continue Reading
THE BOUNTY • by J.C. Towler
Grampa Don hated houseflies. To hear him talk you’d think there weren’t no flies in Chicago, but we visited once and there were flies a’plenty, I assure you. But when Grampa stayed with us he was forever complaining about flies… Continue Reading
OMA • by Ashley E. Kauffman
Jenna opened the small box at the bottom of Oma’s closet. She began to cry when she saw the pair of bright pink sneakers, which she had loved as a child, was embarrassed by as a teenager, and respected her… Continue Reading
SMOKE, LINIMENT, AND ROSE PERFUME • by KB Sluss
My grandmother kept a satchel in her room. It sat by the door collecting dust. Inside she had packed a change of undergarments, a nightgown, several pairs of knee-high socks, a cotton blouse, a plain skirt with an elastic waistband,… Continue Reading
IN THE BLINK OF AN EYE • by Rachael Kelly
“Please,” he says, and I hear the desperation in his voice before I turn around. “Please, can you help me? I’ve lost my granddaughter. Please, can you help…?” I remember the day that Alice disappeared in the supermarket; I remember… Continue Reading
LINES IN THE SKY • by Brandon Nolta
No matter who Jax asked about the old times, before his people made webs over the dead city, the answer was always similar. Nobody knows, the old stories don’t say. Under the shrugs, a signal almost too faint to hear:… Continue Reading