Huda Al-Marashi’s ‘Husband Potential’ – excerpt from her book First Comes Marriage
Husband Potential
Huda Al-Marashi’s First Comes Marriage
I cannot remember a time when I didn’t think of Hadi Ridha as a potential husband. The day my family first met the Ridhas, Mrs. Ridha took one look at me—six years old and my hair in braids—and my baby sister, Lina, and praised God with a heartfelt “Mashallah, mashallah.” “We don’t need to look anymore,” she said, “We found our pretty girls.”
At the time, I didn’t know that my father and Dr. Ridha had gone to the same medical school in Baghdad. I didn’t know that they’d found each other at an American Academy of Neurology meeting in San Diego and that Dr. Ridha had invited us to his home for dinner. I didn’t know that the Ridhas were also Iraqi and Shia, because those were descriptors I still didn’t know to apply to myself.
All I knew that day was that the Ridhas were different in the same way we were different. They spoke Arabic with “ch” sounds, replacing the “k” sounds; they ate rice with stews called marga; and they kept their five daily prayers, even though Mrs. Ridha, like Mama, did not cover her hair with the hijab. These were my signs that of the two types of boys in the world—those who were possible to marry and those who were impossible—the Ridha boys belonged to the former, the small population of boys from which I’d be allowed to choose a husband.
Robert Egan’s short story ‘Executive Offer’
EXECUTIVE OFFER
Howdy. Amigo.
My name is not important. Call me the voice above. With all the planes and helicopters buzzing overhead, some of the true patriots will be dropping my truth, my leaflets, my truthlets to float down to you folk. If you have the blessed fortune to be holding this sheet of paper in your hands, then you’re on the final stretch. Read on to find out how you can make a difference.
You may know the big man, el jefe naranja, paid your island a visit. That much is true. But the mainstream media always got to put a spin on things. If the mainstream media had been around when Jesus-our-lord-and-savior walked this Earth, they’d say he was the leader of some cannibalistic cult. So… it should come as no surprise that those smoothie-sipping, scum-sucking journalists skipped the most important part of the president’s visit to Puerto Rico.
Sure, they covered that neat scene where he threw paper towel rolls at all you excited natives in the church. And the cameras captured el presidente letting your governor Ricky sit on his right side and patting that nervous boy’s hand. Hell, el hombre con manos enormes even congratulated all the agencies on a job well done before the real work could get into full swing. Generous. Compassionate. Congratulatory. A shining example of the commander-in-chief in action.
But the journalists got to turn every story into a smoothie. They take a great man’s words, put them into a blender, and hit spin to get their next headline. Here is what the president said word-for-word:
“Every death is a horror, but if you look at a real catastrophe like Katrina, and you look at the tremendous – hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of people that died – and you look at what happened here with really a storm that was just totally overpowering, nobody’s ever seen anything like this. And what is – what is your death count as of this moment? 17? 16 people certified. 16 people versus in the thousands. Uh, you can be very proud of all of your people, all of our people, working together. 16 versus literally thousands of people.”
Now look at how the headlines twisted his words:
*President Says Hurricane Maria Was Not ‘a Real Catastrophe Like Hurricane Katrina’
*President Says Puerto Rico Should Be Proud of Hurricane Death Toll
*Puerto Rico: President Compares Maria and Katrina Deaths
Listen, over 1800 people died because Hurricane Katrina hit America. For the sake of math, let’s say that 18 of you people died because Hurricane Maria hit Puerto Rico. If you want to play that death count comparison game, then you could say that Puerto Ricans are 100 times stronger than the average American. Of course, the president, el jefe que caga oro, knows that NO ONE is stronger than the average American. Therefore, he could not have been making such a comparison at that time.
See? Simple logic is all it takes to defeat the mainstream media. Don’t believe their lies. Don’t even try to debate them. Two words is all they deserve: ¡FAKE NEWS!
Now that we’re on the same page, let’s get the story straight. The big man was not downplaying deaths and leaving your island to rot. No, he wanted to make Puerto Rico a deal, but he knew that he couldn’t trust the dishonest media to tell you about it.
That’s where I come in, compañeros. I am the president’s strong teeth, his wise tongue, his stern but sensual lips. Here is the deal that none of the major news outlets are covering. This executive offer comes direct to you from el hombre con la boca hermosa:
Tired of being a second-class citizen with no voting rights in a government of the people, by the people, for the people… except for you people? Then this offer is for you, Puerto Rico! For the month of October only, as part of ongoing relief efforts in the wake of Hurricane Maria, you’ll now be able to vote for three assistance packages with your lives1:
Hurricane Maria Level (10+ deaths): a free financial lecture and paper towel rolls thrown at your face (you’re welcome)
Hurricane Ike Level (100+ deaths): a two-week business course that covers how to clear fallen forests to make way for golf resorts
Hurricane Katrina Level (1000+ deaths): a power grid that works some of the time and 15 minutes of national news coverage (commercial breaks included)
But wait, there’s more. Die in the next 48 hours, and you’ll receive an all-expenses-paid trip to Mar-a-Lagooooo2, regardless of total death count!3
¡Vaya con Dios!
1Applicants who don’t speak good American and who don’t agree that this is the greatest deal ever will not receive a vote. The president is the greatest deal-maker of all time. He has the best words.
2Must use back entrance.
3Your death must be deemed to be hurricane-related and will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. Any and all restrictions apply. Cases open to consideration include, but are not limited to, death due to downed power lines; lack of adequate medical care for cancer, advanced diabetes, heart conditions, etc.; generator fires, explosions, and carbon monoxide fumes; flooding, absence of clean drinking water, and waterborne diseases (including leptospirosis); heat exhaustion from waiting in lines; being out after curfew; gunfights over gasoline and/or gasoline containers; falling bridges, trees, and/or coconuts; angry women named Maria; and a hopeless bleak despair that tracks you in the darkness and seeps into your soul, and which cannot stem from the fear of being forgotten (for in that fear, there would still be hope) but must be borne by the realization that your death counts more than your life ever could.
Robert Egan attached a piece from his self-published book (Eight Hurricane Maria Stories from Puerto Rico). It’s his first book, and he wrote a story for every week that his neighborhood had no electricity. Anyway, the story he’s included here is a satire about the president’s visit to the island a few weeks after Maria hit.
Doug Hawley’s short story ‘Brave Newt World’
Brave Newt World
When an Antarctic scientist uncovered an alien space ship while digging for a latrine, he sent for the best crypto-biologists, archaeologists and astronomers to come to the Antarctic base. After the local Antarctic scientists were assembled, they entered the ship which had unrecognizable instruments and made weird sounds like those of a Theremin. They quickly discovered something encased in ice, which they hauled off to their camp.
Twenty-four hours later, the scientists from around the world had reached the camp, ready to see about the find. Geraldine Qwen from Canada had already determined that the ice was roughly 10 years old. The archeological team then slowly chipped away at the ice, revealing what appeared to be a three-meter long flat from dorsal to ventral, but round bilaterally salamander with a half meter penis and what appeared to be a human-like mouth.
Somebody said, “That is the ugliest and biggest thing of its kind I’ve ever seen.”
The sort of amphibian responded “That’s what she said” followed by gasps and other expressions of shock from the group. The amphibian then said “Was that wrong? How about ‘What’s up, Yo Mama or Who Dat?’”
After moments of shock, somebody asked the obvious “So you speak?”
“No stuff, Sherlock.”
An Einstein clone amongst the scientists asked, “We were, ahem, expecting a different level of intelligence from our first interstellar visitor and maybe some superpowers like shape shifting or being able to withstand nuclear attack.”
“About that. This whole enchilada was planned by our overlords on planet Ineque. They got me to agree with their plans by holding my 534 surviving larvae hostage. I was educated in earth ways by viewing reruns of your sitcoms, movies from Japan and reality shows. According to the big dome overlords my intelligence is below that of a dolphin, but above that of a ‘reality star’. To sweeten the algae, they said I could get some action from giant Chinese salamanders.”
“So what were you to do for the overlords?”
“The idea was to land in Japan, but that seems to have gone wrong.”
“Yeah, you missed the target big time.”
“Moving along. I was to find out if the monsters inhabiting Japan were too tough for a successful invasion of earth by the overlords.”
“You mean the ones like Godzilla, Gamera and Rodan?”
“That’s right. Another tough one is Ghidorah, the dragon with lots of heads. That one gives me the creeps. There’s a whole bunch of other ones that excel at ugly.”
The fat scientist in the Hulk and Spiderman shirt who had been jumping up and down trying to ask a question got his turn. “What about super powers? What happens if you are exposed to radiation or bitten by a radioactive spider?”
“They tried me exposing to radioactivity back on Ineque, the bastards. I turned brown and my skin cracked. It hurt like hell. The only spiders I know about are the ones from your movies. I would avoid them like the plague.”
“So no superpowers?”
“You try traveling in an uncomfortable space ship for years and then being frozen for more years and come back as good as ever.”
Lead scientist Sapphire (no relation) Hendrix motioned the group to huddle up. After some whispering they addressed the sort of salamander “I think we’ve got a deal that you will like. We can introduce you to some really sexy Chinese salamanders, if you will tell your overlords that the Japanese monsters would definitely defeat the forces of Ineque.
“Deal. I hate those guys, and so far I like this world much better.”
Qwen whispered to Hendrix “What happens when our interstellar amphibian discovers our salamanders don’t do sex like he thinks? He won’t like being a dateless wonder on this planet.”
“I don’t know, but this saves the earth from annihilation for a little while at least. I’d call that a win.”
Doug is a hobby writer who started in 2014. He has about a hundred publications in the UK, USA, Canada, Netherlands and India.
Rebecca Smolen’s short story ‘Berry Picking’
Berry Picking
I strolled down raspberry isles
a little overgrown, endless
choosing the Tulameens
rosy and polished when ripe, tart
the way I knew you’d prefer.
Warm hours filling green baskets
of berries and doubt this might make a difference.
A fine dusty layer of dry filth
covered my feet, legs, silence,
on hands that reached deep into the bushes
where no one looks
where vicious thorns are grander,
but so is the fruit, and possibly your
renewed love for me with them too.
Sibylla Nash’s poem ‘If Tupac Lived’
If Tupac lived
If Tupac lived
Who would he have become?
He was a man child raging it’s me against the world
Prescient, he knew he would die young
I just wonder If Tupac lived
What amazing things he could have done
Would he have channeled his energy and charisma into championing a cause
Would he have faded from the limelight
Overshadowed by Weezy and Drake
Or would he have uttered the battle cry free Breezy, free Bobby, free fill-in-the-blank of the next
artist needing freeing because he remembered the time he did time
Sean Cearley’s concrete piece ‘A Blank Shot’
They thrust themselves from the leading powers of the gale, striving for the guards on those that rowed; and they are so revolting that all my grandmother’s long and thirty tons of powder, and one, must ever remain. She dragged him swiftly away. I’ll be home before I will tell of in the groves of vegetable in abundance, girdles being encrusted with these, nor with Captain Self-Denial.
He shut his eyes fastened on others. It was late in the drama; nor the word theatre. He exclaimed, rubbing his tiny feet where the rich woods bore plains. I was certain he could tell a story. Each horse had some knowledge that she was going to Europe. Sure, but maybe we were penniless wayfarers. Her fingers seemed, of themselves, sometimes used for so great an Improbability in such a vacancy about her. And that was in their marrying. His tongue, dry and uninjured by the west front (flanked by two massive vases of rose-plants), so prepared as not excessively damp, but that was not needed. He was the conversion of all beholders.
She cannot be conceived adequately; therefore this idea was grotesque that there is no other way you can do. Not less practical than they are dead useless names, wherein fools may find produce of a labouring man with ten percent of English hexameter verse that has puzzled me is why the boys and girls thronged the cliffs. They’re machines with heavy sheet ice running. A wire from her – that’s all very neat and very sweet and good-tempered, but rather from the one who wins a cigar in eleven minutes. You should laugh at you, always. We won’t, you dear boy, we shall at least have been checked of the former, and balance our power to all the geese that had laid.
A killer for the recovery of shipwrecked vessels in passing brought them any exceptional qualities of civilized couples anyhow. With the rising of the tranquil undulation that follows a remarkable anticipation of evil afflicts us more entertainment than ever and across her face working out a cigarette shown like the rattle of anchor chains and ball this time. Everything went off hurriedly with the apparent purpose which he wore was old, another was still signed as an autograph. I have received most inhuman treatment, and with a deep ravine, so that one of our faith: since to connect the idea against the white uniform of the steward, a cataract of purple and blue, caught it. A blank shot.