Flash Fiction Online January 2019

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WHAT DOES ONE PONDER AT THE TURNING OF THE NEW YEAR?

Food, of course. Either the food we will indulge in at our New Year’s feast (the Eve party, AND breakfast, AND the New Year’s Day dinner), or the food we must deny ourselves in order to redeem our waistlines from the gluttony of the multitude of food-centered holidays that consume the last quarter of the Gregorian calendar.

Humor author, Erma Bombeck, once wrote, “I come from a family where gravy is considered a beverage.”

Yeah. Me, too.

Or, from comedian Kevin James: “There’s no better feeling in the world than a warm pizza box on your lap.”

Amen.

And I far too heartily agree with Avengers actress Elizabeth Olsen, who said, “I get way too much happiness from good food.”

We, as human beings, are connected with food in so many more ways than simple sustenance. Food can stimulate all five of our senses. It is at the center of our celebrations. It is comfort, and pleasure, and art. There is an emotional connection we have with food that few other substances or experiences elicit.

My daughter was recently warned by her doctor that she may need to give up grains and dairy. She was despondent in ways that she wouldn’t have been if the doctor had told her she needed to give up video games or those super-soft blankets she loves. She decided she could potentially live without all those things, except butter. Not butter. She needs butter.

All that in mind, what better way to launch our first issue of the year than with a food issue.

This month, we invite you to experience a gamut of emotions—grief, longing, frustration, humor, and one very disturbing peek into codependency–all revolving around our favorite subject—FOOD!

SALT, SPICES, FAT, HONEY BY N. R. M. Roshak
Blackberry Wine by Carrie Johnson
The Truffles of Mars by Jeremy Lichtman
VIET NAM 1968 by Sherry Shahan
And a new writing column by Jason S. Ridler!
Bon Appétit!

Suzanne