A New Hole

The cup is only useful when it is empty. A few weeks ago, I noticed that I needed another hole in my belt; a new one, further along the belt. A year ago, I did not even need a belt for the pants I was wearing that day. They fit perfectly then, slim-fit khakis that …

Sublime

Peppered sugar? honeyed bittersweet lips, furtive dances at our edges. Hearts skip beats, mine at imagined quiets, labored noises beautiful exertions. Together apart. Hot sweat on hot afternoon, hot insides, hot outsides. Stolen kisses, stolen lusts gladly given, taken. She remains, as do I, nothing changes, everything changes, better with time, or sorely missed? Sublime. …

UNTITLED by Terence Koh

i have thought ever more i have drawn birds for eternity i have made poems i have made and thrown a snow ball i have burnt myself my answer is still just i

“Tell me you love me…”

She asks me gently and I think to myself, “What if I don’t? What if I can’t?” “I love you.” , I say, and it feels venal. I know she is already mine. I don’t need to say it to get her. To keep her, yes, not to get her. “I love you too.” How …

The Rose

When we plant a rose seed in the earth, we notice that it is small, but we do not criticize it as “rootless and stemless.” We treat it as a seed, giving it the water and nourishment required of a seed. When it first shoots up out of the earth, we don’t condemn it as …

Fire

As far back as I can remember, I have always loved watching things burn. Even now, I find myself mesmerized by the dancing of the flames in a jiko (charcoal brazier) or in a fireplace, drawn in by the heat and the knowledge of the immense power breathing gently in that confine. In fact, lighting …

How to be Happy and Productive

We live in a world that constantly emphasizes personal improvement and productivity. Like a good internet boy, I have decided to give my two cents on this by coming up with a simple guide, in easily digestible list form (listicle. See, like I said, good internet boy!), on how to be happy and get the …

Mwangi

About one and a half months ago, I was informed by my university that I will not be graduating this year, again, because I had failed a course. I got sick at the news and remained in bed all weekend. I spent the following week looking for a workaround to this situation. There was none …

Stand Off

No one dares blink and break the crystal silence, filling it with jagged singing. Rushed will be the words, outracing minds near caving in with anticipation. Bursting from within, to the delicate without, the unspoken cuts deep And unsaid shall thus remain.  

Silhouette

I watched her, silhouetted black and white, against the dim light, the light from the windows, the light from a city busy with fantasies and fruition (or not. A city busy with delayed ambitions and withering hopes). Her back is turned to me, smooth and curved, all the way down to her hips. Maddening hips. Beautiful …