Idylle Cynique

By Nick Lord Lancaster

Sometimes I like the idea of god as this all-powerful voyeur. Like he created the world and all the people just to amuse himself, and occasionally he interferes just to keep things interesting, but most of the time he just watches, lets us get on with our lives. So I think, sometimes … this is going to sound stupid, but … sometimes I feel like if I do enough to keep god entertained then he won’t interfere with me, and if I ever get boring, he’ll force me into a dramatic situation. Burn my house down or kill my parents or something.

         
Nick Lord Lancaster lives in Essex with his wife and two daughters (one human, one canine).

Temptation

By Daria Angelova

“Go on then, have a bite,” said the Serpent.

Eve looked down at the fruit. Contrary to the popular paintings, it was a tangerine.

“Come on, don’t you want to be kicked out? An eternity of raw food and this moron for company?” The Serpent pointed at Adam, who scratched himself as he struggled to name a horsey creature with a single horn in its forehead. His beard was caked with the remains of last night’s dinner. He hadn’t said thank you for cooking, then or ever.

Eve glanced at Adam, sighed, and began to peel the tangerine.

Prayer Is a Species Evolving From the Lips of the Meek to the Ears of the Divine

By Aida Bode

I was only ten years old and almost alone. It’s weird to be that age and to be uneasy. I kept walking back and forth in the empty living room. At times I’d walk in the kitchen, check the sink for dishes that might have appeared out of thin air, and then out to the corridor to listen to the commotion that came from the room with the closed door. I heard her screams and felt hopeless.

For the first time in my life I prayed and said “Please, please, God, have grandpa come before he makes her screaming stop.”