By Haeun Kim tick tick tick. the shaman’s mouth steams,lip naked and hot like a teapot handle. sherescues the soul of the drowned, disguisedas byeolsang, spirits of another world. under-water, she swallows the saliva clawing upher throat to join the saltwater. tick tick tick.never let it out. she releases the unjustlydead, souls pouring like liquid. … Continue reading in which poetry is a form of exorcism
Snowbound Express
By Carla Capizzi It was the beginning of twilight on a cold December afternoon. Snow fell thickly on the station tracks, silently covering the rooftops of Trieste. The sky, leaden and shadowed, was veiled by heavy clouds. Not a single star or moon was visible. Far away, the whistle of a conductor was heard, running … Continue reading Snowbound Express
Engraved Invitations
By Fred Klein It was late at night, and the fog was dense and cold. The countess’ carriage driver, Rene, was confused as to which was the right trail to take to get back to the castle. Countess Alexandra Radu had gone to the King’s palace to celebrate the new year 1700. Now returning home, … Continue reading Engraved Invitations
You Are One of Us
By Melissa Owens Intercepted by an intergalactic traveler and shared with the author, Mahan Kirn, who translated it into English in 2020. I don’t have a name, it hasn’t been necessary. I am One of Us. Mother says I’m more rambunctious than many young Ones, and noisier. That’s because I can’t tolerate separation. I’m overcome … Continue reading You Are One of Us
Library Collections
By Benedicte Grima When I walk into a house, the first thing my eyes tune into is the presence or absence of books. I am immediately unsettled by the invisible volumes, and the space seems stark, lifeless. When I watch speakers on television talk from their homes and offices, I scour the bookshelves behind them, … Continue reading Library Collections
To Manchester and Back
By Norma Hart Conflict is a word often associated with stories, and I am informed that there should always be conflict in a well told story. In Evelyn’s story there aren’t villains, or monsters, or wars. This story then, may not be for you - unless only a quiet inner discord - which our protagonist … Continue reading To Manchester and Back
The Red Oak
By Matias Travieso-Diaz An oak tree is an oak tree. That is all it has to do. If an oak tree is less than an oak tree, then we are all in trouble. Nhat Hanh A majestic red oak (Quercus rubra) stood alone atop a hillock. It was almost a hundred feet tall and had … Continue reading The Red Oak
Black Lightning
By Bob McAfee You are the embodiment of a good thing coming in a small package, barely five feet tall and, let’s admit it, feisty as a sharecropper’s daughter ought to be.You carry a chip on your shoulder and the knowledge of space-time travel in your mind, three degrees in six years from MIT, a … Continue reading Black Lightning
Every Münchner Knows
By Rhea Karty Every Münchner knows that on Sundays, as you stroll down Theresienstraße, it's wise to keep your head down and your money tucked away. Yet, all too often, the dazzling spectacle of jams, honey, paintings, postcards, books, and the intoxicating scents sailing from succulent foods prove too potent—too enticing to simply pass by. … Continue reading Every Münchner Knows
Friends
By Don Cummings I haven’t seen Jim since college in—it must be—twenty years; Meryl, nineteen or twenty; Gabe, sixteen; Robyn—Jesus—the same. Jim lives in Burlington, Vermont—the last time I checked. Meryl—Connecticut. Gabe moved, somebody said, to St. Louis from Ann Arbor…. And Robyn’s somewhere—Laguna Hills? Laguna Beach? in Southern California. Burlington’s near the border. Connecticut’s … Continue reading Friends
Academy of the Heart And Mind 