Reyna d’Assia: The Key to Immortal Consciousness
We have been badly educated. We live in a world of competition in which honesty is synonymous with naïveté. We must first develop good habits. Some of them may seem … Continue reading
Paul Christensen: Turning 73
I turned 73 today. I look it. My hair is shaggy and white as old snow, my moustache a bit rough over my upper lip from the electric clipper I … Continue reading
Barbara Burt: This ain’t the Kentucky Derby, ya’ll
Ok, everybody, just calm down. At this point in the Democratic presidential primary “horserace,” things are getting tense. Some Clinton supporters clamor for Sanders to drop out. Although their voices … Continue reading
Sei Shonagon: Pleasing Things
In spring it is the dawn that is most beautiful. As the light creeps over the hills, their outlines are dyed a faint red and wisps of purplish cloud trail … Continue reading
Alexandra Dos Santos: We Don’t Care About the Young People
The Young People — it’s a label I’ve seen used to dismiss an entire generation as hopelessly naive and ignorant. The Young People don’t know how to communicate; they’re always … Continue reading
John Samuel Tieman: Remembering Daniel Berrigan
In 1995, the literary magazine River Styx invited Daniel Berrigan to St. Louis for the 2nd Annual Thomas Merton Commemoration. A three day weekend filled with this poetry, that speech, and … Continue reading
Paul Christensen: Rain
It’s raining out, a cold, soaking rain that has been mumbling in the rain gutters all morning and afternoon. The light is full of polished steel gleams, though flat and … Continue reading
Marc Jampole: The Best of Times
People at our Seder were too busy enjoying the moment to take photos & that’s a good thing. A very strange thing happened at our family Passover Seder dinner, which … Continue reading
John Samuel Tieman: Tuesday
You think of Sigmund Freud. You have a little bust of him on your desk, one you bought at the Freud home when you and your wife were in Vienna. … Continue reading
Paul Christensen: Vigilance at Sea
My wife and I once sailed on the Mariel, a Chinese-made freighter with five cavernous holds loaded with lemon peels soaked in molasses, bought from an orange juice factory in … Continue reading
Steven Gaines: Jerry Rubin, His Penis, And Me
In early summer of 1978 my agent asked me if I would be interested in ghost writing a book for Jerry Rubin about his small penis. Rubin, the former anti-war … Continue reading
Vanessa German: Hardbadmean Streets
there waz a new girl/woman on the street. before i left yesterday. i saw her. marching the corner between brushton and the brusies. making. hard eye contact at alla the … Continue reading
Michael Simms: Potluck Soup
When we were college students in Dallas in the 1970’s, my friends and I lived off college loans, the GI bill, and handouts from our parents. We were broke. So … Continue reading
Bart Plantenga: Amsterdam Refugee Center — Guarded Hope
Second in a series. No one leaves home unless home is the mouth of a shark. Warsan Shire, “Home” It’s a grey, dreary day; I’m listening to my … Continue reading
