Literary Yard

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Fiction

blue red and black abstract painting

Prediction Is Difficult

By: Ethan Goffman Way back in 2008, I began a string of wrong predictions by boldly stating that Obama could not win because the American people just weren’t ready for a Black man to be president. I followed that with…

black game console on wooden surface

Sixty-three Days

By Bruce Levine The last flight had taken off, or at least they thought it had. For Greg and Larry it was up to themselves to fend for themselves. They’d taken on the challenge because the reward offered was so…

photography of empty parking lot

A Day in My Garage

By: Don Tassone      One Saturday morning, I was working in my garage when I felt funny and had to sit down.  As I looked around, my son’s dusty bike in the corner caught my eye.  Then somehow it was…

woman face behind wet glass

Still Alone

By: Joey Bender I was alone, sad, and bored when a message from her came. I knew I shouldn’t reply—I didn’t really like her all that much, and I’m pretty sure she felt the same. But it was good enough;…

aerial view of two men walking by a modern fountain in city

Before the Renaissance

By Drew Bufalini When cousins Paul and Jerry were young, daring, and impressionable, they made a good name for themselves in their bad Detroit neighborhood. They were smart types who went through phases of intense interest in a particular subject,…

gray scale photography of clock near trees

A New Way to Tell Time  

By: Connie Woodring March 25,1945. That is the day we received a new patient on our ward. Her name is Buella Whitehouse. I wasn’t sure if she would be accepted by everyone (patients and staff), since she is a Negro….

back view of a woman holding a candelabrum

Bad Actress

By: Elaine Lennon “Action.” I dreamed I killed my co-star last night. You could say it was a long time coming. You see, twenty years ago, when I was a mere starlet, she took the screen role that had been…

brown field and blue sky

Meteorologist

By: Eolas Pellor There was one cloud in the sky. Thin and wispy, it hurried south high overhead, borne on dry winds no one below could feel. Old lore, half forgotten, said such clouds foretold a weather change, so Gus…

woman wearing white green and red floral cap sleeved dress reading a book on black roof near green trees

red camellia

By: Cariou Beijing, China.May 16, 1966. Sunny. After school in the afternoon, our teachers asked students to sign up to join the Red Guards[i] while class cadres were compelled to join. At the age of thirteen, I didn’t understand what…

shallow focus photo of strawberries on gray wooden surface

I Remember Strawberries

By: Carl “Papa” Palmer The first thing I notice every time I come to visit is the familiar aroma of this hallway smelling as if the same lavender laundry soap is used in every assisted living facility in Tacoma. I…