On our first day back from Summer Break, my best friend Jimmy fell out of his chair clutching his knee, screaming. I laughed, believing this to be an out-of-place practical joke I was usually in on. Jimmy kept saying his… Continue Reading
Back in Auburndale Elementary, Ms. Ponte was my first-grade homeroom teacher. She was so elderly she had probably crossed the Red Sea with Moses. The problem with her was she was falling apart right before my eyes. If you’ve ever… Continue Reading
She had come at lunch for help on her essay. He made sure the door was left open. No reason. That’s just what you did these days. Sarah was a quiet, sweet girl. One of his Honors kids. He was… Continue Reading
Monday, staring at lychees in the specialty shop, Zuberi wondered who had murdered the snitch. And how he and Rosa could have quarreled over something so — impersonal. They were an ideal couple, had met in their late thirties, wiser.… Continue Reading
Nick made short work of assembling boxes and filling the office supply orders that had come in overnight. Delivered in twenty-four hours or it’s free was one of Knickerbocker Office Supplies and Fine Writing Papers’ guarantees. The store, an Upper… Continue Reading
He wore an expensive suit and expensive-smelling cologne. Black or dark brown eyes took her in, took in her shopping cart. He didn’t have a cart. A bouquet of white daisies was cradled in his left arm near a handful… Continue Reading
Fortunately and unfortunately, no two days are the same. “I’ll be damned if I let them get the best of me, today! Not me, not today!” I say to myself. The morning bell screams through the sound system. Within minutes,… Continue Reading
He loves me. I study the petal held between my fingertips with interest, amused that something so fragile could determine my heart’s fate. I drop it to float down and land on the pavement where many discarded petals lay scattered… Continue Reading
I let the children play with the lions because I decided that it was part of their education to examine life from another planet. This was after I ordered a box of domestic cats but many of my students, the… Continue Reading
“Welcome to the Academy,” the Chancellor announced. His voice was echoed by the crowd’s applause, whose eclipsing thunder reduced his volume to that of a whisper. I was in that crowd, but clapping softly. When asked by the admissions officer… Continue Reading