On the screened-in porch of the red cottage, we all slid back our empty plates and waited for the thunderstorm to pass over Lake Pushaw, Maine. By the dock, the sailboat my grandpa
The gravel crunched underneath my feet rhythmically as I trudged one step farther with my toddlers. Aadvik, Anaira, and Adhrit held each other’s hands, three dark-skinned forces of nature dragging me along
“When I’m in nature, that’s god to me!” The man looks at me and grins widely, displaying teeth a hygienist would envy. A river breeze ripples through his long, wavy brown
Tightrope artist isn’t one of my top one hundred career choices. While every job demands high accuracy, the tightrope demands perfection. An inch off isn’t “close enough.” I wouldn’t last
Frigid air whipping my face and knees bending as close to each other as they could, I murmured prayers to myself the entire ride down. Entire cliff faces surrounded me, and I was
On a bustling college campus, you encounter many people. When you pass someone on the sidewalk, do you try to make eye contact and smile? Maybe say hello? Imagine that you look up
I waddled down the narrow hallway, huffing as I clutched my Justice League action figures in my left hand. Careening around the corner, I shouted, “Dad! Wonder Woman and Batman set up a
It was late in May when I traveled alone to a family gathering out West. I didn’t know my relatives very well, but I knew them enough to view the visit as
One fateful day in seventh grade my class took a trip to The Wilds Christian Camp, where the biggest attraction is the sixty-foot-tall Giant Swing that lifts you up, up, up into the
7:30 a.m. Once again, I join the mechanical worm as it weaves and heaves its way across the county. After merging, I rev my car into an easy cruising speed of
What better way is there to start a Sunday night than with a game of Monopoly? Or so we thought. It’s tradition for one of my friend groups to get together every
“Dad, I think we should install a fireplace in our living room.” I sat on the edge of the rocking chair—elbows on my knees, sales pitch ready. Dad sat in his green
My gaze turned from the swaying fire tongues in the fireplace to the phantoms of memories that entered and danced around the living room. As Thanksgiving was drawing near, I reminisced over the
What makes a hero? Is it flying? Laser vision? Mind-reading? Is it stature? Tall and handsome, slender and beautiful? Are they born with it? Is it character traits? Is it love? Compassion? Bravery?
We were enemies to begin with. I stood on the edge of the porch—front row to the show—bare feet rubbing against smooth planks. I gripped a pink plastic cup with both
Have you ever seen an action movie where the hero and villain are confused? Where the citizens think the villain is responsible for the good, and the hero is responsible for the bad?
A line of cars wraps around the brick building with green awnings and spills into the street, clogging traffic. Each car follows the next like train cars joined by invisible links. Customers chuck
I stand in the mulch, surrounded by the playground that was the backdrop of my childhood. I remember running through the grass and sliding down the slides, trying to keep my dress clean
“Tell us a ghost story, Lindsay!” “Yeah, you’re so good at it! Please?” The small voices of my cousins and I echoed through the tiny room built onto the backside of my