Woman, they say Your breasts get larger each day! It is now time To find a man, they conclude Hands clasped together As if my fate is already agreed upon A fate written by the tears of mothers, Grandmothers, aunties, and cousins Engraved into our family history This long-held tradition Of tying our women up […]
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Featured Image: Natalia Senanayake i’m like a warm coffee pot blend the paleness of milk, mixed with strength and aroma a blend of the two, learning balance and harmony. i stem from the cherry blossoms and willows rooted with love in the backyard oasis of my mother’s green thumb. and the new england drive horseshoe […]
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Featured Image: Lucxama Sylvain Aged eleven I knew Black was not beautiful That my 4c coils, dark brown skin, and protruding curves Made me too big, loud, and ugly Not blond enough, small enough, or white enough I was a sore thumb in a sea of white A sidekick in some white girl’s life Nice […]
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F. S. Yousaf has come a long way. Having first started writing in 2013, he began posting his poetry online in 2015, leading him to publish three books of poems. His second book, “Sincerely”, was a powerful declaration of love to his then-fiancé that reached and captured the hearts of thousands of readers. His upcoming […]
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I sink my teeth into the skin of an orange child blossoming from the furtive beginnings of youth, hissing as ocherous juice spurts into my eyes, a vengeance siphoned from the soft muscle I pulled apart. In that moment of blindness, I can see Spring looming over my seated form, spouting nonsense about the child […]
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Featured Artwork: ‘Hand Studies Charcoal’ by Matt Mozgiel is meticulous lithe fingers cupping my cheeks toned from a thousand hours in latex gloves quivering with concentration and intent working tirelessly to come home to his daughter who’d barrel into his fatigued arms and the exhaustion would evaporate is gentle a sleeve darkened with a […]
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Featured Artwork: ‘Anxiety’ by aaakeith Trigger Warning: Eating Disorders . . . Catherine comes over the night before Thanksgiving with her mother She was my first best friend my unofficial older sister the girl I wanted to be when I grew up I was six She was nine We had just read […]
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Featured Image: Scroll.in They traveled far, Over vast oceans Nestled at the bottom belly Of oversized ships in undersized cavities They were the first To settle on foreign lands With golden sands On lush plantations Promises of wealth Promises of freedom Promises of a free man From coolie belles To girmits Our […]
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My father, vivacious— a mouth full of leaves and amrut, splurting and gushing between the crooks in his teeth, a call to the boy who punched him square in the face in a brawl on the streets of Gujranwala, the nuts he cracked while playing cards, while dealing empty cigarette boxes, a love song played […]
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