family – Page 7 – FEMININE COLLECTIVE

First Comes Love, Then Comes?

February 5, 2018October 15, 2018 Deanna Keller

First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes Deanna pushing a baby carriage. Most of us grew up singing this little ditty in the schoolyard when our friends expressed their “love” for someone of the opposite sex. The expectation set forth as children was to “grow up, get married and Read more

Post-Holiday Grief: No More Christmases

January 21, 2018September 13, 2019 Elizabeth Regen

On December 3, 2015, my parents – at 73 years of age – moved to Los Angeles, from New York City. The city they had lived in, their whole lives. They had traveled. Florida and Puerto Rico. Still extremely east coast. December 3rd was my middle daughter’s 6th birthday, and Read more

Not Your Daughter

January 4, 2018October 13, 2018 Paakhi Bhatnagar

my father never saw me smoke he didn’t see the way the clouds come out of my mouth and make beautiful shapes in the sultry sky between me and Her. I have never liked the way a cigarette felt between my two fingers but the sight of it between Her Read more

The Night Before Christmas 2017

December 17, 2017October 13, 2018 SA Smith

It was the week before Christmas, when all through the house The kids were asleep, but the parents were out. They searched through the malls, trying desperately to find, One special gift for their child, which was sold out online. They searched Amazon, Target, GameStop and more, Trying to find Read more

Why Did You Kill My Sister?

December 10, 2017May 7, 2019 Kim Sisto Robinson

“To rise, first you must burn.” ― Hiba Fatima Ahmad Dear Mike, When you were alive, I never quite knew the day of your birthday. Kay had to inform me the day you were born–“Oh, did you know it’s Mike’s birthday today? I’m having cake and ice-cream later on. Pleeeeease Read more

Breathe

December 7, 2017October 13, 2018 Amye Archer

Breathe. The simple act of pulling the world in and swallowing. When I was a kid, I used to hold my breath underwater for 74 seconds. I remember that number clearly because it was the neighborhood record. It was a feat to balloon my chest and deprive my body of Read more

I Won Second Prize in a Beauty Contest and Collected More Than $10

December 3, 2017September 14, 2018 Dave Pasquel

Since the day I could count, my brother and I battled dozens of times in family tournaments of Monopoly. Before each match, he would confront me with his antagonizing, big-brother, I-am-the-boss-of-you tone. “Ready to lose another game of MO-NOP-O-LY, Dave-IT?” Expecting an inescapable wrestling hold if I refused, I gave Read more

Secret Life of Nimu

October 25, 2017August 31, 2021 Suman Rathore Shah

A story of grief, healing and hope. The essay traces a woman’s trip to her hometown after the death of her husband. The traditions that aid the process of grieving and a daughter’s realization about her mother’s resilience and watching her claim herself back. “She has a pacemaker; you cannot Read more