Bites & Pieces

By Stacia Konow

Photos by Jiahe Wang

One day, I realized my favorite color had become purple

I’m not exactly sure when that changed

though I’ve always loved lavender and myrtle

and my Christmas plum tea so much that my mug is already drained

I looked at my hands as I added honey to the tea

realizing that i’ve had my nails painted “Endless Purple Pursuit” for weeks

I was thinking of eating a fig for a snack before I leave

but it’s a bit small and I always want one more piece

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pull up a

chair table overflowing

friends food silverware

pierogies gyoza samosas

vegetables and dough

together

sitting smiling a

glinting glass suddenly

in hand effervescing

light stay laugh

settle in finally

together

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I bit into a peach

and a bit of

sadness washed away

in the juice running

down my chin, tears running

down my reddened

cheeks, sticky hands

reaching for a napkin finding my

eyes instead of my mouth.

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Having a Coke with You

is even more fun than staying up until 3am on a Wednesday just because we can

or running through forgotten basements and exploring forbidden rooftops

partly because we’re both always exhausted and the sugar is a welcome reprieve

partly because I only feel like myself when we’re talking, partly because I don’t want to go to bed

partly because I want you to know I’d do anything for you

even share an orange which I don’t even like, partly because you are just happy to share

partly because you look ridiculous with the orange slice smile and I know you’re doing it to make me laugh, partly because it made me realize I haven’t laughed like that in a while

You looked at me like I was insane to say that coke and lime go together.

I honestly didn’t believe it at first either because it doesn’t sound like it would taste good.

I think it’s actually supposed to be Jack and coke with lime, but we both know that I wouldn’t

drink whiskey if my life depended on it even though you’ve told me it gets better if you let it sit

on your tongue, just like we both let words sit a little too long in our mouths.

I tell you to just cut the lime already and try it because it’s really not that bad but instead you eat

the lime straight just like you eat your oranges and it makes me laugh and you say that the lime is

delicious and I should try it but you say that about the oranges too so instead I lean in

and it’s the sweetest lime I’ve ever had

To every friend I've had a Coke with