Latest Stories
Most recently published stories in Viva.
Guess How Much I Paid?
Every month, I eagerly awaited Saturday bargain hunting with my younger sister, Shelia. Not the kind of bargain hunting you did at the Dollar store or basement of Macy’s and Filene’s. Sure, those places have good deals, but nothing like those in the thrift shops on the north shore of Chicago. Here, you could discover new, never-worn clothes with tags intact at second-hand prices. I suspect they were gifts, which rich people discarded instead of exchanged. Finding a bargain was only one of the things I was certain would happen on our trip. The other was that Shelia would wander off, causing a delay in our travel plans. She insisted on hunting alone, but she couldn’t drive.
By Sheryl Williams5 years ago in Viva
Figuratively Speaking
My shirt is neatly folded on the stool, demurely hiding my panties and leggings. From the exam table where I sit, paper crinkling on the inhale, crushing on the exhale, the olive knit looks alive, a patch of moss growing a bed of green atop a metal blowdown. I wore it for our first date, when I met Alex at the airport and he presented a notebook wrapped in butcher paper emblazoned with the nickname he’d called me on the phone every day for months: “Pookie.”
By Amanda Mercedes5 years ago in Viva
My Ode to Femininity & Blackness
It’s not easy being female. I mean, I think every woman can attest to that. Not only are we automatically deemed the “weaker sex,” not only do we live in a patriarchy where men believe it is their RIGHT to decide what is best for women, not only are we living in an impenitent rape culture…. But, Eve had to mess around at talk to a flying serpent and screw us ALL over with cramps and monthly bloodletting! Only so that we can generate the eggs necessary to make even MORE ungrateful and privileged men who believe they can decide what’s best for women…
By B. J. Cyprian5 years ago in Viva
Before it was Fashionable
You know, about thirty years ago, my Mom worked for the City of Philadelphia as a Tax Assessor. She was good at it too. Which, at the time was a pretty good job for a single Mom of two. She told me she took a test to get a better position, because she wanted to make sure her babies had a balance meal every night after she and my Father split. My Mom says, she remembers making sure we had meat, a green vegetable, a starch and some pudding or Jell-O for dessert. Some times we ate hot dogs and bake beans a lot, but we didn’t care we like hot dogs and bake beans. Mom said, but she cared and so she knew she had to do something about that.
By Nichelle S. Montgomery5 years ago in Viva
What Do Booze & Washing Machines Have In Common?. Top Story - March 2021.
Many of us learned in school about the 19th Amendment, which was passed in 1920 and gave women the right to vote across America. We also learned about the 18th Amendment, ratified in 1919, outlawing alcohol and ushering in an era known as “Prohibition.” And, we all learned about the Second Industrial Revolution, which also began in the early 1900s and was characterized by railroads, steel production, manufacturing and machinery, and electricity.
By Lacey Doddrow5 years ago in Viva
Little Black Book
The little black book The summer was always a good thing to Ranus, it reminded him of the city back home before he decided to living in a jungle would be cheaper... and besides he doesn’t even know where his family is. He was adopted by this pretty old couple since birth and they’ve only made it to 11years of being his parents. He was now alone , living on his own while trying to understand the meaning of nature. He studied the trees , the gorrilas, and the wood peckers that picked at the tree. HIs favorite bird was the bluejay. While studying birds and animals he noticed that bluejays were determined and such sweet creatures.He made that his favorite way to end the day. Year and years went by as his journals filled up more and more. He always reached in his sack to look at his parents knowing they would be so proud of him for making it this far. For every animal reminded him of how strong humans were actually built to be.
By Jasmine Stewart5 years ago in Viva
