Blindsided by Wally Swist There are times when Dr. Amanda Mullen’s visage takes on that of a lion tamer about to open the locked gate to the ring where the lions are gathered f […]

The Slap and the Word by Jean Romano The slap came before I could take a breath. I had just said the word “Jiao” the way Teacher Zhang had taught me, firm in my seven-year-old […]

Zoom Pleas by Anthony J. Mohr Along with her missing teeth, Ms. Goway’s head and puff of white hair were all I saw on the screen. She rattled her handcuffs and said she would try […]

Our Winners by Susan Shafarzek We’re happy to announce the winners of the 2026 Streetlight Essay/Memoir contest. First Prize goes to Wendy Kennar for “On a Scale Of . . . ”, […]

The Anxious Overthinker's Guide to Conception by Sarah Stubbs OCTOBER I awaken with a visceral heaviness, like dread, in my lower belly. My phone informs me it’s hours before dawn. Peering around the t […]

Talking to Toads by Tutt Stapp-McKiernan My memories of the time when my parents and I lived in a renovated gristmill are of course dim—I had only been two when we moved there and four when w […]

Living by Water by Martha Graham Wiseman Once I lived in a house by a river, in a deep narrow valley. The house was dark and damp, the river enticing. A broad lawn, anchored by an ancient […]

A Very Ordinary Day by MJE Clubb There were some signs, of course, that the world was ending. Sitting in the nurses’ station I sipped instant coffee, listening to a float nurse o […]

Just One Thumb by Gayla Mills I’ve been using an old refurbished desktop, just a couple hundred bucks. It’s okay—except for its geriatric pace and annoying habit of turning itsel […]

Feeding Horses and Other Things by Billie Hinton When she walks out to the barn for the evening feed, what she notices first is how dark it is already, and how, with the darkness, a stillness sets […]

The Second Christmas by Mary Trvalik I missed my son’s voice this Christmas. Of all of us, Steven’s voice was the deepest. And that includes all the voices of our best-entire-family fri […]

One Small Gift by Anne Merritt I learned how mean boys could be on the school bus during my first week of third grade. It was the first year my sister, in kindergarten, was riding […]

Tackling the Digital Afterlife by Elizabeth Bird “Hi, lol, xd. Hello ppl, xd.” My sister forwarded me this cryptic Skype message, received from our father on his ninety-sixth birthday. He’ […]

Candide's Garden by Susan Shafarzek Long, long ago when I was young, someone I knew told me how much it meant to her to read Candide. In fact, she read it over and over. It was […]

Boxes Left Unchecked by Presley Ackeret You’ve been using ChatGPT as a therapist a little too much lately. We joke about it on occasion—we’ve lovingly named him “Chad,” you share, ch […]

A Day of Firsts by David Stern The first time that my brother and I had gone sailing without Dad. The first time we checked the weather and set a course like real navigators. The […]

Combined Training by Amelia Zahm Amelia Zahm is the third place winner of Streetlight’s 2025 Essay/Memoir Contest Long strides carry her forward. I hear joy, that annoying […]

Gradoo by Richard Key Etymology uncertain. That is how the dictionary deals with the origins of the word gradoo, tip-toeing lightly around a word you wouldn’t want to s […]

From a Persian Kitchen by Ruth Knezevich Ruth Knezevich is the 2nd place winner of Streetlight’s 2025 Essay/Memoir Contest Prepare fresh herbs—4 bunches parsley, 3 bunches cilantro, 2 b […]

Aritifice or Intelligence by E. H. Jacobs So, I found myself in a restaurant with my wife, two friends, and one friend’s first cousin whom I had not previously met. After drinks and a […]