Memoir

11 MINAfter months that had faded along with my energy into years, after I’d gone to my family doctor complaining about my debilitating ear pain, unusual sensations in my mouth and other odd symptoms, I was…

15 MINThe Broken Reflection The last time I saw my sister, Alice, she was being wheeled away from me at a Southern California airport. It was her birthday. The attendant pushed her slowly toward the entrance,…

5 MINThe seats on either side of me appear empty, but I know my mother is sitting in one of them. The scent of her perfume, (why didn’t I ever ask the name? ) blends with that…

16 MINThe lights of the room are too harsh, the pale blue walls swallow any other color, and the cold tile floor is life sucking. The familiar noise of the city permeates the walls and helps…

5 MINThey met on the 5th of July, and by autumn, had fallen in a strange rhythm: sharing a bed and kissing at night, all under the label of friendship. He’s going out with another girl…

4 MINWhiffs. Shanks. Hooks. Beginning golfers know—some days you can throw your club farther than you can hit the ball. It can be mighty frustrating. But don’t give up. Resist that urge to chuck your clubs….

6 MINRed Foot, Blue Whale, Popeyes Cigarettes Sometimes, on sunny afternoons, mom stops at Soo’s Market off 104th, just before the flashing lights. She parks the yellow Mazda hatchback with the orange and red stripes right…

4 MINI hang out in cemeteries. Morbid perhaps, and yet for those who seek tranquility there’s no place quite like it. You are a person who grasps that concept or you retreat from it. Having always…

5 MINAsk most people to name their favorite holiday, and I’m sure the word Christmas would fly out of their mouths before the question was even complete. In more recent years, Halloween has surged in popularity,…

3 MINIt was after Christmas when my ex-lover told me he and his wife were going to try again. I felt as frigid as the icy blasts rushing down the alleys on the Upper West Side…