Lesley University DigitalCommons@Lesley Commonthought Lesley University Student Publications Spring 1999 Commonthought, Vol 10 (Spring 1999) Commonthought Staff Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.lesley.edu/commonthought Part of the Fiction Commons, and the Poetry Commons Recommended Citation Commonthought Staff, "Commonthought, Vol 10 (Spring 1999)" (1999). Commonthought. 11. https://digitalcommons.lesley.edu/commonthought/11 This Book is brought to you for free and open access by the Lesley University Student Publications at DigitalCommons@Lesley. It has been accepted for inclusion in Commonthought by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@Lesley. For more information, please contact [email protected]. commonthough spring 1999 commonthouaht spring 1999 The magazine of the arts at Lesley College Volume 10 Staff P r o s e & F i c t i o n Christina Fichera Jacqueline C. Galante Andrea L. Hoshmand Alona I^ibowitz Julia E. Wasley Poetry Allison Borsini Melissa J. Dupee Milissa Garsicic Saran D. Kaba Kira A. Kagail L i z I ^ a n o r c M o d c s i l t Faculty Advisor Anne Elezabeth Pluto, Ph.D. Graphics & Design Peaco Todd, M.A. Computer Goddess Andrea L. Hoshmand Intern Jacqueline C. Galante f r o m t h e E d i t o r i a l B o a r d Dear Readers, CommonthoiL'Z.ht 1999 is a gateway into the passions, emotions and experienees of the Lesley College community. Carefully selected literary pieces were submitted by past and present members of Lesley College community. We received many fine submissions and had a difficult time making our final editorial decisions. We are sorry to say that we received no artwork and hope that next year will be different. There are several people we need to thank for making Commonthought 1999 a reality. Without the guidance of Dr. Anne Pluto this magazine would not have been possible, for this we are very grateful. We would also like to extend our gratitude to Dean Robin Roth for her continued support and Peaco Todd tor her artistic assistance in creating Commonthought 1999. From our own staff we need to thank Andrea Hoshmand for her wizardry on the Macintosh and Jacijuclinc C.alantc, our iiilcrn lor lat:in^^ over wlicn Annie wa.s sick. It is important to further recognize lite endless efforts put forlli by llic entire editorial staff. From Lfarbie L")olls to secret recipes, this collection will excite and intrigue you. From poem to prose, this collection will inspire all. From rage to love, the diverse nature of this journal will move the reader. So, we welcome you to journey into the creative souls of the Lesley College Community. Enjoy! -The Editorial Board of Commonfhouahf 1999 rnmmonthniinht Spring 1999 table of contents 8 Boys Play Lucy Giorgio-Pirkcy 8 Three Haiku Chrislina Fichcra 9 Untitled Anonymous 18 P i n k C h i l d h o o d L i z L e a n o v c M o d c s i t l 24 Freedom Jennifer Levin 25 Be Strong Milissa Carside 37 The Irreplacibility of Embrace Kira Kagan 38 Ghostdance Anne Elezabeth Fluto 39 Angel Owl Sharlene Voogd Cochrane 41 To Susan Faul Fideler 42 In Memory of Annette's Greenhouse Lucy Giorgio-Firkey 50 Haiku Emma Hall 51 The First January Emma tlall 71 Portraits of J Diane Wald 72 Oh Do Not Ask... Jill Delbanco 76 L o v e R e m a i n s A l l i s o n B o r s i n i 77 Silent Killer Melissa J. Dupee 78 A New Beginning Saran d. Kaba rnmmnnthnunht Spring 1999 6 Dust Caroline Smith 10 B a r b i e : F o r B e t t e r o r W o r s e K i m O l i v e r a 19 Recipes of Tradition Deborah Witkus 26 To S e i z e o r N o t t o S e i z e K r i s f a l R i e k e r 43 Sitting Shiva Alona Leibowitz 46 Giving Birth: A Short Story Maureen Cornell 52 The Age of Information and the Pseudo- Information Buffs Andrea L. Hoshmand 58 The Red Light is On! Alicia Gregoire 64 Lascia Ch'io Fianga Jacqueline Galante 69 The Broad Squad Melody Martin \ 73 Belief Versus Knowledge: Head Versus Heart Gina Balzano 86 Contributors S rommonthQughT spring 1999 Dust. Everything is coated with dust. Friendly, house- bunny dust mixed with fine brown clay blown in from I lie cornfields and hilly pastures surrounding the house. Aly mother calls it "clean dirt" because it comes from the farm. Even so, she is never insulted if a visiting daughter offers to lend a hand with a dust cloth in an attempt to diminish the endless drifts of dust. But dusting is not the issue, or at least, not the first issue. It's the piles! Files of books, magazines, music, catalcv^ues, fliers, letters and cards. Stacks of notebooks, and file folders crammed with white office paper. Towers of textbooks for the half dozen subjects my mother tutors at the high school snuggling with the texts and teacher's guides for the courses she teaches each fall and spring at the community college. The house was designed to allow movement to flow in a semi-circle through a large central open space: kitchen flowing into dining room opening into living room leading around to a study. The cascading piles unify the space at the same time that they throw up obstacles, clcgging the original gracefid pathways. A pyramid of magazines: National Gco.'^raphic, I^tiscovery, U. S. News And World Report, Smithsonian, Yankee, Vermont Life, Modern Maturity, up to a year's worth of issues, oyerwhelms a knee-high, free standing bookshelf which, for a reason no one seems to remember, got plucked down in the once open space between dining and living room. Beside it, an over stuffed chair, its red upholsteiy faded to a comfortable shade of pink, nudges up to a trestle coffee table loaded with paperback mystery novels. More piles of books are crowded beneath the table, like baby chicks harboring beneath a mother hen's wide chest. rnmmnntho light Spring 1999 At the base of a stretch of windows, stacks of travel guides and brochures from around the world totter invitingly as they alternate with potted geraniums. Beyond them, the corner of the living room is given over to stockpiles of picture books, board games and puzzles for visiting grandchildren. Massed over and under a wide puzzle table, second hand copies of young adult novels, dictionaries, and assorted reference books wait to be lent to the Special Ed. teenagers my mother tutors ( h e r " c h i c k a d e e s " ) . A n d i n b e t w e e n a n d a l l a r o u n d t h e towering piles, smaller mounds of pencils, pens, clippings, and scrap paper notes congregate, lost in the shadows above them. Sheet music spills from on top of the piano to a neighboring ladder-back chair. Gift calalcgs mingle with teacher's magazines at one end of the sofa. In the study, my father keeps his own corner secure. His w e l l - w o r n r e c l i n e r n o t c h e d b e t w e e n a n e n d t a b l e l o a d e d w i t h library books and agricultural magazines and a coffee table layered with favorite science fiction, spy novels, historical texts. His piles are more contained, belter organized, and all together less daring than my mother's, but no less dusty. I'd be happy to dust if I could find a table, a counter, or even a shelf-top hidden under all the precarious stacks of miscellaneous publications. My father smiles and shakes his head. He says that nature abhors a vacuum and my mother can't stand an empty surface. 1 look at their home and see it as the shelter for two uniquely full and generous lives. -Caroline Smith 7 rommnnthounht Spring 1999 Boys Play Running Away, scraped scarred knees, torn dresses, spilled biood, biack and blue eyes - a domestic playground. -Lucy C.iop;io-Pirkey Three Haiku Through crystallized mist the crow finds his landing place and he laughs out loud. Rubber tires spin Passengers afraid of death Nothing beats nature. The barren silence betrayed by soulless sirens warm ice drips madiy. -Christina Ficliera 9 rnmmnnthQiight spring 1999 (untitled) Wet, soft, silent, gentle, erotic His touch, his smell, his sparkle, his thin rough skin rubbing against mine Smells bring me back to that first moment Motion of the kiss Something so personal t dose my eyes and remember, how his hands c r a d l e d m y f a c e How t looked deep Into his blue eyes and swear that I saw them sparkle How when he kissed me, / f e l t a c h i l l I n t h e r o o m How when / thought about htm. It brought a smile to my face / Close my eyes and let the aroma attack my s e n s e s a n d t a k e m e b a c k t o w h e n / F i r s t r e m e m b e r a s m e l l Forgetting to say No Overlooking and forgetting It Remembering pieces of the night Not understanding Digging, wanting to know the truth Wanting to be pure, having washed my Innocence away Scrubbing, washing Never again the dirt Is un-washabte I r e m e m b e r Saying No -anonymous rnmmnnthoiinht Spring 1999 ^ettcA^ 'O/i SM^OAAC Breasts, hips, waistline, and too much make-up are all some people see when they see Barbie.