By Brian Fink Winter 2011 Kaplan Award Winner My mother swears that had she not smelled the smoke, I would’ve burned everything. I was still an infant and doing my business as usual, screaming and spitting and blowing my undeveloped brain out through my nose, in protest against nap-time. She routinely ignored me. Feeling betrayed, I … Read More
By Michelle Martinez Winter 2011 Kaplan Award Winner Part One “Why did he do that?” I asked Peter through a sob. My words triggered something deeper in me: the helplessness of the unanswerable question: Why is this happening to me? And I started to cry briefly, but the tears felt so far away and alien, … Read More
By Katy Westlund Winter 2011 Kaplan Award Winner It takes a lot of guts to stick your fingers down your own throat three times a day. But it is not bravery by any means. She calls it cowardly. But she lost control of herself almost seven years ago. She has a beautiful name. But here … Read More
By Nicole Bradford Fall 2009 Kaplan Award Winner “Sing in your head Rosie, just Sing In YOUR HEAD!!” My voice is accelerating. I won’t even tolerate a mumble from the backseat. Heat of Phoenix, suffocating traffic sludge, trapped – and her strangled interpretation of a Michael Jackson melody persists in the backseat. Exasperating! I should … Read More
By Kristopher Edin Fall 2009 Kaplan Award Winner I just started brewing our green tea for the drive out to the end of the road. Christine is slowly rising from bed, the early hour demanding she take it easy. It is 4:45 am. The ferry leaves from Edmonds in one hour. Tomorrow is Thanksgiving, and … Read More
By Parisa Sadrzadeh Fall 2009 Kaplan Award Winner Suspended thousands of feet in the air, the butterflies finally catch up to my stomach. The stewardess, now speaking first in Farsi then translating to English, announces to us passengers that it’s time for the women on board to take out their headscarves and cover their hair … Read More
By Lael Telles Fall 2009 Kaplan Award Winner I watch my mom as she sits on the chair in front of me, her mouth moving, but the words have been lost in time. My father stands next to her; his hand sits on her shoulder in my memory, though I know he never would have … Read More
By Vivian Luu Spring 2009 Kaplan Award Winner If you have ever walked past or into the Safeway on the corner of 50th street and Brooklyn avenue, you’ve probably seen the old, black man slumped over the black chair that’s about to fall apart, with the funky eyes and the crooked smile. “Real Change?” the old … Read More
By Nick Feldman Spring 2009 Kaplan Award Winner Promptly at 5:45 p.m., a line that has formed every night for over 70 years begins to wrap around a weathered three-story brick building. A thin cross stands on the roof above the corner, silhouetted by rays of sunlight against a cloud-specked sky. A tall man in … Read More
By Molly Rosbach Spring 2009 Kaplan Award Winner Beth’s Café on Aurora Avenue in Seattle is not your typical neighborhood diner. If you’re looking for a friendly welcome or an inviting atmosphere, chances are, you’ll be disappointed. Beth’s employees pride themselves on intimidating unwitting customers, escorting them to their seats with a scowl and often … Read More