Category Archives: Matthew A. Hamilton

The box was full of balloons the color of synthetic gloves, each one packed with cocaine. Maria picked one up, then realized they were all tied together, like a string of sausage. Someone cut one off for her. She inspected … Continue reading →

Freedom inside the white room is liberation from nothing. I have nothing. I once had an opinion, but even that was taken away from me. A Manipulative shadow in a white coat breathes crimson fire black smoke blue mist a … Continue reading →

When I see the ice hotel in the middle of the desert my eyes melt into nothing. Oil money. Men die for it so that other men can showcase their plastic wives. Men in black suits and white robes tell … Continue reading →

His cheeks crack in the razorblade wind. His mind, full of craters, jumps into a bottle of bourbon. His shark eyes roll over white. He takes his last breath. His body nestles inside the stairs of a subway entrance— a … Continue reading →

 He walks to the middle of the street and sits down, crosses his legs. The war is three years old. He is calm and patient. Soldiers watch him closely. They are afraid. His robe intimidates them. A crowd gathers. … Continue reading →

i dig up the sands of my soul because I am adopted i climb into a dusty attic my hands twist into ferns I flip through photo albums a silent war speaks to me frozen bodies a baby glued to … Continue reading →

It happened on December 23. Crowds battled the cold and each other for last minute gifts. I noticed a woman on the sidewalk. She wore a greasy Notre Dame sweatshirt. She was holding an empty can. However, she remained happy, … Continue reading →

Carlos lifts his hands for the security guard and enters the market. He searches for boys without hope, without opportunity. Today Carlos finds Michael, a boy with sleepy eyes and a nervous twitch. Carlos offers him a smoke. “Thanks, “Michael … Continue reading →

The cracks in my hands told me I’d live forever. They told me that one day I’d be wealthy. When my hands held you for the first time I knew it to be true. . Return to This Week’s Flash

i pour a bowl of Rice Krispies stand there and stare at your picture on the refrigerator door it’s been three days three days and no sound i flip on the bathroom light the goldfish are dead you were the … Continue reading →

The resting place of Sohaemus bends to the command of the Azat River jagged hands fold in prayer with ricochets of grey cold and mist within the stillness of weathered stone a hallway of light appears the voice of the … Continue reading →

He coughs. He has headaches. He vomits blood. He faints. Doctor Smith tells him he has inoperable cancer. He gets a second opinion. Dr. Wilson says there is a chance. He begins chemo. Color coded pills fill the medicine cabinet. … Continue reading →

Bob walks in the Doctor’s Hospital of Manila, goes to the information desk. “I’m looking for Dr. Cortez,” he says. “Second floor,” the young girls says. “Make a right at the elevator, then take your first right. Room 205.” “Thank … Continue reading →

. She left the Frying Pan Pub at 2:30am. She walked in zigzags and talked to herself. She turned onto Bucks Row. The boarding school was dark and silent. She thought she heard a child’s voice up on the roof—they … Continue reading →

I pull the door open to Starbucks and walk in. The line is long. Infinity of Ss. I stand there, think about my day, the clients I need to call, the ones who need to call me, pull out a … Continue reading →

“They found my dad,” she said. “Near the swamp.” “So,” he said, throwing a rock out to sea. “Listen to me,” she said. “Please.” He looked at her, no expression. “It doesn’t look good,” she continued. “I mean, you did … Continue reading →

The wind whispers to the Tigris River. I talk to the water because I am shy to God. Birds gather seed. Tigers devour prey. Hyenas lick up the scraps of God. I sit in the dark and worry. I watch … Continue reading →

The mongoose sniffs the breeze, listens to the mass of slithering poison in the sugarcane. Evolution has taught her patience. She stands, unmoved for centuries, the art of killing heavy within her almond colored eyes. . Return to This Week’s … Continue reading →

The last time I saw my wife she was on the porch reading a book. Her bare toes scrapped across the wooden floor. The sound of the rocking chair wrapped around the enclosed silence of my eyes. I couldn’t help … Continue reading →

Thanks to Congressman Alexander Pirnie, I was the first to win the lottery on December 1, 1969. I was nineteen years old. Other winners escaped to Canada. I did not. I thought about it, though. But I was more afraid … Continue reading →

Nothing in life is permanent. That is what Matt is thinking as he watches Jason fall into a muddy rice paddy. Jason’s thigh explodes like a shattered lava lamp. He hits the sticky ground hard with a plume of milky … Continue reading →

Communist mines blocked the harbor entrance. Frogmen exploded trying to sweep them. Private Norman Mertz, 1st Marines, and his buddies played cards below deck of an LST. They were impatient but in good spirits. “Just a matter of time before … Continue reading →

I dream of lolly pops and angel dust, fairy land. The sweet smell of opium races through my infected nose. The sun is made of gold. Devil eyes burn. The moon is filled with cracks of blue mix. Wild things … Continue reading →

Ted was born premature. He was an impatient child. He was also a genius. He was reading by the age of three. He graduated high school at fifteen. He enrolled at MIT. He studied Persian, Mandarin Chinese, and Farsi in … Continue reading →

Watching the Star Wars Trilogy. That was Space Camp for me in 1989. Mom had the money, but she left after finding out dad was shacking up with the neighbor’s daughter. That’s why no real Space Camp that year. No … Continue reading →

She suspected her husband of having an affair.  She didn’t want to hire a private investigator or follow him around herself. She simply wanted to confront him with it. She’d be able to tell if he was lying. After twenty years … Continue reading →

He flipped his legs over the side of the boat, put on his fins. His friend, Jason, checked the spear gun. “Good to go,” Jason said. “You good?” Tom was an experienced free diver and hunter. “No problem. Let’s get … Continue reading →

I was a Mormon once, but then decided to give it up and start drinking. Drinkers have all the fun, have raucous sex in the back seat of a car, smoke pot. My first beer was a Budweiser. Not a … Continue reading →

John woke up in the dark and the dark was moving. He was blindfolded and tied up. He heard men talking, the car swerving. He smelled cigarette smoke. He didn’t make a sound, feigned unconsciousness. His head hurt. He assumed … Continue reading →

  His first assignment was to enter the ghetto. His eighteen year old mind, easily and malevolently conditioned, urged him to rid the parasites that stole his father’s business, his family’s inheritance. His blue eyes, intelligent and strong, were full … Continue reading →

I reach the subway platform at 1:00am. I study the gang graffiti on the wall across from me, something I don’t see when the sun is up, when the platform is filled with clicking feet and impatient coffee drinkers. Out … Continue reading →

In the midst of a war torn nation leaves emerge below the Vakhan strip like mangled bodies of faceless men: We are soldiers. They are Taliban. We are the snow that falls on the Towr Mountains, the lavish pine trees … Continue reading →

Under different circumstances I would have considered Tarawa a paradise. But when we landed there on 20 November 1943, the thoughts I had of my wife frolicking on this white sandy beach similar to the one in Hawaii where we … Continue reading →

Afshan met Mr. Lee at Times Square Mall. They dined at the Hunan Garden. He bought her a pair of $300 earrings at Chow Tai Fook. Compensated dating paid well. He was very handsome. Sparks of silver in his hair … Continue reading →

A golden ray trickle of the sun slowly rises from its watery chamber. The waves of the metallic blue sea quietly slap the sides of the lonely sail boat. Young adventurers, a school of awkward fish, jump into the blue … Continue reading →

As I watched my wife sleep, I realized something. I realized that I was the luckiest guy around. Then the alarm went off at 5am and it was time for her to go to work. I had already been up … Continue reading →

My Girlfriend’s Birthday by Matthew Hamilton I bought my girlfriend a basket of breadfruit for her 21st birthday. “What’s all this jackfruit doing on the table?” she asked. “And why are there candles stuck in them?” “Breadfruit,” I said, smiling. … Continue reading →