All tagged Erin Parker
Our Writer of the Month for October 2015, Erin Parker, shares a story of a most unlikely hero, "Small Creatures".
That’s how it all started. Nobody knows who I am except for the animals. I don’t have a catchy name, a mask or a cape, and that’s the way I like it.
I eye the cereal with distrust. This is cereal for grown-ups. I am frozen for a moment, overwhelmed with longing for my regular Saturday morning cereal. Sugar Pops, Honeycomb or Captain Crunch in my regular yellow cereal bowl. If I were at home, I’d be in front of the TV watching Saturday morning cartoons with the living room drapes closed. I’d be listening to my mom hum to the radio in the kitchen, the sunlight flooding in through the glass panes in the back door. It’s suddenly the only place I want to be.
“I already heard you say it. You said you want to go and never, ever come back,” she says with disgust. “I can’t believe you would do that to mom.”
The look of disdain on her face scares me. I have made a terrible mistake, and the creeping shame starts spreading.
“No, wait,” I plead. “I don’t want to go, I want to stay here.”
