She was asleep when the poison prevailed. After months of stringent planning, despondency triumphed as hopeful self-control finally withered away. Silent lies rendered an unbearable silence. He was forced to this vile ending. Lifeless now, he searched her face for regret that would never come. If only she had spoken.

Carol Murphy, MA, has written essays, interviews, stories and poems about the ways language, or a lack of it, colors life’s experiences while often emphasizing themes of mystery and the unexplainable. Some of her many stories were Likely Story, published by www.specialeducationadvisor.com, Auricle published in Good Dogs Doing Good, and Whiffs by Reddashboard Press. Her first book, Slits, came out in 2017. She finds daily inspiration for writing through her experiences with the complexities of communication and the many ways lives can go awry, or be set straight, simply by a precise word at a pivotal moment. A favorite quote is “The limits of my language mean the limits of my world.” (Ludwig Wittgenstein). Her website is www.carolmurphy.org.