Still Life 2020

Page 25

Broom Clean Stuart Barbier The purchase agreement stipulated the house was to be left broom clean. This wasn’t my mother’s standard—but she’d been gone ten years, and while my father had done what he could, there was still much to do. Sixty years in a house leaves a mark. He had worried about this the last few years. No problem, I told him. What didn’t he save? Butter tubs neatly stacked, the lids adjacent, just in case. A few had such a case: one for plastic bread bag tabs and another for frozen orange juice can lids. My brother and I staged a fight over the shiny lids, captured by his cell phone, which didn’t record the ensuing silence. He had to drive a day and a half to get back to his job and worried he couldn’t stay. No problem, I told him. The garage rafters hid boxes of our childhood toys. Under the basement stairs were boxes of our baby food jars, neatly arranged in rows. Trunks of broken clocks awaited my dad’s time. Drawer after dresser drawer divulged collections of ball bearings, puzzles, alarm clocks, gloves and mittens. Still no problem, I told myself. And then, in a battered metal box, on a shelf with more broken clocks, a packet of love letters chronicling time apart between engagement and marriage. No broom could help me with that.

Still Life 2020

23


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Articles inside

About Our Benefactor

1min
pages 96-98

About Our Contributors

21min
pages 86-94

there and back again,” Madeline Bruessow

1min
page 84

Our Own Magic,” Jolyn H. Ohlendorf

1min
page 83

tu me manques,” Madeline Bruessow

1min
page 81

La Fiesta de Traje de Saginaw,” Lauren Wells

1min
page 82

Standing Song,” Joshua Jordan

1min
page 76

The Moral of the Movie,” Eric P. Nisula

1min
pages 79-80

toxic,” Jaden O’Berry

1min
page 77

Stars to the North,” Taylor Tucker

1min
page 75

Tomatoes,” Kathleen Tighe

1min
pages 73-74

Love Cremated,” Rachel Diehl

1min
pages 70-71

Taraxacum,” Austin Bauer

1min
page 65

what america has done to its veterans,” Matthew Sauer

1min
page 66

No Longer Me,” Devonn Fernbach

1min
page 67

The Conversation, with a Golden Shovel,” Deda Kavanagh

1min
page 63

do you remember,” Denise Hill

1min
page 62

Grandma’s Hands,” Chris Lucka

1min
page 61

Social Media Friends,” Julie Debats

1min
page 60

Offerings,” Jared Morningstar

1min
page 59

Falcon, Fly On,” Tristan Harman

1min
page 58

Existence,” Matt Chappel

1min
page 52

Post-Post,” Cbxtn Fig

1min
pages 54-55

grief is the song stuck in your head when you wake up,” Katy Haas

1min
page 51

Humanity’s Rainbow,” Michelle Perreault

1min
page 50

Home from the Conference,” Bruce Gunther

1min
page 49

Miles,” Mark Sheffield Brown

1min
page 47

Consumption,” Todd Stockmeyer

1min
page 48

Journal of Life,” Andrew Dudewicz

1min
pages 41-42

Naturally,” Caroline Helmstadt

1min
pages 43-44

Heartsong 2020,” Serena M. Pittman

1min
page 46

I Wish I Was an Astrophysicist,” DJ Slater

1min
page 40

Lauren Wells

1min
pages 38-39

Cathedrals,” Karen Lulich Horwath

1min
page 36

Student Experience,” Imari Cheyne Tetu

1min
pages 34-35

A Box of Diamonds,” Rosemary Kavanagh

1min
pages 30-31

Broom Clean,” Stuart Barbier

1min
page 25

Light in the Dark,” Kaili Goodrich

1min
page 24

Upside Down Club,” Josh Crummer

1min
pages 28-29

Traffic Signs,” Hannah Gradowski

1min
page 23

Social Surgery,” Alexis Beauchamp

1min
page 20

Beach Towel Fashion Show,” Jennifer Nichols

1min
page 19

Split Personality Parade,” Vanessa Willette

1min
page 16

Strike,” Brenna Dean

1min
page 18

Goodnight Moon,” Mark Brenner

1min
page 12

The Cinder Blocks Remember,” Donny Winter

1min
page 13

Editors’ Note

1min
pages 9-10

Food Coloring,” Marjorie Talaga

1min
pages 14-15
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