I quietly got out of my Chevy pickup truck. Stepping down into the dirt with my sandals and lower layers of my dress swarming in a cloud of dirt, I didn’t care and started to wander.  I wandered along the dirt path quietly, following the twists and turns. I consistently looked up to see if…

The cold fall is settling outside, and the semester is coming to an end. What consumes most of my days now are essays and piles of school books that wall me into an inescapable room. It’s all boring and dreary, a mirror of the changing seasons outside. My thoughts now are swamped by finals and…

Cattails reeds stick up circling a pond the air smells of ash Bloom cherry blossoms lie on cement sneezes echo Fort a dog plays in snow mounds nestled on an SD card Salsify hands tremble down the moonlit hill seeds float in wind Old Tree in the cool of night tree branches worn to stumps…

  The Flood By Cindy Jewkes The window fills with muddy wet so fast, we can’t make a gain. We’re fish in an aquarium during the sudden summer rain. My feet go on a polar plunge, bullets of ice on skin leave pain. Must guide the flood away from home during the sudden summer rain….

The craziest person I ever knew… packed his meager necessities, closed the door behind him, walked away from joy, drove beyond grief, pitched a tent beside chili peppers, bathed in the sunshine and a rain barrel, drank beer with the widowers, laughed with the children, painted his name on the desert sky, until his freed…

My mother and I used to walk in the meadow often. The little yellow dandelions seemed to whisper sweet messages in my ear. That was back when mother wasn’t sick. The last time we visited the meadow was October 3, 2002. The day before mom’s diagnosis. She had a tumor pushing against her lung, causing…

  never knew how to let a bottle go to waste I love the feeling hate the taste I did it till I loved what I hate I did it till I loved what I hate Feeling like I’m too far gone it’s like the moon I’m on Can’t Breathe with these holes left from…

Long ago in a land far away, A boy named Cinder-Elliot did play. He was happy and free ’til that sad day came When his mother died and step-father placed blame. Years passed and Elliot toiled His step-brothers poked fun, his happy plans foiled. One day a change came by, When a royal messenger did…

Cold air pricks at my throat as I take a deep breath Sheets of snow cover the train tracks below This station has long since been abandoned So why do I still linger? You promised we would one day meet again “When the branches sprout blossoming petals” It seems that time will never come for…

Daydreaming Flying, Transcending All of the pain, All of the worry Dissipates as his soul escapes his body A lucid vision of ecstasy Yearning for something greater the rhythm guides him Searching for a purpose, the lyrics make him feel found Carefree, Joyful An unexplainable excitement, An unexplainable happiness The scenery of mountains and fields…

I am looked upon as an annoyance that grows where grass should grow. I tower over the grass with my beautiful display of yellow flowers. Nevertheless, I am much more than that. I have the power to heal the human body. The liver loves me and cancer runs away from me. Yet, humans step on…

  Confliction Conflicting feelings, thoughts, ideas Apologizing for being a burden (even to myself) I’m trying to teach myself that logically, I am not a burden Anyone who says so isn’t needed in my life But after having these thoughts For so long And so often There’s no treasure map or instructions, Just a blank…

It is the middle of fall and I am watching my younger brother play with his toy trucks in the backyard of my uncle’s house. Our parents always brought us here if they had a very important meeting to attend. Today was as slow as any other day at our uncle’s house. I could have…

I’ve read there are those who believe their loved ones were given a warning that death was approaching. Some were visited by loved ones who had already passed.  Others felt the overwhelming need to prepare for a trip. And some people received a sign to escort them, or coax them, toward a bright light. The…

  That’s all that was left, to show she had even been there in the first place. The red plaid fleece and Sherpa sat on the bed all by its lonesome, to remind him that no matter what, that would be her home. Some people leave their toiletries. You know, the ones that you can…

“Skylar, it’s time to GO!” I hollered while ushering Robbie and Nash into the family minivan. Goldfish crackers were permanently smashed into the carpets, and there was a neon yellow stain near Nash’s seat from spilled slime during a road trip. “I’m coming!” came Skylar’s voice from the bathroom. “Don’t forget your swim bag!” The…

  Jay He answers the door and asks “How’s my favorite EMT?” Jay has been here before and remembers me This time Jay asks “what’s going on with this toilet?” 6’0” tall he stands in the door At 62 years young with glasses to show it With those white New Balance shoes too you know…

The death of American sportsmanship and liberty Will come at the hands of barbed wire fence and “No Trespassing” signs We will no longer be allowed to roam as barefoot children under big skies and rocky peaks The trout will still rise and the elk will still bugle But these things will be shackled to…

Do you remember the day you were born? Your mother’s cries shaking the walls of your wegiwa. While the lead from the white men splintered your home, And took your father from you. Do you remember the sounds of your squalls? The way they fluttered through the air like a hamo searching for an orchid….

  I was like a doll, Ragged and torn, On the verge of falling apart, Then you came into my life, And started to parch me up. But now that you are gone, I am starting to tear again, I miss your hugs, I miss your inquiries on how I am, I miss you constant…

When I was a college freshman living in the dorms, a girl in my hall lent me her Josh Groban CD, insisting that I just had to listen to it. I was entranced by the exotic, beautiful music and immediately fell in love with the sound of the Italian language. Maybe it just sounded really…

  My father emphasized traditions and Christmas was no exception Always, button up shirts and glasses of eggnog around the dinner table Regardless of heavy and  humid Decembers in Alabama But none was heavier than when his seat was left bare My mother bought the biggest tree, it scraped the ceiling And never had I…

The past month had been gray. Nothing but gray, but my thoughts were only black and white. Emptiness filled my being; food lost all flavor, color lost all pigment, music lost all feeling, I lost all joy. There was no point to life anymore. I had felt emotions so intensely for years, and then, I…

In the short duration that I have spent on this planet, I have been through a lot. My experiences as a military brat have given me some unusual opportunities to see the world in a different way. For the four years I lived overseas, I was able to live through some amazing and awful things….

“That’s my baby.” Barney stood as if he were riding a horse, his hat tilted back, enthusiastically pointing out the bar room window. He nodded to those nearby, his gaze returning outside; he just stood there. He whispered it again, more to himself, an assurance it was true, his smile never dimmed. “Just looks like…

Her fingers were cold as frost-bitten glass. They twitched nervously in her lap, which was absurd because she had nothing to be nervous about. The doctor ushered her toward a chair, “Ms. Oswald, you might want to sit down for this.” She arched an eyebrow, “Just spit it out, young man. I don’t need to…

They called her ‘Little Red: Rider of the Hood.’ She was the leader of the Riders, the most fearsome gang in Cantum City. No one really knew what she looked like, but everyone said she wore a red cloak to hide her badly scarred face. No one entered or left the Hood without Little Red…

5:00 am alarm. On most days, she dreads the sound, but not today. Today, she wakes up in the glorious city of Prague, or Praha, to the locals. Klara has always dreamed of the day that she would visit one of the oldest and still most beautiful cities in the world, the country where her…

Hi, it’s me, Vinny. I know that you didn’t answer because you don’t recognize the number, and you never pick up when you don’t know the number. And the reason you don’t know the number is because I’ve never called. Gosh, I’m rambling and embarrassing myself. Maybe I should stick to writing letters or constantly…

You could say I was a little surprised when a portal opened up in my room. It was very late at night, and the house had settled gently into a comforting silence, interrupted occasionally by the chirping of a cricket. At the time, I was reading, tucked under my covers, too engrossed in an adventure…