In Her Last Days
by Peter J. Dudley
the chemo has burned out / and hospice watches / with tender eyes
Directions Back to Childhood
by Judith Waller Carroll
Turn left at the first sign of progress / and follow the old highway / along the Stillwater River.
Saving Sgt. Billings
by Kari Gunter-Seymour
We did what we could, / hid the bottles, drove what / was left of him deep / into the yawning hollow
First Nail
by Brendan Constantine
I take your portrait down to clean / and notice the scar of another / hanging, painted over.
Thirteen
by Rebecca Foust
I was thirteen, and there was a boy’s mouth / where my legs met.
Satin Nightgown or Flannel Pajamas
by Claire Scott
Suspended between lover and caregiver and not doing either / especially well.
Changing Hearts
by David Watts
I heard for the second time / the news of his heart transplant, / details like a post card from a foreign country
Ecru
by Oak Morse
We were all one beautiful blend / of mama’s love. My brother, / the color of ecru, the other one / sepia, and me, ebony.
Lunchtime at the Café Buade, Quebec City
by Barbara P. Greenbaum
There is a woman in the booth next to us. / She looks at me as I remove my new hat.
Elegy for a Living Mother
by Renee Agatep
When she finally dies / she’ll meekly ask God why was it all / clattering highchairs, whiskers on stained sinks
It all began around a campfire…
Beautiful language
is meant to be heard as well as read, and in fact words were vocalized eons before they were ever committed to clay or parchment. Storytelling began around campfires. We seek prose and poetry that continue the tradition.
Contributor Spotlight:
Box Office Gospel
by Marissa Glover
Open Contests
by Stephen Parrish, with the editors of The Lascaux Review
