By Stan Steindl. Mooloolaba, Queensland, Australia When you get a dog, your life changes forever. I had Bruno, a chocolate Labrador with hazel eyes, velvet ears, and a very waggy tail. He was the embodiment of compassion. My compassionate friend. Act 1 When Bruno first came into our lives, he was the most adorable living… Continue reading The Life of a Dog in Five Acts
Author: The Human Writers
My Aunt Lucy
By Ruth Latta. Ottawa, Ontario, Canada Aunt Lucy was a large woman who wore dark print winter dresses and thick spectacles. In the summers, she wore cotton print dresses with aprons that did not necessarily match. She taught nine and ten year olds, and in the summer, when her sisters came to visit her, they… Continue reading My Aunt Lucy
Pieces Of My Heart
By Sylvia Berger. Penguin, Tasmania, Australia I walked into the church, holding Mum’s hand, and wearing a borrowed dress because none of mine were good enough for a funeral. At seven years of age, people thought I didn’t understand, but I did. It was traumatic seeing the dark wooden coffin at the front of the… Continue reading Pieces Of My Heart
Separation and Transformation
By Sue E. Bernotas. Pennsylvania, USA You can hear the author reading this story by clicking the below arrow: My grandmother Flora was one of five children born to Cyrus, a carpenter, and Sarah Melinda in 1899. She met Robert Lee at a church social. She was tall at the age of 13 and he… Continue reading Separation and Transformation
A Moment Can Alter a Person Forever
By Lisa Borkovich. Hamilton, Ontario, Canada You can listen to the author read this story below: The night is still and quiet, except for the background hum of insects. The trees stand like sentinels in the humid summer air. Through their standing presence, the light of the moon on the lake is visible. The lap,… Continue reading A Moment Can Alter a Person Forever
The Simple Life
By Sally Giles. Wynn Vale, South Australia I have a fence in my back yard which I have never liked the look of. And the view over the fence is not very interesting, just a few roofs and electrical wires. So I have tried over the years to plant things which would cover the fence… Continue reading The Simple Life
Rather, a Desire
For David By Lennart Lundh. Toronto, Canada You can listen to the author read this poem by clicking the below arrow: And I want you so it’s an obsession. Dave Stewart and Annie Lennox Love, the antepenultimate goalif we weren’t so damned busychasing it as the one thing needed,failing on average often as not. And… Continue reading Rather, a Desire
At One With the Sea
By Marianne Tefft. Toronto, Canada You can hear Marianne read this poem by clicking the arrow below: My father was at one with the seaIn his arms the water was my best friendWhen he carried me into the wavesI body-surfed timelessly lips blueAs if I had fallen through northern iceInto subtropical winter In his youth… Continue reading At One With the Sea
Driving, Part II — 1977-1996
By David Clear. Scituate, Rhode Island, USA It would be in August of 1977 that I was once more driving, beginning my career now in earnest after my share of buses, bicycles and shared rides. I left Hollywood, Florida, in an Oldsmobile Starfire and arrived some ten days later in Los Angeles, California. The map… Continue reading Driving, Part II — 1977-1996
Johno and Gaffa Tape
By Tim Darby. Freemantle, Western Australia My dad believed anything could be fixed with enough gaffer tape and two-minute Araldite. And he was right — sort of. Us five kids were always breaking stuff. Whenever the sound of shattering china rang out or the shruuunk! of a teddy’s leg tearing off, Mum would say, “Oh… Continue reading Johno and Gaffa Tape
When You Have No Say in the Matter — at All.
By Grant Revell. North Fremantle, Western Australia When I was young I soon learnt how to be a father. Often at the expense of being a child. Circumstances were difficult but I quickly learnt that my own father didn’t really have a father of his own. Both were missing in action. And consequently, he wasn’t… Continue reading When You Have No Say in the Matter — at All.
Driving, 1971-1976: Am I There Yet?
By David Clear. Scituate, Rhode Island, USA You can hear the author read this piece by clicking the below arrow: Before there was driving, there was, of course, riding. Family trips in the summer from Rhode Island to visit my father’s relatives in Michigan. That’s what got me hooked. Right around twelve hours. The Massachusetts… Continue reading Driving, 1971-1976: Am I There Yet?
My Breast
By Meg Dolan. Queensland, Australia I want to speak to my breast—not as shadow or threat,not as a grayscale blur on a radiologist’s screen—but as my own:soft, sentient twin,a custodian of memory,cradling decades in quiet flesh.When I was young,I was timid, self-effacing,folding you into cardigans and careful posture.Until love—wild, worshipful, unbidden—coaxed you into radiance.Petite, yes,… Continue reading My Breast
My Second Bloom
By Dr. Preeti Talwar. Zirakpur, (Punjab) India Editor's note: This piece was inspired by the writing prompt Tell us about a moment that changed everything — even if no one else noticed. You can find more writing prompts here. You can hear Dr. Talwar reading her story by clicking the below arrow: It’s never too… Continue reading My Second Bloom
The Boat That Didn’t Float
By Brian John Pollock. Victoria, Australia You can hear the author reading this story by clicking the below arrow: THE BEGINNING I’ve built several wooden boats over the years, the last being a small dinghy in 2018, when I was a sprightly seventy-two. I’d dreamed of building a bigger boat, but it remained just that… Continue reading The Boat That Didn’t Float
Our Family History
By Penny Allen. Wolverhampton, England My grandparents, Clara and Alfred, lived with Clara’s parents on a rural farm in Cossington, a small village in North East Leicestershire. The property, Meadow Farm, belonged to the Burton family. Alfred left school at 11, having already passed his school certificate. He began working in a factory sewing leather… Continue reading Our Family History
Granny Saved My Life
By DJ Macdonald. South London, England In the streets of London, I gaze fondly at old houses with a basement, reminding me of my Granny’s Victorian house, which provided sanctuary to me for five years. Granny was a stately, well-dressed figure, never outside without a hat in her seventies and eighties. She was eccentric, eating… Continue reading Granny Saved My Life
Retirement
By Stephen House. Adelaide, South Australia When a friend spoke to me about her retirement, a shadow of reality slid over me without any consideration for my years; an older woman falling over near me last week, who I stayed with until an ambulance arrived, and a recent funeral of someone I knew and liked… Continue reading Retirement
Shooting for the Stars: A Memoir of School Days
By Robert Skewes. Craigmore, South Australia What do we remember of our school days? Probably only fragments. And what lingers when our teachers are long gone? Most likely only the intangible … whether they were kind and created safe places to thrive. Or whether they were formulaic and devoid of imagination. And what of our… Continue reading Shooting for the Stars: A Memoir of School Days
A Visit From My Cousin
By Annie Kenny. Brisbane, Queensland, Australia It was a sunny Sunday in late Spring 1976. My cousin Susan was visiting us. She lived in a big city, and I lived in a small town in the country. I was fourteen and she was thirteen. We were playing a board game in my bedroom. I believed… Continue reading A Visit From My Cousin
The Dunce’s Row
By Christopher Lane. Cairns, Queensland, Australia You can hear the author reading this story by clicking the below arrow. It was a hot summer morning on 6 February 1956 when my mother dragged me up a driveway that led into St. Therese’s School, Essendon. It was one of several Catholic primary schools in Melbourne managed… Continue reading The Dunce’s Row
The Misadventures of Me
By Jan Angelo. Exeter, South Australia, Australia Click the below arrow to hear Jan read her story. Well, here I am — 60 years young and not pretending to have it all figured out. Sure, I’ve got a few more wrinkles — thank God for hair dye! I also have lifetime of ridiculous stories that… Continue reading The Misadventures of Me
Rehoming Dad’s Book Collection
By Meredith Stephens. Adelaide, South Australia, Australia Note: The author has used pseudonyms for all characters apart from Dad. Click the below arrow to hear the author read her story and reveal what inspired her to share it. I fill up the boot of my car with yet another load of Dad’s books. I have… Continue reading Rehoming Dad’s Book Collection
Quiz Show
By Paul Dufficy. Sydney, NSW, Australia We got our first television set in 1962. Mary and I were only allowed to watch on the weekends. One of our favourite shows was called Play Your Hunch on TCN 9. It was hosted by a radio and television veteran named George Foster who had an Errol Flynn-style… Continue reading Quiz Show
Jenny and Jack
By Lindsey-Jane Doley. Adelaide, SA, Australia My first European Tour of June 1974 was a twelve day marathon which included France, Italy, Austria, Switzerland, Germany, and fleetingly through Liechtenstein and Luxembourg. The tour company was called Cosmos and I think they're still in business, but maybe have upgraded their standards a bit. While our trip… Continue reading Jenny and Jack