Writing Practice

The nakedness wasn’t what kept Daniel riveted behind the clear glass beads hanging in the archway to Martha’s studio. Nudity was a constant in his life. Neither Henry nor Martha hid their bodies from their son like his friends’ parents did. That’s why his friends...

Pinch me was the only thought in Jeandarc’s head while she watched the gallery door open, again and again, for more patrons. Yesterday, she turned twenty-eight; Today, she was celebrating the opening of her first New York Art Show. She worked hard to get here. But she...

It was a June Cleaver-Donna Reed morning. Breakfast was eaten around the table with my father and mother. My older siblings had already left for school. Pink grapefruit coated with sugar lingers on my mind and tongue. I’d just swapped the grapefruit for a bowl of...

University students, bundled like pigs-in-a-blanket, pull stocking caps and darned hats over their ears, while women with long hair and unadorned faces maneuver strollers with toddlers and babies and large dogs on leashes. Off in the distance, the early morning sun...

After the last melt of snow,Before the sprouts of spring,A cattail— parched and joint-lessStands like an elder;Its once flowering spike broken bypiggled tufts of pollen.  New shoots and leaves frothing from belowwill soon sack this ancient warriorunless hooves...

The juicer and electric typewriter were no lossneither was the microwave impossible to program,But the bike with training wheels gave her pause,as did the brass bed that once caught the newborns.  Will those memories refresh the same way the glass dining table—...

In the spring the magnolias are intoxicating. Their fragrance prompts deep breaths that release tension and you are— disarmed. The iced tea is sweet like the smiles because the rude and bitter meet with disapproval. Come closer. Step into the magnolia’s shade and...

Pay off the house— the carsBuy a new carRemodel the houseMove  Fix Jason’s teethA wealthy lawyer with crooked teethturns people off  Save for the twins’ education— or notA degree doesn’t guarantee a job— not nowMy college years were wastedespecially after...

Movement was key, and the key was around my neck; that’s what extra shoestrings were for— skate keys. After eight hours at a desk, where the only activity was my pencil gliding haphazardly across the page to form letters and numbers I didn’t care about, I needed to...

Angular man with guitarNo longer gazes at the stars.  Fingers pluck with eyelids closedMuscles tense—               No chance for repose.  White hair like a mountaintopChanneling chords of...