Hello Father, Thank you dearly for writing after all these years. Your apology is accepted, and everything is forgotten. Your decision to leave your family to fend in an old musty apartment isn’t a big deal. Actually, it makes perfect sense! My mom was growing older. She had started to get wrinkles on her once … Continue reading Thanks For The Damn Letter
I stand right by the entrance to the renaissance style café, la petite violette, and yet Sofy is nowhere to be seen. I glance down at my wristwatch; it says 9:05. Sweat runs down my brow, and I sigh loudly as I stare into the jumble of people on the street. Though the sun has just … Continue reading Emerald Tears
I made it. From afar, scaling this hill seemed an insurmountable task, but here I am, atop the hillside that separates my secluded valley from what lay beyond. And, to my delight, the sun has yet to set. Soft shades of orange float across the evening sky, fading into a burst of vermillion light upon … Continue reading Beyond That Hill
Standing naked on a rough, rocky precipice, a broken man offers promises to the wind. This time, he says, things will be different. Life will begin anew. Yes, from this point onwards, I shall be the man I always wanted to be. I shall not care for the looks of others, but they will regard … Continue reading Scattered In the Wind
The scariest of things are those we do not see coming, which is as true for monsters in horror movies as it is for addiction. While monsters hide under the bed, TikTok disguises itself as a harmless medium for relaxation and enjoyment — Are you bored? Tired after a long day at work? Why don't … Continue reading The Hidden Dangers of TikTok
Dear Samantha, Many years have passed since we last met. And yet, when I think of you as I do now, I am transported back to the summer we shared. The time we rested shoulder to shoulder on a field of sunflowers, gazing up at the clouds as they swam past us overhead. And I … Continue reading I Saw a Cloud That Reminded Me of You
Shera lay outside in the snow, wearing nothing but his father’s old shirt. Its thin fabric obstructs the cold as well as a shield of paper blocks a sword, serving merely as a pretense of defense. Thus, the chill breeze has free reigns as it wages war on the poor boy’s body, causing his lips … Continue reading The World That Never Was
My bare feet grind against the rough cavern floor as I run along the dimly-lit corridor. It hurts like hell, but whatever it was back there is worse than bloodied fucking feet. I throw a furtive glance behind my shoulder, and sure enough. There is movement in the distance. Slithering, followed by menacing, hissing sounds. … Continue reading The Snake Pit
If you seek to reinvent yourself, you must first uncover the truth — the truth of the taint which plagues your weary mind. It is hard, I know. We, humans, are prone to rationalize our decisions; of collecting the pieces from past events and gluing them together into a coherent narrative, into an unnaturally pristine jar of … Continue reading The Jar of Life | Destroy & Reinvent
If I want to change, it Will be a slow process. I cannot expect the chains to fall off in one go, for I have forged them, shaped them, during a lifetime. However, I shall not accept that I am doomed to be fettered indefinitely. I shall not recognize there’s no light on the other … Continue reading Laying the Foundation for a Statement of Action | Change IS Possible
Benjamin Bratz 