Tag Archives: loss

BOB THURBER: End of the Hike

Submissions, Touching, , ,

At the edge of the woodlands we came upon a group in a field.

We took turns spying with the binoculars. No one said anything.

When it was my turn I saw the casket was unusually small.

There were three women and any of them could have been the mother.

Bob Thurber is the author of “Paperboy: A Dysfunctional Novel” and two collections of stories. A celebrated master of Flash and Micro Fiction, his work has appeared in 60 anthologies, received dozens of awards, and been used in schools and colleges throughout the world. He resides in Massachusetts where, though legally blind, he continues to write every day. Visit his website at BobThurber.net.

PHIL HUFFY: Storm Warning

Artistic, Poetry, Submissions, , ,

Although labled as weatherproof, Tom’s notebook,
he learned,
was really only water resistant,
much like many watches, whose level
of protection is limited to soda spills,
brief splashes,
and like events.

From memory, he was able to reconstruct
just one of the day’s haiku, the rest being
lost beyond recall.

Phil Huffy stays up late reading Charles Dickens out loud.

SUDHA BALAGOPAL: Structural Collapse

Artistic, Submissions, Touching, , ,

She trembles as they’re ordered to evacuate, their home about to conflagrate. Silent, Sam stuffs his car with his clothes, books, and computers. Heartbroken, she packs her vehicle with teapot, blankets, and comforting pillow. Neither of them takes the wedding album, which incinerates, and becomes, like their relationship, a memory.

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.

NANCY HARTNEY: Dust

Artistic, Submissions, , ,

The man stoops over the lump, brushes at piled sand and stares into a woman’s face, her age indeterminate, arms around a girl-child. With care, he wraps canvas around both as if one, shivers in the heat, and marks the spot with tokens—a cholla flower and broken plastic jug.

Nancy Hartney wrote this story. See more at NancyHartney.com.

UNA NINA NINE: Twitter in the Village

Artistic, Submissions, , ,

Their mud hut was shaded by thick plantain and banana trees.

It was still raining heavily. There were no mosquitoes so the windows were open; free air-conditioning.

She slept soundly on her bamboo mattress.

The town crier’s talking drum was muffled, so she didn’t hear she was the new widow.

Una Nina Nine plays life with her husband and family in Nigeria but is yet to meet “that” prince.

BOB THURBER: Season Greetings And Untimely Departures

Submissions, Top Stories, Touching, , , ,

Every Christmas has unique vibrations.

2010 was tremulous.

Our grandchildren were three and four. They didn’t know their mother was dead.

I imagine they held to the hope she’d surprise them with a last-minute appearance.

There was more chance a fat man in a sleigh would land on the roof.

Bob Thurber is the author of “Paperboy: A Dysfunctional Novel” and two collections of stories. A celebrated master of Flash and Micro Fiction, his work has appeared in 60 anthologies, received dozens of awards, and been used in schools and colleges throughout the world. He resides in Massachusetts where, though legally blind, he continues to write every day. Visit his website at BobThurber.net.

SUDHA BALAGOPAL: Last Tango

Artistic, Submissions, Top Stories, , , ,

In dream, images lure: my hands spanning his bony scapula, lips kissing his neck, leg snaking his muscles as I lean back, believing he won’t ever let me go.

Awake, I pray for strength I cannot muster, to rise, to walk, to forgive the texting teen for unraveling our tango.

Sudha Balagopal’s short fiction appears in Jellyfish Review, Drabble, New Flash Fiction Review, New World Writing, and other journals. She is the author of a novel, A New Dawn. See more at sudhabalagopal.com.

GRAHAM SCOTT: Lawn Cares

Submissions, Touching, , , ,

He lunches, daily, on the same graveyard bench. Sees, daily, the same woman, with careful steps and reverent gestures, lay origami flowers before neighboring headstones. Wonders, today, what she’ll make of a laughing boy and girl, tossing Frisbees among angels and crosses. Warms when she smiles and sits to watch.

Graham Robert Scott teaches writing at a university in north Texas. His stories have appeared in Barrelhouse Online, Nature, and 50-Word Stories. See more at hemicyon.wordpress.com.

GUY PRESTON: The last time I saw my brother

Artistic, Submissions, Top Stories, Touching, , , ,

Both our wives walked out within a week. We hadn’t spoken in years, but now all we had was each other: though divided by parents, we were united by divorce.

We fished from the harbour wall, with bated breath and baited lines, sharing tales of the one that got away.

Guy has never taken his brother fishing. This is his twenty-second 50-word story.

GB BURGESS: Death Can’t Stop True Love

Amusing, Submissions, Touching, , , ,

When I woke, he stood by our bed, his suit muddy, eyes clouded, skin sickly pale.

“I’m home,” he croaked around his decomposing tongue.

“You shouldn’t be. You’re death walking again, honey.”

“Can I stay?”

“I wish…”

Taking his icy hand, I led him from the house, towards the cemetery.

GB is a writer from Tasmania. She prefers grey areas to the clarity of light and dark.