Untitled

Matt Mullicanfrom Blasted Allegories1973

Untitled

Her Birth

Her family

Her house, home

The heat from the kitchen stove

Hearing her mother upstairsThe street noises coming in the window

The rug on the living room floorThe trees growing in the backyard

Learning to talk

Learning to walk

Learning to crawl

Learning to use her handsFeeling hungry after her napThe sunlight hurt her eyesHer fourth birthdayThe salt on the dining room taleSmelling the fresh autumn airBleeding after skinning her kneeEntering schoolThe pillow on her parent’s bedMaking friendsTraveling to the mountainsCrying when feeling lostThe people living down the streetLearning to read words

The dining room tableThe sky was a light shade of blueLearning arithmeticHer best friend’s brotherFeeling hungry after skipping lunchLearning to ride a bikeThe full moon lights up the night skyLearning abut gravity in school

The light in the hallway

Catching her breath after running home

Entering the sixth grade –becoming older

Their pet dog

The door between her and her older sister’s room

Having to go to the bathroom

Noticing that the tree in the backyard is changing color

Feeling the glare of the sun on her eyes

They go two inches of rain that week

Playing handball at school

The street light

Feeling proud of her schoolwork

Looking at herself in the mirror

Entering the seventh grade

Playing in the backyard

The food cans in the kitchen cabinet

Going to the school dance

Doing her homework

Tasting that there’s too much salt in the salad

Thinking about going steady

Experiencing puberty

Scaring the dog by slamming the door

There were so many stars she couldn’t count them all

Looking out her bedroom window

Finding new friends in school

As the year progressed the days got shorter

Visiting her aunt’s house

Getting a boyfriend and going steady

Brushing her teeth

Her dog dies

Getting an electric shock

Riding the bus to school

Entering the drama club

Her boyfriend’s little sister

Going to camp over the summer

The sound of the record playing in the living room

The air felt thick that morning

Becoming sick – not going to school

Making out

Hearing her parents argue

Getting scaredGoing to parties oftenEntering high schoolHearing static while talking on the phoneTaking care of her little sisterAfter gym she was very tiredBurning herself while cookingThe telephone ringing in the hallwayThe ocean seemed endlessA large man passing her on the sidewalkThinking about the people she has yet to meetLearning to drive a carRemembering the time she hurt herself skiingTouching her right eye with her index fingerFamily moves to a new neighborhoodThe sound of an airplane flying overheadTaking a bathBecoming interested in historyFantasizing about marriageThe dining room table set for eatingGoing to the moviesHugging her father

Getting a younger sister-thinking of herself

Entering college, moving away from homeHer roommateFalling asleep while studyingHer roommate’s hometownThe amount of time it takes to walk to schoolMajoring in history in collegeGetting a boyfriendThe sound of the record player in the next roomStaying up, watching the sunrise from her rooftopCutting her hairStudying the history of her country

Getting married in the afternoon

Their front door

Quitting school

Moving to a new houseHer husband’s familyThe manhole in the streetThinking of her in-lawsHer husband’s workBoiling water while cookingGetting a job for herselfLooking at herself in the mirrorReceiving a letter from her parentsHaving her wisdom teeth removedWatching the light refract through the kitchen window

Eating lunchA pencil on her desk at work Knowing she is going to have a babyThinking of her parents

Her baby is born

Moving to a larger houseThere is lots of green around the new houseHer husband’s mouthStubbing her tow while runningHer son’s baby shoesFebruary twenty-sixthFeeling thirsty one hot afternoonHer husband’s boss

Another birthday, she is getting older

Getting her hands wetThinking abut her son’s lifeMaking love with her husbandSmelling the fresh autumn airThinking of her childhoodThe telephone wiresHer son’s learning to walkThe people living next doorTrying to find her glassesThe covers on their bed

Having another baby, a girl

Not eating very muchShe only had an hour to get homeHer son’s school workVisiting her husband’s sisterThe noise from a large truckHer daughter’s fourth birthdayGoing shopping

Looking at herself in the mirror

Her thirty-fourth birthdaySensing that her son is in dangerRenewing an interest in historyHer daughter’s left hand

Not eating very muchShe only had an hour to get homeHer son’s school workVisiting her husband’s sisterThe noise from a large truckHer daughter’s fourth birthdayGoing shopping

Looking at herself in the mirror

Her thirty-fourth birthdaySensing that her son is in dangerRenewing an interest in historyHer daughter’s left hand

Taking a showerDreaming that she spoke a foreign languageThinking of her husband’s childhoodAn object in the back seat of their carThe floor she stands onOctober fifthHer husband shaved regularlyTraveling to a large city

Her son’s graduation

Taking a photographReading a book in the studyHer husband’s current incomeDropping a dish- watching it breakKissing her husbandThe days seemed to be going by faster

Having trouble breathingThe new living room furnitureThe sidewalk around the cornerTouching the wallHer father dies, sudden griefThe backyard flooded during a heavy rainLooking at herself in the mirrorHer son’s marriageBrushing her teethStarting a garden

Her daughter’s graduation

The broken glass in the basement doorSwimmingAn itch in the lower part of her backHer daughter’s school in a foreign countrySpending half the year at the oceanLooking at a photograph of herself as a childBeing scared to enter a dark roomHaving a grandchild

Feeling older

Remembering schooldaysA glass of waterThey have retiredTheir son’s independenceTouching herselfCooking a “hearty meal”

Forgetting her age

Their houseGoing for a trip around the worldHair turning whiteHer daughter’s marriageWorking at her deskWondering where that person livesBeing visited by her daughter-in-law’s parentsNoticing that the sky is a light shade of blueThe red car down the block

Looking at herself in the mirror

Catching her breathWatching TVTaking a nap in the hot sun

Her husband dies

MovingThinking about her eventual deathScaring the dog by slamming the doorA family reunion during ChristmasGoing for a walk in the gardenFeeling old, not caringLooking at her feetNot being able to see clearlyBleeding after skinning her kneeThinking of the faces of her parentsCooking vegetables The door between her and her sister’s roomLooking at her eyes in the mirrorThe floor she stands onThinking of her husband

Looking at herself in the mirror

Thinking of her death

Her death

This book was designed by Lauren Blackburn in April, 2015 It was created using the Rockwell Typeface at pt. size 11.