They can’t form sentencesso they try every other way to ask for juice.Some adults mistake them for selfish demandsbut the kids share everything.What did the adults think it would look liketo live with somebody who doesn’t understandthe tonal distinction between a question and an exclamation? Terry Trowbridge’s poems have appearedContinue Reading

(with fond memories of playing monsters with my brothers) The fight was going well,all destruction and other people’s blood,the kind of fight a monster could be proud ofuntil the duck flew in through the window. A raven would have been alright.That would have been in keeping with the mood.A crowContinue Reading

When I was six and seven years old, The Beatles broke up, Manson was convicted, Apollo 13 nearly crashed into the moon, the American War Against Vietnam was grinding on with my eldest brother soon to be facing the draft, and I learned to hate school with great passion, moreContinue Reading

There is nothing grandma wants morethan a little pace. She mutters in Italianfor Our Lady Madonna Mia to give her some then sighs over the tagliatelle she cut that morningfrom the flattened dough, yolk-tinged stripsfloured and arranged on the coarse white cloth she’s laid out on her tall bed soContinue Reading

Everyone else has finishedand left the table,gotten on with their lives,but Connor has falleninto the black holethat is turkey cutlet night;he is stuck to his chairuntil he finishes,or dies,or has to go to bed,whichever comes first. He is alone with the enemy,and no plan of attack.His plate is an ominousContinue Reading

I am the daughter of immigrants and grew up in a small community in southeastern Louisiana. I am a freelance digital and traditional illustrator. Although mostly specialized in Children’s Illustration, I enjoy working in a variety of prose and art styles. My work features diverse characters with a range ofContinue Reading

Charlotte sits on the bottom stair,small legs swinging, as her sistersets the box of crayons beside her,right within reach, all those temptingrainbow points. Ella’s face, closein hers, insists: “You must neverever crayon on the walls.”Charlotte nods seriously.Never ever. Afterwards, Charlotte sits on the couch,small legs swinging, as her sisterhelps theirContinue Reading

A girl scooped up a caterpillar and put it in a mason jarwith some dirt and grass and leaves.For a week it pedaled around aimlessly and then stopped.For another week the girl left the rigid fluffy circle segmenton her window sill. She tried to figure outwhy the caterpillar died butContinue Reading

She walked barefooted each step grazing the sinking sand, her sandals hung over her shoulders with the support of her clumsy hand, holding a plastic bottle in the other. She walked past a couple smiling into each other’s eyes, hands intertwined, shoulders slightly brushing. She could tell they were obliviousContinue Reading

The substitute teacher made another attempt at my name. I’m not paying attention and I miss it. He’s wearing a vest. There is a stain on his vest. After roll call, he singles me out. “Miss DuckArmy, I called your name twice.” Maybe there was mustard on his breakfast sandwich.Continue Reading