Latest Stories
Most recently published stories in Families.
The Book Buried Below
The large buck stands its ground, feet planted in the grass. All of my concentration is focused on the delicate creature staring back at me. My brows furrow as I squint my eye, waiting for the telescope on my rifle to focus. Behind me, my father slowly shifts his weight from one foot to the other, causing a branch to snap underneath him. The deer flinches at the sound and my body tightens as I begin to panic. The buck takes half of a step in my direction before swiftly darting away, back into the dark shadows of the trees.
By Kennedy Walsh6 years ago in Families
Straight People Make Gay and Trans Kids
In early 2010 I had a 2 year old and was pregnant with another baby. I loved going to the library for a free and fun activity with her. One trip stands out to me in particular. My little girl with her long blonde pigtails bounced over to me with a cute book about two penguins and their baby. She excitedly asked to check it out so we added it to our growing pile of books. It was called And Tango Makes Three. We were reading a lot of books about new babies in preparation for the big transition of adding one to our own home.
By Megan Rabideau6 years ago in Families
I remember
When I think of my childhood home, I feel nothing but warmth that saturates my bones. And when I say home, I don’t necessarily mean a physical place. Home lives in my heart, and speaks to me through memories bathed in gold. From before I can remember, home was with my grandparents. Up at the trailer in Buckhorn, Ontario, or in their old home in the East York suburbs, home was with them. Home never felt like the house I grew up in from 5 to 17, or the apartment I had from 17 to 21. These are some of the memories I hold on to, from the house with the creaky floor boards, to the trailer where I spent every summer:
By Danika Moir6 years ago in Families
The Manifestation Book
My parents have always been terrified of the internet. They are convinced that it is the root of most of the world’s issues. They also think that computers are going to kill humans, an impending fear they had adopted in the early ages of technology. I was never allowed to have any electronics while growing up. My parents refused my requests and ignored my complaints about other kids having luxuries that I did not. To make up for it, they would let me check out as many books as I would like from the library. It was a regular thing for me, finding so many different novels. I did not want to put any of them down because I knew I would not remember them the next time I would visit. My mother’s eyes widened at the sight of me weighed down by so many books, my torso leaning backward. I was dedicated to getting every single one of them. She would never say a word to me about it. My eyes would always skim past the movies, but my mother would grab my hand and pull me towards the countless towers of words. I truly felt that it was unfair of them to hold me back from something everyone else got to enjoy. It was infuriating to never know what my friends were talking about when they would mention shows and movies on TV. I would tell them that it was my choice to stay away from technology, to save myself from the embarrassment. I was never curious about all the reasons as to why my parents kept the technology from me, until one day when I admitted to my absolute best friend that I didn’t hate technology. All my defensive nagging about why TV rots the brain was rooted from my parent’s irrational fears. My friend sparked a new wave of curiosity within me. She genuinely wanted to know what dangerous scenarios were going through my parent’s minds. Did they imagine human-like robot war villains with guns, or maybe robots that had intelligence of biological warfare, or did they simply fear what technology was doing to people’s social skills, like so many adults did. I wanted to give her an answer, but I had never questioned my parents about the details of their overdramatized nightmares. That day when I got home, I did not hesitate. I was going to get to the bottom of it all and then tomorrow I was going to tell my best friend about all their crazy ideas.
By Arty Connerton6 years ago in Families
The Gift
THE GIFT The call came before sunrise. Those are the calls you dread. You hope it’s a wrong number but fear the worst: Maybe one of your kids died in a fiery crash or an old friend’s in the emergency room. Or if you’re lucky, it’s just one of your ex-wives wanting to get back together for a second try.
By John Little6 years ago in Families
2005 And Me
As I pulled up to the house on Prospect Avenue I immediately felt at home. It looked small from the outside, but when I looked up I noticed that the house had a second floor, and a basement down below. It sat right next door to a mini church. Which made interesting conversation on Sunday afternoon. The steps stood out to me because they were blue and kind of curved. I grabbed my bag form the car and I headed in the house. It was the middle of the day and the house was empty. All the guys were either at work or at school.
By Sakoli Norman 6 years ago in Families
The Piece
The music echoed around the empty cathedral, resonating from the deeply rich wood of the exquisite cello. Note upon note, tumbling, twisting and turning in the air, fluidly intermingling with her tears as she played the piece. It was beautiful. In fact more than beautiful, it was intriguing.
By Lydia Mallison-Jones6 years ago in Families
Welcome Home
Sarah closed the mailbox and sifted through the mail as she climbed the steps to her apartment. Amidst the overdue bills, she discovered a white envelope with a hand written return address for an Evelyn MacPherson. She didn’t know any MacPhersons, did she? Sarah opened the envelope and pulled out a letter. As she opened it, she was astonished to find a check for $20,000.00 made out to her. She paid it no attention, assuming it was just another scam, and she moved it to the back to read the letter.
By Melissa Hensley6 years ago in Families
