-after Untitled by Gertrude Abercrombie 1951 Inside the crystal ball she tethers herself to a white cat, listens to its papier-mâché heart beat under a full moon. But maybe that sound just past the end of the frame is her own heart, strips of paper glued into a conundrum: How can she dance in a […] The post EPHEMERAL OBJECTS BY SANDRA L. FAULKNER first appeared on The RavensPerch. The post EPHEMERAL OBJECTS BY SANDRA L. FAULKNER appeared first on The RavensPerch ..read more

A ladder of two by fours nailed between studs made it possible to ascend to the low attic where we would crawl, on the lookout for wasps, heads tucked tight to avoid nails. There we found odd castoffs from our parents’ mysterious childhoods: old magazines and baby beds, picture frames with portraits of antique strangers […] The post WORKSHOP ATTIC BY JEAN ANNE FELDEISEN first appeared on The RavensPerch. The post WORKSHOP ATTIC BY JEAN ANNE FELDEISEN appeared first on The RavensPerch ..read more

The last time I saw him alive he was negotiating the steps to his front door while carrying a six-foot ladder, and I said to him, “Can I give you a hand?” To which he responded, “No thanks. I think I got it!” I knew he had cancer, though I’m not sure what kind it […] The post MIKE BY JEFFREY ZABLE first appeared on The RavensPerch. The post MIKE BY JEFFREY ZABLE appeared first on The RavensPerch ..read more

without my family      and without my dogs not to escape life and connections      but to listen without being in charge to see the crepuscular light      under the canopy the kind of light that could mean      morning or late afternoon as it breaks in      through the […] The post I TAKE MYSELF TO THE SMOKY MOUNTAINS BY SANDRA L. FAULKNER first appeared on The RavensPerch. The post I TAKE MYSELF TO THE SMOKY MOUNTAINS BY SANDRA L. FAULKNER appeared first on The RavensPerch ..read more

The last time I saw her was at Andronico’s market. She was reaching for a loaf of bread and just as she was about to turn around, I snatched it out of her hand. Not recognizing me at first, I could see that the instinct to kill was in her eyes, but as soon as […] The post REMEMBERING LESLIE SCHWARTZBACH BY JEFFREY ZABLE first appeared on The RavensPerch. The post REMEMBERING LESLIE SCHWARTZBACH BY JEFFREY ZABLE appeared first on The RavensPerch ..read more

and she doesn’t bust out the soap      not even the Lifebouy White which tasted like detention and boiled brussel sprouts the soap that made them blow bubbles for 3 days after their younger brother taped them screeching      get the f out of my room using that word she doesn’t like    […] The post THE OVERACHIEVER DROPS THE F-BOMB IN FRONT OF THEIR 84-YEAR-OLD MOTHER BY SANDRA L. FAULKNER first appeared on The RavensPerch. The post THE OVERACHIEVER DROPS THE F-BOMB IN FRONT OF THEIR 84-YEAR-OLD MOTHER BY SANDRA L. FAULKNER appeared first on The RavensPer ..read more

I begin with a photo of a daughter, lost, inking in Black-Eyed Susans the pink of wild Geraniums, brushing Dahlias in lavender hues with the precision of a mother’s touch, their steadfast desire to blossom when nothing else in the garden will. I work from memory when the colors can’t be bright enough to capture […] The post SKETCHING FLOWERS BY SANDRA L. FAULKNER first appeared on The RavensPerch. The post SKETCHING FLOWERS BY SANDRA L. FAULKNER appeared first on The RavensPerch ..read more

There would be stories of unearthly screams in the woods next the marshes of Leeds Point. Little devil child sprung full-armor, you thirteenth child of a mother who could not save or name you. What rumor invented the cloven hooves that held you upright? The horns, the bat-like wings, the soul-black eyes? They say you […] The post JERSEY DEVIL BY JEAN ANNE FELDEISEN first appeared on The RavensPerch. The post JERSEY DEVIL BY JEAN ANNE FELDEISEN appeared first on The RavensPerch ..read more

Two hours through the Pine Barrens My sister and I impatient through endless dusty trees we read and reread the museum brochure our legs stick to the seat of Uncle Murray’s Volkswagen bug Hot even with windows cranked down Finally─ through the Lincoln Tunnel straight up to the Met. We enter fifteen minutes apart One […] The post 1976: TOURING THE KING TUT EXHIBIT AT THE METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART BY JEAN ANNE FELDEISEN first appeared on The RavensPerch. The post 1976: TOURING THE KING TUT EXHIBIT AT THE METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART BY JEAN ANNE FELDEISEN appeared first on The RavensPerch ..read more

So my wife and I arrive at the airport and as soon as we go through the sliding doors we see a woman in a uniform wearing a badge. As my wife has a question to ask, we walk up to her, and after she answers, she looks at me and says, “You’re a teacher, […] The post THE PICTURE BY JEFFREY ZABLE first appeared on The RavensPerch. The post THE PICTURE BY JEFFREY ZABLE appeared first on The RavensPerch ..read more