I have a three syllable name. It is not uncommon for people to immediately want to truncate it. The other day a man I’ve met a handful of times called me Kim in greeting, it was warm and friendly and harbored no ill will. I don’t remember what automatic acknowledgement Read more
When I was a girl, the aunties were everything. They had the best outfits, told the best stories, gave the best presents. They also unleashed the worst punishment. They could have me in stitches one minute and then cut me down to dejected outcast with a stinging word. Jamaican aunties Read more
10 am Sunday January 26, 2020. A helicopter crashes in Calabassas, California. I am in Toronto stuffing five dollar bills into red envelopes. I double check my head count, there was a pregnancy announcement at the last family gathering, wait that was in November, my numbers are good. The family Read more
Aunt Gee is rare form today. Alzheimer’s is a no-win son-of-a-bitch disease. Most of the time she thinks I’m my dead brother which turns the visit into an emotional mine field for all concerned. Even the day nurse cringes visibly at our stilted exchanges. But the real challenge is when she recognizes Read more
Pxxxxxxx picks at the bright violet nail polish. She must remember to remove it tonight, the color irritates her. Clea chose it. It was Clea’s graduation and she’d chosen shades of lilac and violet in tribute to her new school’s colors. Pxxxxxxx wished that afternoon at the nail salon had Read more
Phillipa has never experienced a shunning like this. For the first time in twenty years she can’t depend on old age to excuse her forthrightness. She is the pariah at the table. The woman with the fat pink fingers and an obsession with rings doesn’t compliment her stunning array of pearls and cocktail rings. Read more
“It’s simple sorcery.” I’m impatient to get on with my critique of our sister Kari’s latest fan fiction but eight year old boys are the worst audience. My brother Barry is not only the baby but he’s the only male in a very feminist all female household. Mom is always telling me to Read more
Some things you just know. Zara’s Advanced Humanities teacher encouraged her to call it intuition. Zara was pretty sure sharing a bloodline with people gave you an intuitive edge about them but that didn’t necessarily constitute an intuitive gift. Since childhood Zara had a sense that her parents were living with a big secret. Read more