(mac)ro(mic)

She sees Gillian loitering in the lobby just across from the ladies’ toilets, arms crossed, leaning against the wall. “Going to the ladies’?” she says. “Yeah.” Gillian nods at the men’s room. “Waiting for Ryan.” “Leaving already?” Vita asks. “Turning into a young people’s party. […]

Molly drives for an hour, past the brackish grey landscape of the past, squeezing the wheel a little as she gets closer. When she arrives, a woman in a blue apron takes her order. Molly drapes her coat over the vinyl seat. She orders coffee—black, […]

The doctor’s office is empty because Tess asked for the last, the very last appointment that the doctor could offer. Everyone else is with their families, in the theme park, or trying to beat the meteorites to it. “And this dosage will kick in two […]

“This?” my daughter asks, a fingertip to her lashes. “Eyes, baby.” Iris, pupil, lens. She nods. A finger to her lips, “This?” “Mouth.” Tongue, tonsils, uvula. She smiles and continues tagging her world with words. “This?” “Book.” “This?” “Dog.” “This?” “Flower.” Atoms, molecules, cells. Words […]

What if you never walked into the class with a whiff of woodsy cologne and a grin that matched the white of your shirt? What if I never followed every movement of yours from the back row? What if you never caught me staring at […]

1. Reduced to flattened images, they falter their farewells in blurry living rooms around the globe. Sing a few bars, blow a few kisses. Love you, Mom. Love you, Gramma. They scan their screens for a response from the blue-swathed figure in the bed. Clear […]

The realtor said the terra cotta floors once gleamed like wet pinto beans. They moved in and mopped vinegar and soap into the oversize tiles then wrapped his old t-shirts around their fingers and dug into the grout until their hands went numb. They exposed […]

For two years. I was abused.  I had my life. Stolen from me. By a woman who thought that it was hers for the taking. She told me she loved me. And I believed her. She…Told me she’d “give me the world”, but instead she […]

We name our dog Fomo because he has this fear of missing out. When I read to my son, Davy, he pokes his head into the book, studies pictures and words. When I say, “The ducks say,” Fomo answers before Davy can, “Woof, woof.” When […]

Sprinkler    I’ve been in love with her since she fluttered into that sterile classroom sweaty from the bike ride and dressed horribly as always, but she’s lived her life and I’ve lived mine. We remained close through texts. Maybe didn’t speak for weeks. Maybe […]

On Mother’s Day, I throw a penny in the fountain outside City Hall. I want Mother to come home.  There’s no response, just the clink of the penny, the whoosh of water, and reflections dancing. I throw a second penny. Wish for Mother to write. […]

The smell, overwhelming, and not the expected, extended their exchanged look at the seating. With only the sisters and their families this year, there was no need for an additional kid’s table. Instead adults and children alternated, parents and siblings split, cousins mixed. But counting […]