Old Man

I’ve been coming to this park for months. Today an elderly man I’ve never seen before wearing tan khaki pants that are too long, sits next to me.

“Beautiful morning, I’ve been coming here since I was a boy. I still remember the fruit stand that used to be across the street on the corner. Best oranges I ever tasted.”

Just having lost my job, I’m not in the mood for conversation and leave. Then I realized I forgot my cell phone on the bench.

When I return, the man is gone, and an orange sits next to my phone.From Guest Contributor Lisa M. Scuderi-Burkimsher

Family Matters

“Hola! Anyone inside?”

There were no smells of frying chicken or beans being reheated.

“It’s your Tito,” the elderly man continued.

Someone arrived to sit at one of the picnic tables nearby.

“Ran into your madre. Said you bought a food truck. Set up in my end of town. Sorry your restaurant closed down. Covid’s a beast.”

He shuffled around the vehicle, returning to the truck’s open window.

“Still angry? Not my fault your parents split up.”

The truck’s door opened and a lean young man stepped out.

“Na, not angry, gramps. Now what would you like for lunch today?”

From Guest Contributor Krystyna Fedosejevs

Krystyna writes poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction regardless of the season, although she prefers spring.

The Great Beyond

“I don’t know how I feel about myself anymore?” I asked. The long quiet hallways of the in-patient unit were brightly lit and sterile.

“The mental health journey is a hard process,” the counselor mentioned. I picked up my heavy luggage and walked to the door. Nathaniel, an elderly man with a cane methodically lumbered the length of the hall to catch me.

“I wanted to tell you something,” he said. “I think you are an amazing person, and I hope to see you in the great beyond.”

I exhaled deeply and walked through the doorway looking at the sun.

From Guest Contributor Steve Colori

Panic At Sea

Mary attached her life vest to her body, squeezed through the screaming crowd and made her way to the lifeboats. The cold air chilled her body and numbed her feet; she could barely walk. Frozen in fear, she waited. After being placed in the lifeboat, panicked passengers tried to jump in as the deck hand began lowering them down. He took out his gun and started firing at no one in particular and shot a poor elderly man.

Mary, stunned, looked at the dark sea beneath, bodies floating by.

Titanic began to sink, and the lifeboat collapsed into the ocean.

From Guest Contributor Lisa M. Scuderi-Burkimsher