Flore Lazcano

“All the dandelions were gone” by Flore Lazcano

Submitted to Contest #168

Goodbye house forever. I closed the heavy door and heard my footsteps on the wooden floor for the last time. I remember the good times and the bad times in high detail. I remember the quick lunches, and the dirty dishes exploding against the paper wall, the chairs moving fast and the stillness arriving after.There were sometimes violent storms approaching, and there were some other times when a weak insignificant dew washed it all. It washed away the good and it erased the bad.Days were beautiful when sunny, and dusks were dreadful when...

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“Some carry mirrors, some carry coffins ” by Flore Lazcano

Submitted to Contest #167

“Why is everyone going around with their arms and legs amputated and carrying coffins?” I was not able to reply to this strange question by then. It was crazy marvellous maintaining conversations with the crazy, it was fantastic to hear the hidden narratives inside the lunatic’s minds. I was a simple neighbour, in a monotonous neighbourhood, full of aged Italians. I boringly chewed and swallowed the same stories over and over: The ship arrival, the loneliness and the trauma post-war. I've heard about the bombs and the cold Russian wint...

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“Misery comes in a box” by Flore Lazcano

Submitted to Contest #122

A chicken?...Yes, a dead chicken. Maria couldn't believe her eyes.Red ribbons, popcorn, and in the center of the box, there it was a headless bird.She looked once and stormed to the bathroom to vomit. Chills ran through her body, and for some minutes, she felt captured by an immeasurable terror.She would ordinarily blame morning sickness and her sensitivity to smells. But her eyes saw something that would make anyone's stomach turn that way.After washing her face and cleaning the messy bathroom, she had a burst of courage and went back to he...

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“A sequined dress, a pair of cha-cha heels and a box” by Flore Lazcano

Submitted to Contest #121

It's November 30th, 1996. Surprisingly, there is no sign of snow in the Northern hemisphere. I was born and raised here. I remember, my mother looking through the window and praying for a green Christmas. She was a very superstitious woman, and she used to say that when winter was late, luck was near.I decided this morning that it was time for me to clean her dormitory. She passed away a week ago. For some people, it's too early and inconsiderate, but for me, she left a long time ago. Six months had passed since the unfortunate accident that...

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“I lost my heart in winter” by Flore Lazcano

We crossed borders. We traversed countries. We walked. We ran. We hid and went down on our knees countless times. I remember that day, the day Gloria and I had to leave the warm weather and the palm trees far behind. With the fear of the unknown, and our shoes were already broken before we even started to walk.It was summer when we left. It is always summer in the Caribbean. A precarious wooden raft took us without any guarantee of survival. Through the harshness of the sea, we prayed and asked the Lord to keep us safe. The waves were r...

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“It was the quietest house, it was the darkest sea” by Flore Lazcano

Submitted to Contest #119

Mr. Roger Auclair heard nothing but the sound of his wheelchair for months, or maybe it was years. He was a lonely man; it was his own choice.It was a long time ago when he decided to move by the sea. It was a dream he and his wife, now long gone, had. A youth-filled dream that was fulfilled unfortunately too late for her to enjoy. He wished he did things differently, but that's human fate for most of us. Alone in his mansion, he came and went. He turned on and off the lights and stood by the window to watch the mysterious sea every mor...

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