Tag Archives: grief

BOB THURBER: Stop looking at your phone, waiting for the dead to call

Artistic, Poetry, Submissions, Top Stories, , ,

This is not a bar. This is not a place
to linger. People come and go
rather quickly. Usually
they’re in a hurry. Occasionally,
one might require
a moment to recalibrate,
to adjust to sudden loss,
the vanishing of someone
very dear, very special.
Before resettling into
stabilized day-to-day sorrow.

Bob Thurber is the author of six books. Regarded as a master of Flash and Micro Fiction, his work has appeared in Esquire and other magazines, been anthologized 60 times, received a long list of awards, and been utilized in schools and colleges throughout the world. He resides in Massachusetts. Visit his website at BobThurber.net.

SUDHA BALAGOPAL: New Normal

Submissions, , , , ,

She’s isolated in the hospital, so I say “I love you” via video phone, talking until my battery flashes red and her chest doesn’t rise, then break because I can’t hold her, break because she’s a statistic without a funeral, as if she’s never existed, as if she’s never lived.

Sudha Balagopal’s short fiction appears in numerous publications including Wigleaf, Fictive Dream, Cabinet of Heed, Jellyfish Review and New World Writing. She is the author of a novel, A New Dawn. See more at sudhabalagopal.com.

ALYCE CLARK: Two Hearts

Submissions, Touching, , , ,

Your heart gave out. Still can’t fully explain it, but my heart stopped working, too. Yours no longer beats; mine can love no other. One of us breathing; one of us not… And yet somehow, the results are the same: two hearts died that day. I remain single, yet taken.

Alyce Clark was so awed and inspired by the stories of others, she decided to write them for herself.

LISA CHAMBERS: Letting Go

Submissions, Touching, , ,

He admired her longingly from across the room. Just the two of them. Summoning his nerve, heart pounding, he approached.

His beloved wife… Hair freshly styled, makeup applied just so, hands neatly folded. Those blue eyes that once saw only him, now surveying Heaven’s expanse.

“You’re home, Angel. Rest well.”

Lisa Chambers is a Texas girl who enjoys writing.

ALISON CARROLL: Holes

Submissions, Top Stories, Touching, , ,

At first I was numb.

I began to notice them two weeks later:
The hole across the morning breakfast table;
The hole in the recliner facing the television;
The hole on the left side of our bed at night.

I wanted to fall in.

Years later, they sometimes still appear.

Alison hates holes.

ALYCE CLARK: Unopened

Submissions, Top Stories, Touching, , , ,

I fought the urge to wreck the place.

Tears streamed down my face, blurring the decorations I’d put up for Daddy. Presents taunted me from under the tree.

It’s late January now. There will be no welcome home from the hospital, no belated Christmas celebrations… Those gifts won’t be opened.

Alyce Clark was so awed and inspired by the stories of others, she decided to write them for herself.

LISA CHAMBERS: Best Friend

Submissions, Touching, , ,

“Rugged male seeks companionship. Loves outdoors, sharing dinners, cuddling. Eager to please. Not afraid of commitment.”

Sam and Beth were a perfect match. Eight glorious years together.

At the pet cemetery, she clutched his leash, holding it close to her broken heart.

Some happily ever afters end much too soon.

Lisa Chambers is a Texas girl who believes in happily ever after.

PERRY McDAID: Patricia’s Shell

Artistic, Submissions, Touching, , , ,

The face was there, but the rosy cheeks and twinkling eyes were absent, absconded along with ready smile and gleeful giggles, lost in memories.

She wore civvies, not the nun’s habit she had hiked up a little to play football with us as children.

The coffin also took her voice.

Perry McDaid is a writer of prose and poetry who has developed a taste for pastels. They’re a tad chalky but provide roughage.

CR SMITH: A Useful Guide For Hiding Grief: Appearance is Everything

Artistic, Submissions, , , ,

Never forget mascara; it’s very useful for opening up sleep-deprived eyes.

Not too heavy, mind. You don’t want someone looking too closely, or they might drown in your sorrow. And thick eyeliner acts as a distraction. Wear it smudgy so people can’t see when you’ve been crying.

Apply red lipstick.

CR Smith is a student of Fine Art. She splits her time between art and writing. Her work has appeared both on online and in print.
Find her on Twitter and at crsmith2016.wordpress.com.

ALAINA UMSCHEID: Gone

Adventure, Submissions, , , , ,

The gunshot echoes through the alley.

“That’s what you get for leaving me for this pig!”

She falls. He drops to his knees.

“Stay with me, baby, please! Don’t go!”

Sirens echo in the distance; too late.

His sanity is leaving him. Laughter fills the alley.

His lover is dead.

Alaina Umscheid is in 8th grade and loves to read and play her french horn.