by CRISTINA MURANO

I unfolded my blanket.

It turned into a box.

I opened the lid of the box.

The box turned into a tent.

I entered the tent and there was a puzzle with one piece missing. I found the outlaw and placed it where it belonged. The puzzle turned into a well.

I sat on the edge of the well and then shifted my body so that the only thing between me and descending were my hands, which held tightly to the brick.

I let go.

Down I went.

Down.

Down.

My feet landed on a marshmallow. I laughed and reached down for a taste. My hand scooped at the white flesh, but then I discovered it was merengue with a hint of charcoal.

As soon as the goods hit my tongue, I grew five inches. The view became different.

I noticed a pink bird perched on a sunflower. I walked over and extended my arm and then opened my palm; to my surprise, the pink bird gently sat in it. The bird stayed there for minutes turning its head, staring at me, but not vocalizing a thing.

When it flew away, my body turned pink. Even my vision became immersed in pink. Pink was everywhere; it defined everything.

Not knowing how to differentiate between colors anymore, the world suddenly simplified and camouflaged, but it also opened possibilities.

How could I, like the bird, pass on pink?

In the distance I saw my blanket. I walked toward it, took off my shoes, and lay down. The sun looked opaque, but the sky looked like endless waves of joy.

Ω

Cristina Murano is an experienced professional with a demonstrated history of working in the public sector and communications industry. She has a flair for critical and creative thinking with work published in The Gwangju News Magazine and on her Substack, Reframing Difference, a project about the theory and practice of imagination. She holds a Master of Arts focused in Social Justice and Equity Studies from Brock University. She is based in Toronto, Canada.

Vivian Calderón Bogoslavsky is a Colombia Native. She holds a Bachelors in Anthropology with a minor in history, a postgraduate degree in journalism from Universidad of Los Andes in Bogota, Colombia, and a Bachelors in Fine Arts & Design from the USA.