Both Sides Now
Thrice I jumped on the frozen river to make sure it was frozen, the river; so the kids would not fall into it and one by one freeze or be taken by the hard draft travelling. I could see it travelling its way down below, where my feet lay. Not only was I walking on thin ice, I was jumping and thumping all over it, but I was fine and it would be fine. It always was. Someone had to do it, and this someone was always Sally Marlow, ice rink and ice rink expeditions’ manager when Bo wasn’t there (and, see, Bo was never there). Once we were sure the ice was thick enough, the children got on...
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My whole life changed when I was 15. Everything I thought I would become. The future I thought I had. All gone. And I had such promise. I was a swimmer. Nebraska State champion in three events as a Freshman. I was going to go to college. Maybe the Olympics after that. But that all ended one blistery February day. It had been sleeting that morning, and the wind was howling out of the north. Mom picked me up from swim practice in the old grey bus from the nursing home where she worked. She was late, as usual. The second I staggered through the door of the bus, two things hit...
Read MoreBlack
There were wolves in the forest because there were wolves on the beer steins. “No,” his father said. “If Hitler did one good thing it was to kill all the wolves.” “Hitler didn’t kill the wolves,” his mother said, “and he didn’t do anything good.” “It’s a joke,” his father said. “It’s not funny,” his mother said. His mother had pink cheeks like the Hummel dolls she kept on a shelf. When his father said something she didn’t like, her cheeks became brighter. Her cheeks became brighter when his father said he was going to make her wear lederhosen and...
Read MoreCohen’s Resurrection
The address read 615 Calle de Ignacio. To the casual eye, it was rather unremarkable; just an old dilapidated brick building, entrenched among seedy waterfront bars and makeshift warehouses which lined the Montevideo ship yards. For the last several years the building had served as a hotel to the disenfranchised: the outcasts and those whose pasts were forever sealed within the confines of this dwelling. After W.W. II, these “tenants,” many of whom came from Europe, poured into various South American countries, leaving behind them their nightmarish histories, be they the victim or the...
Read MoreFeatured Works: Week of April 1 (Relationships)
Relationships are among the most important experiences of life, and this week’s contributors look at a variety of kinds. “That Month My Mother Begged to Wait with Her in the Dark” by Lyn Lifshin reflects on a mother-daughter relationship and its changes. “Mama’s Boy” by Robert Pfeiffer shares a son’s perspective on his connection to his mother. “Lunch, 1968” by Stuart Michaelson looks at how friendship can be complicated by external forces, such as race and politics. “Chicken Noodle Soup Maiden” by Stuart Michaelson depicts a creative young boy’s...
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