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Stories from the Road

A Door by Any Other Color
High on the faraway pinions tickling my nostrils, I barely even felt the jolt of contact. So, when I turned to youthful eyes watery with remorse, I…
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Holly Starley
31
Broke and Thawing near Las Vegas
It’s just me, little smoky gasps from beneath a raised hood, and two $1 bills in my pocket. Lime streaks are drying fast on the windshield of B’s…
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Holly Starley
18
Solitude & Community on the Road & on the Page
Out on the road, especially during the early years of COVID, solitude was an unexpected gift. I learned the names of birds and plants, named a few…
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Holly Starley
12
Suddenly, Not Alone
Pinpricks plunge through my limbs. Whoosh, whoosh, the aria of my blood’s current: Someone else. Close. Probing.
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Holly Starley
21
Are You Here Alone, Too?
Marina, from nearby Bucerías, and I have close to the same years. In Spanish, instead of being a number of years old, you have those years. When I say…
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Holly Starley
21
Witness to the Next Shooting (Only a Matter of Time)
The blast was loud—like a firecracker when you’re sleeping, like glass shattering when you’re home alone. And and and still, it had that expected…
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Holly Starley
30
I Didn't, and I'm Glad
It's a Damn Fine Thing Everything Changes
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Holly Starley
8
To Go or Not to Go? Ask the Magician
The Magician. With the sun’s glow like a palm on my back, I’m surprised when I feel the coldness in the gentle breeze that lifts my hair off my…
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Holly Starley
12
Last Dance Pre-Pandemic
For Margarette, a dear one who passed on too early. And a reminder to dance, even, no especially, when you or someone you love is suffering. I am…
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Holly Starley
9
My Living Room Is the World
“Chit-chit-chit-chit-chit-chit-chit.” “Oh yeah? Is it that crow again?” I call back, pulling my lavender-scented sleep mask from my eyes to let the…
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Holly Starley
23
Why Did the Shoe Hit the Road?
The last one I saw was a work boot sitting at an angle just off the curb, like it was poised to jaywalk. Joe camel tan, it was the kind of boot that…
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Holly Starley
6
"Other." Anemones, Humans, and Others of Us
Their voices over the surf are barely audible. But their enthusiasm, like the magic here, is palpable. So, I’m about to be shocked when his question…
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Holly Starley
8
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