“Hi,” Carolyn said awkwardly, slipping her coat on over her sweater but not zipping it. Mira didn’t think she could zip it if she tried.…
The Water Hole, Part One
Mira got the text two days before Christmas. She was outside doing some last minute shopping at the local plaza, the sound of Christmas music…
Frost
There is a light frost on the last Saturday of October. At first the dahlias look okay, but as the day wears on the blooms…
The House
We pull up next to AZ, my grandparents’ old farm store. The windows are broken, the first floor mostly hidden by overgrown bushes. I can…
Autumn
Dark mornings, the early light weakened and muffled by clouds. My son says his fourth name is Autumn. Packing lunches and backpacks, jackets and early…
Loss
The thunder wakes me on the day of your funeral. It is the kind of thunder that shakes the house, the kind of lightning you…
Early Night
In order to see my husband—to really spend time with him, I have to stay up past my bedtime. I have always put my daughter…
These Days
There are days when I wake and the countdown to bedtime begins. There are days when even the garden can’t help me, can’t silence my…
Thirty-Five
I have always looked young. Growing up I was the shortest in my class and people thought my younger sisters were older than me. As…
Dear J.M.
We’ve never met, but I went to your funeral. I was twenty-one and my husband and I were still dating. It was a cold February…