Ruth Knezevich is the 2nd place winner of Streetlight’s 2025 Essay/Memoir Contest Prepare fresh herbs—4 bunches parsley, 3 bunches cilantro, 2 bunches chives, 1 bunch fenugreek—first rinsing them with salt water clear bacteria and other impurities then rinsing with fresh water until it runs clear. I walk along a narrow, covered alleyway, lined on either side with vendors selling fresh meat, fresh produce, and fresh bread. I cover my nose and mouth as I hurry past the butcher’s doorway. Flies hover in front of my eyes, and some land on the untended and over-ripe peaches … Continue reading From a Persian Kitchen by Ruth Knezevich →
Steps and measurements, bullet points of to-dos with creation in mind. Beautiful guidelines meant only to guide. It is here that I begin, here that I write something of worth, something to heal, where I grow again on this journey of life. I look back at the penciled recipes before me, remembering these can be erased, rewritten, and that there is room to improve. Two cups of this. A dash of that and mix it all together . . . but do I really wanna mix it? What if I don’t have that ingredient? This … Continue reading Recipes by Matthew Berg →
Don’t bother with a resolution for this New Year. There’s abundant evidence that Resolution Road goes straight downhill sometime after January, littered with gym membership cards, strewn with diet cookbooks and half-finished knitting projects (not that I would know). All those goals we fail to complete just end up making us feel worse than before. So, don’t set any goals. Instead, why not let the start of a new year mean that you will try something new – just one new thing that appeals to you– and see where it leads you? Dead end, whole … Continue reading Just Try It. →
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