We built a life upon this earth Filled with love and ceaseless mirth Each day brought never-ending laughter Sweet thoughts of happily ever after. We worked so hard and made our plan To travel far across this land But as the time did gather near Those dreams began to disappear Oh, so subtle at the start Were little things that hurt my heart My words unheard, perhaps ignored No matter how much I implored. We had forever, or...

An iron fist grips my chest I release an anguished cry And terror engulfs my core. Broken, I gasp my final breath The shackles fall away And darkness embraces me. Adrift in the eternal abyss I am lost between shadow and flame Until I see a shimmer A shimmer in the void Translucent, radiant, the Veil opens Enticing me with iridescent fingers I am struck by wonder Wonder in my being As I see you, my love Waiting on the othe...

True story: an entire double rainbow has graced our sky for the last two nights in a row. What a potent feeling, to walk out into the street, light rain peppering my hair (or what hair remains, anyway), tickling my scalp I have my phone in hand, ready to take a picture, maybe post it somewhere, Facetok, Instabook, Tikgram. And then I see what I am doing, and pause I don’t need a phone to look at the sky All I need are eye...

“I can explain,” he pleaded, though it came out more like, “I cah eshlaih,” with his mouth stretched around the barrel of my shotgun. I raised my eyebrows, dark rage bubbling inside. “Explain?!” I spat. “Oh, this ought to be good. Let me guess, you came round to balance the books, tripped on the rug, your clothes fell off, and you landed in my miraculously naked wife?” Bryce held up his hands and shook his head against th...

I came out of my bedroom to find my housemate Charlotte gazing at herself in a full-length mirror. She looked quite pretty dressed up in a long blue dress for her sister Sara’s wedding. Her brown hair was trimmed and styled better than I had ever seen it before. A little silver pendant holding a ruby hung from a chain around her neck. Charlotte had even put on makeup beyond just lipstick, a rarity for her. “What do you th...

October 30, 1938 About a half mile into the Detroit-Windsor tunnel, I smell oil burning from running the engine so hard. I pat the dashboard of my old pickup. “Hang in there, baby.” I’m struggling to drive while rotating my head like a damn owl, worrying the walls will collapse around us at any moment. The Detroit River would surely swallow us whole. To make matters worse, we lost the radio when we went underground, so I...

The two young girls played vivaciously in the cool water by the glade. As they splashed and frolicked, their laughter echoed around the mountain valley. The surrounding trees, comprising primarily of larch, beech, and spruce - and, of course, oak – gently whispered their approval. They were safe here. Locals knew not to disturb them. The sisters were special – as was the valley. The power and magic that resided in the tre...

A brutally honest reflection forecasts my nearing end, but at four years and a hundred, I can't complain. My head is bald and mottled; my beard rivals the snow; wrinkled folds for eyelids obstruct my vision. All memories have long since abandoned my decaying mind, yet thoughts of it (for I never knew its name) still linger. Curious as to how one thing can take root in one’s mind, mushrooming until it consumes all other th...

When people think of me they think of food. They say I have a relationship with it, almost as if I’m married to it. I confess it bothers me. It’s Ed I’m married to, and some people in this neighbourhood would do well to mention that a little more. I don’t deny I like cooking. I love baking. It’s shaped me. Christmas at church, I’m the one who brings the fruitcake that they swoon over. I'm the one who advises the ladies of...

A shiver crept up my spine as we walked into the haunted graveyard. Although it was broad daylight, there was something existentially eerie about walking amongst the dead remains in concrete tombs. We had come to New Orleans for Mardi Gras, but after enjoying the festive Krewe of Zulu parade earlier that morning, I’d gotten sucked into the tour after visiting Voodoo Authentica on Dumaine Street. “Come on,” my friend, Dian...

“Of all the carnal powers; and the blessings of the Shrove of Man; Grant me this small mercy. By the Saints and martyrs - beyond, before, within my blood rite, and without. Guard and protect my soul tonight. I ask all this as your humble servant. E Nomine Patri. Et Fili. E Spiritu Sancti. Amen.” As the prayer was uttered, the flame flickered. Once the seal was said, the flame was hushed into smoke. William got up from his...

Focus on the beauty, the geometrical phenomenon of frozen water in spectacular crystallized form. Each one appears different from the next and captivating to behold. And while these minuscule bits of ice appear white due to the diffuse reflection of the whole spectrum of light through each tiny facet, they are actually quite clear. As she sat staring out the window into the great expanse of snow, she allowed herself to dr...

My big brother Jon packed a snowball with mittened hands. “It’s fake.” “What’s fake?” I knew what he was about to say. Sometimes when it’s your brother you just have to listen. He threw the snowball at me. “The snow. Fake. Made of plastic.” He started making another snowball. I wondered how much he’d had to drink. I hadn’t seen many bottles, but sometimes he hid the bottles. He’d been going downhill since his wife left hi...

"If jumping to conclusions was an Olympic event, you’d take the gold.” "Seriously?" "Shut up!" an exasperated Maeve shot back. "Don't mock me. I'm not good at this." Kerri glared at her soon-to-be, in-a-long-line of ex-girlfriends, girlfriend, reading CHEATER! she'd carved with candy apple red lipstick onto Maeve's forehead. Forcefully dotting the exclamation mark was what intentionally woke Maeve. “I would never, ever......

Yet another scribbled entry in this diary of lies, Paralysed, in this pseudo world of one. Whispers, whispers of near-naked misunderstandings, Sometimes hard to breathe through invisible tears. Safe, warm worlds under cold silken sheets equals, Dream. Curled uptight, yet tap-tapping on the smeared glass. Morning shadows flicker through swollen tear stained eyes, To enlighten, or darken, my first thought, On this, the firs...