“A Muslim is speaking at the Democratic Convention! Musa, come down!” my mother yelled over the noisy TV speakers. I left the comfort of my room and trudged down the carpeted stairs to meet my…
Browsing Category Nonfiction
After Hurricane Irma by Kristin Laurel
~ Estero Recreation Center, September 2017* DAY ONE or THIS SUCKS “We’re just waiting for the water to recede.” In the gym, over four-hundred olive green cots, white blankets stamped with red crosses. A…
The Puerto Ricans by Massoud Hayoun
It was Ramadan. In the time of Trump. So you couldn’t just go to some restaurants, you’d have to wait until dark. I don’t fast, but to eat in front of other Arab Americans who do would be an asshole move, undignified. Dignity is my organized religion.
A Rural Spring – 14 Days by Chila Woychik
“Celebration, vacation, recreation: these escape the mind of a farmer, and an engineer only craves perfection. Stands to reason that my gentleman farmer lives on one long beautiful plain undisturbed by the concept of complementariness…”
Haibun: Bashō’s Last Journey by Stephen Cloud
Late autumn, a day of mist and rain keeping me indoors. I think of Bashō at the outset of his final journey: taking up the walking stick, crossing the threshold. All day long I have sat by the window watching rain, reading The Narrow Road, strumming the guitar. Outside, dead leaves have piled up, vines have lost their bloom. In a nearby field, cranes pick through harvest remains without concern for the downpour…