Five Minutes explores five minutes of a life in one hundred words. Five minutes is edited by Susanna Baird, with editorial support from managing editor Maria s. picone and founding reader bobbi lerman; May READERS Darcy alsop, PRERNA BAROOAH, AMITA BASU, Sarina Caragan, Antony Püttschneider, and Elisa Rivera; and May Editorial intern sienna lew. Five Minutes was founded in October 2020, with the Salem (Mass)-based writing group Carrot Cake Writers supplying the journal’s first pieces. We’d love to read your five. Submit here

Growing Out

I stood at the mirror and traced my childhood with my finger along the white roots that appeared in my part. I watched myself watch myself as I stroked the border between dye and die, between weeks of neglect, between memories of being teased and memories of being desired. Getting my first white hair as a child, chasing the ever-growing line of age. Now I stood at the mirror and counted. Remembered. Watched myself watch myself. A fingerprint smudge over my eyes. A speck of toothpaste on my cheek. A bottle of color in my hand. Time to cover up.

Miriam BC Tobin is a playwright and theatre artist from Seattle. She also runs a writing organization aimed at community. www.mirbct.com and www.scriblab.org

Wrapping Paper

Chalk