There was Red Jaws sitting on the couch, mom’s half-brother, while we waited for his tale. He took a minute, easing into the story like a slow drink of whiskey. I ain’t drunk today he said, still too early but there has been many a time when me and aContinue Reading
Sunlight touches my face at dawn A butterfly lands on my hand Bees kiss wildflowers on the lawn Crimson cardinals present their demands The last glow of sunset reveals a doe and fawn Fireflies twinkle in dewy evening starlight Crickets and bullfrogs sing their soulful tune Moon-eyed owl keeps vigilContinue Reading
It was the farthest north they had ever been. It being Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. They being George Washington Cline and Henry Lafayette Marcum of Mingo County, Virginia, which bordered Kentucky in the southwestern part of the state. Most people there in Mingo County were related to each other. George and HenryContinue Reading
“Really Loud and Partially Deaf” dedicated to my Husband, Army Veteran Mark Batton My wife brings up a basket of laundry. She doesn’t say anything. She doesn’t need to. I know she despises folding laundry. It’s a load of towels. I grab one. Warm and fresh-smelling. I fold it inContinue Reading
Last fall, Appalachia Bare had the opportunity to conduct an on-site interview with Wayne Mason, the Compost Supervisor at Knoxville’s University of Tennessee (UTK) Compost Facility.1)Over the winter Wayne took a position with a city in the northeast to set up a municipal compost facility. What an eye-opening experience! WayneContinue Reading
The following poem from Anna Laura Reeve’s debut book of poetry, Reaching the Shore of the Sea of Fertility (Belle Point Press), was a finalist for the Ron Rash Award and was first published in Broad River Review. Flower Moon One way to light myself after darkness is toContinue Reading
In Anna Laura Reeve’s 2023 debut collection Reaching the Shore of the Sea of Fertility (Belle Point Press), readers will be transported from the domesticity of everyday life to the wonder of the flora and fauna in the balds of Southern Appalachia. Mothers will not be able to read the firstContinue Reading
After school one day, me and Gerod were walkin’ by Auntie Clem’s house and heard Ol’ blind Lester and her jawing up a storm so we decided to stop by. Everybody knowed and loved Auntie Clem. She was kin to most everybody in town. We went running right up onContinue Reading
Thinking back on my Amma, West Virginia, days has been bittersweet. I miss my dad, Ross Carper, and all that he was. He was such a good father and a sweet, kind, and humble man. He was a hard worker for Columbia Gas, as well as at home. Dad providedContinue Reading
I have a long and complex personal history with Role-playing Games (RPGs). I started playing Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) in high school with a boyfriend. During the time I was dating him, he used elements of gaming as one of several methods of manipulation and psychological abuse. Further in, theContinue Reading