“Ethan!” His parents were in the kitchen when he walked in. He’d figured they’d be waiting for him. His mom, neck stretched, hands on hips, barking. His dad, closemouthed, sitting on a stool at the breakfast counter, both feet planted on the floor, one elbow down on the counter, one hand in his hair. “Are […]
“You know what I’ve been thinking about lately?” she asked. “Picturing?” Taylor leaned over, put elbows on the bed. “Tell me,” he said. “I keep seeing this thing.” She took a breath. “You know how in cartoons, or like in a movie sometimes, you know how they fade out? Like everything goes dark, in a […]
The poetry reading had been going well. This annual Philly event drew a sizable crowd, but this year—for unexplained reasons—the hall was jammed. Crammed in the third row, at the break I stood to stretch and look around. McQuitty, one of our greatest local poets, was sitting at the end of the last row. I […]
Seventeen was grim. There would be weeks when the scramble looked to be paying off. She could breathe easier. Her limbs felt like they belonged to her again. She would get chipper and feel confident that she had some control over her life and her health. She’d look ahead, she’d think ahead and plan ahead […]