Susan Israel
Everything Is Going to Be All Right, Honest
Honey, what did you do in school today, oh, you’re going to be so happy to hear this, I hope you’re happy to hear this, but what would you say if I told you I was going to be here with you to drive you to school every day so you don’t have to take the bus any more, and pick you up after school too, you told me you don’t like the bus, kids pick on you, well, now you won’t have to deal with that any more, and if you have to stay after school for play dates or detention, I’ll pick you up afterwards too, all you have to do is call, no, my boss won’t mind because, well, frankly, I don’t have a boss any more, I was ‘let go’, let’s just call it laid off, yes, of course we’ll still be able to live here, I’ll make sure of that, I’ll tell you what, I’ll make cakes and cookies, I’ll open a home bakery business and while you’re in school, I’ll bake like mad and bring you cookies when I come pick you up, what do you think, you love cookies, everyone loves cookies and cakes and we’ll do fine, honey, why are you crying?
Susan Israel’s work has recently been published in MacQueen’s Quinterly, JAKE, 50 Word Stories, Flash Boulevard, and is forthcoming in The Dribble Drabble Review, Okay Donkey, & Blink-Ink. She lives in Connecticut.
