peach cobbler after
grandma's visitation
tastes bland

Alex Kitchens (5)

her wall comes down
he asks what happened
in her childhood

Tara Goheen (2)

"Better"
she says
when I put on a dress

Becky Smith (3)

in the half-light
she twirls the stem
of a dried-out rose

Jordan Pennington (4)

Christmas with the in-laws
grandma spikes
her eggnog

Grant Dartman (9)

glowing end
of an exhausted cigar—
a successful girl talk

Kylie Cochran (8)

toddler eats a cigarette
dad is going to quit
. . . tomorrow

Alex Kitchens (6)

summer moon
over the bridge
drunken poets

Aubrie Cox (2)

bubbles form
a Santa Clause beard—
bathtime

Becky Smith (2)

my mother's cold hands
on my neck,
her winter delight

Kylie Cochran (4)

first snowfall
my mother asks
for forgiveness

Grant Dartman (5)

pulling up her veil
he still sees
her kool-aid smile

Hollie Logsdon (9)

pictures from that weekend
at the beach
before his accident

Nora Kocher (4)

lighting the candles
her toothless grin
shines the brightest

Grant Dartman (2)

ballet slippers
on loafers
father-daughter dance

Hollie Logsdon (4)

midnight snack
her best friend
licking the bowl

Jade Anderson (8)

she holds a baby
too comfortably
I let go a smile

Tyler Lamensky (5)

steamy kitchen
we let the kettle
whistle

Susie Wirthlin (10)

there's a locked car door
between me
and my phone

Jackson Lewis (2)

fireplace ablaze
inhibitions slipping
under her shirt

Jade Anderson (4)

christmas socks—
we line up
to hug auntie

Jordan Pennington (2)

fuzzy mismatched socks
sliding across the hardwood
Christmas morning

Nora Kocher (3)

gnawing at his bed
and biting helping hands
my new puppy

Alex Kitchens (2)

floured counter
our fingers slowly tracing
a heart

Susie Wirthlin (4)

Saturday night texts
written with drunk fingers
and his love

Tara Goheen (2)

blinded by the setting sun
our shadows
hold hands

Tyler Lamensky (4)

winter twilight
the train tracks still
warm

Aubrie Cox

so few words
on the back of a postcard
better together

Randy Brooks

picture of her
wrapped around
another man—
she says I
was her first love

Jackson Lewis (4)