By U.S. State
By Country
Gremlin
by Calah Schlabach | May 20, 2014 | Vietnam
The speaker said, “I have found that my elite athletes typically have a gremlin—something from their past that creates work ethic and an axe to grind.”
Fantastic Beasts
by Mary Margaret Healy | May 19, 2014 | Placeless
24-year-olds should not spend such a large chunk of a Saturday holed up around a table, eating nachos and rolling for critical hits.
For He Spoke
by Matt & Laura Hubers | May 18, 2014 | Placeless
My father-in-law likes to say he would pay to hear James Earl Jones read the phonebook. Who would pay to hear me read anything?
A Klingon and a Ferengi Walk into a Bar…
by Geneva Langeland | May 17, 2014 | Placeless
Maybe the purpose of the show isn’t to revel in physical extremes, but to explore how creatures with disparate values interact and find common ground.
Obituary for Big Blue
by Andrew Knot | May 16, 2014 | Chicago, Florida, Illinois
Affectionately known as “Big Blue” and “The Behemoth” to those who knew her best, the Savana was celebrated by nearly all who came into contact with her.
Untamed
by Sarah (VanderMolen) Sundt | May 15, 2014 | Placeless
The beasts in my life are not external. There are no monsters that I have to defeat. There is no dragon standing in my way, blocking my path. There is only me.
Joy in the Midst
by Will Montei | May 14, 2014 | Placeless
“You only live once.” Strange how a phrase used to fight death has no place in death’s presence. It has no place because living once is a tragedy.
B=F: Confessions of an Imposter
by Melissa Dykhuis | May 13, 2014 | Placeless
Finally the right paper lands in my hands, with the lowest grade in the class circled in red at the top. I quickly and quietly tuck the first page behind the rest.
Etching No. 43
by Abby Zwart | May 12, 2014 | Grand Rapids
A girl, age four, is in bed with the quilt scrunched up to her chin. Her blond curls quiver. She is petrified. There is a monster in the closet.
My Woman of Valor
by Elaine Schnabel | May 11, 2014 | Placeless
My mom is a beast. My mom has kicked cancer in the teeth and runs triathlons. Not quite simultaneously, but close.
Blue Ruin
by David Greendonner | May 10, 2014 | Placeless
“The violence portrayed in the film is brutal and graphic. It is by no means glorified and its futility resonates as a major theme throughout the story.”
CAMP.
by Bart Tocci | May 9, 2014 | Placeless
The good stuff was taken. No waterskiing, no archery, no boating. The woman confirmed my fear: “We’ll put you drama and arts and crafts!”
Escapism
by Elaine Schnabel | May 8, 2014 | New Zealand
You are the word shakers, the meaning-makers. The insiders into unspoiled beauty. The creators of escape. And you must not leave the rest of us behind.
What To Do About Pigeons
by Caroline (Higgins) Nyczak | May 7, 2014 | Hungary
So far, our best idea for getting rid of the pigeons involves gluing thumbtacks to the window ledge. We worry that we do not have enough tacks.
Urban Rednecks
by Josh deLacy | May 6, 2014 | Washington
From the OED’s inbred, perverted cousin, Urban Dictionary: Although the idea of an Urban Redneck would at first seem an oxymoron, they do exist, and are actually quite common. There are three kinds of Urban Rednecks.
Tale As Old As Time
by Alissa Anderson | May 5, 2014 | Placeless
The thing is, though, this mode of taking in the world is really tiring. It’s healthy, and it’s stretching, and it brings perspective, but it’s tiring.
A Fire Devours Before Him
by Andrew Steiner | May 4, 2014 | Grand Rapids, Holland
It started out as a family errand: Ahmed Haithem Ahmed was driving his mother, Mohassin, to pick up his father from the hospital where he worked.
The Weight of Six Pounds
by Sabrina Lee | May 3, 2014 | Chicago, France
It’s the kind of book that takes up half of your book shelf and that you could use as a makeshift booster seat to prop a toddler up to the grownup’s table.
The Beast and the Sovereign
by Jacob Schepers | May 2, 2014 | Placeless
“Beast” is a category not easily dismissed because “beast” bleeds out and spills over. When it’s presented as a binary, “beast” negates intrinsic components of our humanity.
Beauty and the [ ____ ]
by Amy (Allen) Frieson | May 1, 2014 | Placeless
I’m intrigued by this idea of retelling the same story, wrestling with similar ideas over the course of time, not settling for a previously discovered answer.
Why Mandarin Chinese?
by Rachel Guerrero | Apr 30, 2014 | China
I graduated. I could stumble along in Chinese much better than the average Caucasian American. And I still had no plan for what job I was suited for.
Teaching the Brave
by Dana Baker | Apr 29, 2014 | Placeless
This portrait of me, drawn by a former student in Crayola marker, is almost entirely accurate. I wake up pre-sun, don soft clothing, and spend my days sitting on the floor.
Playoffs
by Stephen Mulder | Apr 28, 2014 | Placeless
The playoff system used in North American professional team sports is about the worst way I can imagine to determine a league championship.
I’m Not Part of Me
by Brad Zwiers | Apr 27, 2014 | Placeless
Though part of me might wince at how bildungsroman this all is, it doesn’t change the fact that it’s where I am. Besides, aren’t we always “coming of age”?
The Fault in Our Yarns
by Griffin Jackson | Apr 26, 2014 | Placeless
For some reason it feels like I’m saying, “My favorite food is chicken nuggets,” or “I really like listening to Hanson while playing laser tag.”
Silver and Gold
by Bethany Tap | Apr 25, 2014 | Grand Rapids, North Carolina
Friends who I can count on to read my work and respond sincerely to it. Friends for drinking coffee, for studying, for drinking a glass of wine while playing board games.
The M Word
by Lauren (Boersma) Harris | Apr 24, 2014 | Placeless
After I managed to swim to the bottom of the pool to retrieve a brick, I lay in a puddle of chlorine and teal tile like a trauma victim.
How to Wait for a Train
by Jenn Langefeld | Apr 23, 2014 | Chicago, Illinois, Missouri
But letting go of all those demands emptied me out, and the process of refilling with the right things—that’s what’s taking so much time.
Earth Day and Weapons of Slow Violence
by Robert Zandstra | Apr 22, 2014 | Placeless
After only a few generations of farming, the soil of one of the world’s most fecund agricultural areas—the Midwest—is practically dead.
I Wanted To Be a Doctor
by Libby Stille | Apr 21, 2014 | Placeless
One day, about two-thirds of the way through the school year, I woke up and realized that I had absolutely no idea what was going on in chemistry class.
