brown shoes.brown socks, inappropriate for summer.brown pants.brown hair, warming up in the sun. do you find that writing by hand helps? the society of outdoor cafe #777 organizes itself into ones and twos. children attached to these groupings may number from 0 to n, however they are not counted. i am so proud that my brother… Continue reading clarity vs richness
Author: aya
one by one
i went to the museum with a friend the other day and noticed streaks of gray hair, new to me since i last saw her. we ambled through the exhibit at the pace of her daughter, who plodded around in baby steps and occasionally asked “ou-side?” my friend also had new gestures, holding out an… Continue reading one by one
<160 mine all mine
i won’t open my mouth no more, keepin my flavors to myselfi’m not playin around no more, so skip your turn-it’s a hard stain to remove but the anger has to go
free
the most effective birth control pills are the ones with a side effect that cuts sex drive down at the knees, a nice clean cut. entire afternoons spent embroidering napkins, not the sanitary kind but the table linen. none of the flowers are perfect, some creases always remain in the material despite ironing at the… Continue reading free
bad moods can stain, part I
n the city where i was born, it is believed that bad moods are a kind of pollution. they say that dank, shadowy places are breeding grounds for ill will, like still pools of water that encourage mosquitos to lay their eggs. arguments are said to leave traces of soot long after the hurt has… Continue reading bad moods can stain, part I
dreams come true
packed cafe. she had to step around tables piled hight with used plates to arrive at the couch where her two friends sat as far apart from one another as possible. kicking off her shoes, she squeezed between them. she was late and they didn’t know one another. after a three-second introduction they seemed confident… Continue reading dreams come true
no granola
a little hole formed in the curtain that separates fresh yogurt from spoiled curds. the expiration date began to leak through. on monday, i noticed all the tubs and cups of yogurt in the grocery store were only seven days away from going bad. i splurged on a thick greek yogurt and ate it right… Continue reading no granola
the fog.
the book i’m reading mentions sleep. i fantasize about square feather pillows, European dimensions. some would be cool and soft, others firm and warm from my breath. one i would wrap my arms around. it doesn’t matter what color the pillowcase is, because i’ll have my eyes closed. the pillows will absorb the weight. my… Continue reading the fog.
i keep praying
PRAYER FOR MY SISTER NOT TO HATE ME NO MORE glory be to something we had before. when i turned seven you woke up early when i did to open the presents, and read the firstchapter of Bambi to me. it is still my favorite book. when i turned twenty-eight i checked my phone every… Continue reading i keep praying
i pray some more
PRAYER FOR IMAGINARY BEINGS protect the people who don’t exist, who are made of nothing but words or childhood beliefs—keep them from invisible harm and threats not present, comfort them if the love they receive isn’t real…. PRAYER FOR THE BODY dear body,it’s time to smooth some anti-bacterial cream over your troubled relationship with my… Continue reading i pray some more