The boots were heavy. The pack dug into his shoulders. The air at 10,000 feet was thin and bit at his lungs. By all accounts, Caleb should have been miserable. …
Title: The Tandem Journey: A Story About Why I Trek the World Alone, Yet Never Take a Single Step by Myself Read More
The day began with a silence so loud it rang in Julianne’s ears. It was the first Thanksgiving without her mother, and the kitchen, usually a chaotic symphony of clattering …
Title: The Mirror of Memory: A Story About Realizing That My Mother Didn’t Just Leave Me Behind, She Left Herself Within Me Read More
The memory of that Tuesday evening was burned into Lydia’s mind, not as a visual, but as a sound. It was the sound of her husband, Todd, zipping up his …
Title: The Finish Line: A Story About How I Turned an Insult Into Fuel, and the Day I Realized That My Health Was Too Precious to Waste on Someone Who Left Me for Sick Read More The catalogue of granite headstones was spread across the dining room table like a menu of despair. For three months, Elias had been obsessing over the details. Serpentine edge? Polished …
Title: The Monument of Breath: A Story About Why I Stopped Visiting the Graveyard and Started Living the Life He Was Denied Read More
The kit was supposed to be a responsible, modern pre-requisite. A “check-the-box” activity before the cake tasting and the seating charts. “Let’s just make sure we aren’t carriers for anything …
Title: The Red Flag in the Blood: A Story About How a Simple Test “For Fun” Ended a Marriage Before It Began, and Why the Grief of the Living Hurts More Than Death Read More
The automated voice over the intercom announced that the 5:15 PM express to Chicago was departing in two minutes. Elena stood in the center of the station concourse. Around her, …
Title: The Statue in the Train Station: A Story About Standing Still While the World Rushes By, and the Strange Reality of Living Two Lives in One Body Read More
For the first time in six months, Daniel didn’t wake up with a stone in his stomach. He woke up to the smell of burnt toast and the sound of …
Title: The Five Seconds of Mercy: A Story About the Sanctuary of Sleep and the Cruelest Moment of the Day When the Heart Forgets It Is Broken Read More
Thomas was a man of logistics. He was a structural engineer; his entire life was built on the principles of load-bearing walls, safety factors, and contingency plans. When his father …
Title: The Unanchored Boat: A Story About the False Comfort of “Being Ready” and the Shock of Realizing You Are Now the Only Thing Standing Between Your Family and the Sky Read More
The login screen for the university bursar blinked innocently on the laptop screen. Tuition Due: $42,000. Lucas cracked his knuckles. He had the money. He had spent the last four …
Title: The Scholarship of Betrayal: A Story About the Night I Paid Forty Thousand Dollars to Learn I Was Alone, and Why It Was a Bargain Read More
Arthur sat in the worn leather armchair by the window, the one that still held the faint indentation of her shape, even though the cushions had been replaced twice. Outside, …
Title: The Arithmetic of Eternity: A Story About the Cruel Math of Grief, and the Promise That Waits at the End of the Equation Read More