Every December, our family’s dining table centerpiece was a bowl of nuts, emptied long before Christmas. From almonds to walnuts, we each claimed favorites. I devoured the pecans. On her deathbed, Mom whispered to me, “I always adored pecans.”
Roberta Beach Jacobson is the author of Demitasse Fiction: One-Minute Reads for Busy People (Alien Buddha Press, 2023).
The water’s rising; it’s washed away the righteous and the sinners. I’m still here. I’ve bailed, prayed, bailed again. Ahead, there’s a girl huddled on a rooftop. I navigate toward her, lift her into the hissing raft.
It sighs, loudly.
I wave goodbye, clambering onto the slates.
The water’s rising—
Linda McMullen is a wife, mother, diplomat, and homesick Wisconsinite. Her short stories and the occasional poem have appeared in over seventy literary magazines.
Some decisions are hard. Choosing the right car—the one with the perfect balance of comfort, capacity, and fuel economy—was tricky. Finding the right insurance was difficult, too.
But the final decision had been easy, Maria mused, as she swerved to avoid the child and flew off the overpass.
Philipp M. Selman is a graphic artist, musician, historical martial artist, and professional copywriter. His work has been published in Fifty Word Stories, and his art, music, and writing can be found at pmselman.com.