By Patty Somlo             By the time I got a job at The Boathouse, I had been a waitress for years, first while a sophomore at American University, in Washington, D.C. During my one semester at the on-campus bar, The…

By: Mary Bone Blood Suckers I carried them through deep brushand high grass.My paws try to scratch them out of my fur.Ticks and fleas drain my energy.A flea collar was attached to my neck.This was my only relief froman onslaught…

By: Mayumi Yamamoto I call her more often than before – before she’s gone. Louder. Sometimes, I even shout out her name when I stay alone at home. If someone sees me doing so, I would be mistaken as an…

By: Mohammad Jashim Uddin A parliamentarian is an expert in interpreting and applying the “Rules of Order” for meetings of deliberative assemblies. These rules, such as Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised, enable groups to efficiently and fairly discuss and determine…

By: KJ Hannah Greenberg The Junction of Wisdom and Words Given crucial, cultural states of affairs, moppets acquire inadequate guidance onProviding vocabulary suitable to denote their desires for dolls, trucks, lollies, etc.Big people oft ignore all utilitarian similitude, including kids’…

By: Stephen Faulkner                A man and a woman sit on opposite ends of a park bench from one another. Both are solitarily heedless of all that goes on around them, even of each other. Each is lost in his…

By: Ruth Deming Hot outside as a panting dog with tongue Hanging out I pour myself 2 glasses of pure water And set out down the street. The neighbors on this fancy street called Cowbell have no idea I almost…

By: Carl Papa Palmer Gone Missing As the new day awaits its morning sun,the blank page for my poem also waits. In stillness I listen for an inner voice,only to hear a deep silence in my ears. Ends end from…

By: Karen O’Leary 3 trips to the ERafter mandatoryvisits with dad.Each ER visitdocuments bruises~~a pawn of divorce.Mom can’t find help.Despite the reports,Social Services ignoresconcerns as “overblown.”“Boys get bruises,”unwilling to protectthis child. He leaves,looking numb. Two weeks later,an ambulance requestsa pediatric…

By: Vanaja Malathy Break Your Shackles, Oh Woman! How queer, oh woman, is your conduct! when you have everything in plenty you crave for more and more when you have a person to love you madly you are dizzy about…