by Namya Naresh Gravitation and gratification, ruled their bodies like pendulums they swung, back and forth The lines of the city were masters of their souls. The lines of the city were the creators of their homes. Redundancy, hypocrisy, autonomy ‘What’s mine is yours, Honey!’ They lied to one another. ‘Life is good,’ they lied … More Snowflake
by Bob Boyton 1 The hostel want more ID off me than old bill need to put you away for three years but I tell ‘em I’ll be a good boy and get loved up with my key worker in the morning so they book me into a double. After that they keep me hanging … More Freedom Train
By Kristian Dennet Sophia watched the audience as the curtain slowly fell. Like a shop awkwardly closing its shutters for the night. The faces in the audience only looked in one direction; all eyes on Rene, the venerated star of the show. As Sophia wondered why that couldn’t be her, a hand grabbed out and … More The Starring Role
by Naseema Khanom I spy on the neighbour’s garden an apple tree, six foot three with perfect ripe reds and greens growing towards the heavens. Every spring without fail doctors, lawyers and pharmacists blossom on every stem. It is a mighty sight to behold roots so strong, resilient the rich soil, bountiful. The good … More Family Tree
by Sajidah Iqbal I want to make a home here, it’s just that, I don’t know how to go about it. I wonder if it would be easy to do it all over again; to carve my name on the bark of the new trees, that don’t recognize me or leave my footprints on the … More Recipe for Home
By John Philip Gething Homesick Blue It is that sense of home, that almost grieving addiction for a place. Stitched into the fabrics, sewn to its walls that drip a color of youth. Like vines. Veins. We painted the walls pinstriped Blue when we moved in. american yankees. I was seven years old. Would have … More Homesick Blue
By Roderick O’Sullivan “Flight 407 to London Heathrow is now boarding at Gate 34. American Airlines again apologises for the long delay, resulting from the earlier security incident. American Airlines thanks you for your understanding on the inevitable seating changes that have proved necessary to make up for lost time and backlogs. A complimentary bar … More One Too Many
By Rae Gellel It’s a waiting room like any other, that standard doctors surgery set up with the mismatching furniture and a pithy offering of well-thumbed women’s magazines. It greets you with an encompassing, inexplicable hush, perhaps the result of those awful hard-backed chairs that make everyone sit up so straight and formal, and the … More The Waiting Room
by Oladele Oladeji Open the fucking door! This is Frankie’s opening to expression and frustration. Ricky replied, “I’m fucking my wife for Christ sakes. Haven’t you got any decency, you fucked up waste of space?” It’s London. It was a very cold night too. We were in the depth of Epping Forest. Trees stand erect, waiting … More Loud Speakers
by Emily Rath A call across the ocean unmuffled by the waves a bridge at midnight reaches to the other in the light of day Her voice like a joyful sparrow although her winter’s just come the spattering of a snowy rain obstructing half the sun Sadness stained on white pillows Black … More Two Women
Wells Street Journal 