Seeds

Round and round went the pestle, relentless in its actions. Nothing came out of the mortar whole. Gavindra dumped the powder into a bowl and added more seeds to the mortar. She began grinding this batch. "Watch me, Grandma!" Carl shouted as he ran to the end of the large rock and jumped off into … Continue reading Seeds

Welcome to the Atomic Age

"Have your own Atomic Kitchen!" All the women at the home show crowded around the exhibition. "Cook a complete meal in minutes!" "Look, honey," Jane's husband said. "Just what you need." "Oh, sure," she said and thought, I can't cook. It's bad slow, why would it be any better fast? She edged around the crowd … Continue reading Welcome to the Atomic Age

Through Another’s Eyes

The section of wall was clear and Caroic could see the landscape outside the habitat. The plants grew tall, with thin brown trunks. She couldn't believe those thin trunks could support all that green foliage. She missed the tangerine sky of home and the rocky landscapes. The low growing plant life was sparse. Here, carbon-based … Continue reading Through Another’s Eyes

Found Words

Flip open a book (Lord of the Rings today), and find 3-4 four words. Make a sentence using the words. Repeat. blameless, bane, answer. The bane of the blameless is the answer whispered behind hands. farewell, discover, foreknowledge, rattled. She was rattled by the foreknowledge of her farewell and hoped her brother would not also … Continue reading Found Words

Life’s Equity

"But it's not fair!" Myrna said. Myrna's father, Bob, rubbed his forehead. Each generation of teenagers had mastered the nasal twang and that drawn-out last syllable without ever hearing it from their ancestors. How did they do it? And what made it so annoying? "Look," Bob said. "Nobody ever said life was fair." "Games have … Continue reading Life’s Equity