All mine

All Mine

Tempting, isn’t it, that last slice?

Here is how you take it:

Forget the fork

You will only need your fingertips

Lift the sweetness slowly

and warm it with your breath.

This takes time.

Next, set your teeth around the soft middle

and bite gently, rolling the flavors in your mouth

like a wave

Savor               and swallow

But see that a

few crumbs find

the corners of your

lower lip and stay put —

Those bits are mine.

- K a t h l e e n  K i m b a l l - B a k e r ,  A u g u s t  2 0 1 5

Unfinished

[Mag 286]

 Pose me as you did

            the night we stole inside

the swelling moon,

            the night my hair came loose and we

            polished off a bottle,              

dark and full.

How we fooled that dim morning

leaving damp traces

            for all the world to see

                        and not a soul to know.

- K a t h l e e n  K i m b a l l - B a k e r,  2 0 1 5


Inspired by Tess Kinkaid's Magpie Tales, a blog dedicated to the enjoyment of poets and writers, for the purpose of honing their craft, sharing it with like-minded bloggers, and keeping their muses alive and well.

Starter home

[ Mag 285 ]

Together, they thumbed

page after page through

the hefty catalog

until they found the one.

“Yes, that’s it! Perfect!”

They selected furniture, too.

The price was certainly right.

Shipping, however, made

no sense-until the package

arrived. They laughed till

their sides ached.

And they saved it

as a reminder never to

take themselves too

seriously. And then they 

laughed some more.

You see, they had missed

one tiny detail:

“Toy”

- K a t h l e e n  K i m b a l l - B a k e r,  2 0 1 5

Inspired by Tess Kinkaid's Magpie Tales, a blog dedicated to the enjoyment of poets and writers, for the purpose of honing their craft, sharing it with like-minded bloggers, and keeping their muses alive and well.

Earth-Bound

One,
     the North Star,
             keeper of the evermore
Another,
     the Perseid,
           A constant sailor on the Neverwas
And I
        I offer my empty hold,
               and roll the dice of nevermore,
Who, I ask,
       will take me home
                and ink my name on the spiral night?

- K a t h l e e n  K i m b a l l - B a k e r,  2 0 1 5


Image: Hitesh Chhabra at Pixoto 

Flash Fiction Friday - Shouldering

Here. Now.

By Kathleen Kimball-Baker

“PUSH!”

“I can’t,” Ellie whimpers, wobbling on her hands and knees.”

“Stop it, Ellie, push!”

“Oh, God! Help me please! I’m gonna die.”

Beth pivots, faces her young sister.

“Listen to me. The baby’s stuck by his shoulders. You’ve got to ...”

Ellie’s screams split open the night.

A dusky baby slips into Beth’s hands.

Wailing.

Image: "Newborn" by Izabella Casselman

.......................

To join the fun, write any story you like in 55 words (no more, no less).
Then tell Mr. Knowitall, aka G-Man by leaving a a comment

on his own Flash-55 post.

Flash Fiction Friday - Uh oh

Devolving

By Kathleen Kimball-Baker

“Howard! Wake up!”

“Huh? Whaaa?”

“You were howling, for God’s sakes!”

“You mean like a dog?”

“More like a wolf!”

“Daphne, did you forget to take your sleeping pills?”

“Howard, I’m telling you, you howled. Like aaaawoooooooooo.”

“Woman, you’re the one who’s howling.”

“Howard! Your nose! Your teeth! What’s happening to you?”

“I . . . don’t . . . knooooooooooooooooooow . . .”

Imagehttp://mattstratton.com by Matt Stratton

........................

To join the fun, write any story you like in 55 words (no more, no less).
Then tell Mr. Knowitall, aka G-Man by leaving a a comment

on his own Flash-55 post.

Flash Fiction Friday - First encounter

Because You Called

By Kathleen Kimball-Baker

At his window two floors above,

backlit and rumpled,

he has watched her make the calls. 

You can’t hear me, can you?

He watches her lips.

Can you feel this?

Moist air enters his ear.

His breath quickens.

Everything,

nothing wasted.

You let me in. Why?

 Above her breasts, he traces:

“You needed me.”

True.

Image by HAMED MASOUMI

...................

To join the fun, write any story you like in 55 words (no more, no less).
Then tell Mr. Knowitall, aka G-Man by leaving a a comment

on his own Flash-55 post.