I watched a woman fix a roadside shrine just before the rain came. Blue and purple plastic flowers thinned by summer sun and bent weird by winter. Coat hangers built into a cross. Nailed into a swamp oak. Ya know. … Continued

In the garden planted by the church group, tomato plants struggle, radishes, too, leaves withered in the streaks of sun, against the broad-leafed vines that crawl along the moist dirt as the prickly stalks invade the fenced-in plot. Rabbits eat … Continued

It has been nearly thirty years since Greta visited Scarborough Harbor, and it’s completely changed. Until her little brother’s death, she vacationed every childhood summer in this once-quaint coastal Maine town. Now, shops line sidewalks like shark’s teeth while tanned … Continued

to hide the wooden brace, slight limp. Darker than inside a locket, more pungent— what wood wouldn’t love to live there, thinks Frankie, the neighbor boy who’s never said a word to her. He watches Sarah flick her foot through … Continued

When the glaciers armied through Florida, like anywhere else, they left a mess of rocks and sand and animal bones behind them. They did this peacefully over a long period of time, and the animals felt peaceful as they died … Continued

1. Winterlight on Will Morgan. It always disoriented him, the fact that the day had endured despite time spent inside a cavernous space, that the afternoon’s last gasp was still bright enough to sting. A walk through glass doors and … Continued

Bird perches in the strings of flesh and sings of the dead. What we all do. Same day I heard the story about the boy. Same day the weather changed, dark clouds all along the ridge. Where they found the … Continued

Two drinks in, we’re complaining. Jem wants a second baby, “But who the hell will gestate it?” Her husband Paul is a stay-at-home dad. I’m regretting ordering my Gibson. The cocktail onion reminds me of a bobbing eyeball: slimy and … Continued

Dearest, God, I have brought you the world. Inside are the beginnings of the Earth, the great cities, the moon circling the stars above the plains. And here is the universe as you intended it, all of a piece. Please … Continued

Translated from the Russian by Bryon MacWilliams Various things can be demanded from an actor. There is some kind of balance between that which can be expected, creatively, and that which can be imposed by a director. In movies an … Continued

i. Olfactory Cinema Certain smells stop you mid-step, in close-eyed smile – long-lost memories project on the backs of your eyelids ii. The Merits of Self Awareness Discerning depth is abstruse when viewing a valley from above iii. … Continued