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, newsletter editor kate meen, and founding reader bobbi lerman, plus our rotating team of guest readers, who you can meet in the latest newsletteR. 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

Lilies

She wandered the pathway into a clearing, startled wide awake by a tangle of brightness — lilies, zinnias, and daisies. Her jeans damp, she stretched full-length on the earth, her tummy warm against the ground. An ant, bustling across a gigantic and perfectly formed orchid, paid her no attention. The girl's body experienced itself pulsing with life, heartbeat buzzing in her chest, wrists, and ankles. A lily of the field, she found herself leaping to her feet, her toes spread across the damp grasses, heels planted firmly. Raising arms high overhead, she knew that there could never be anyone to impress.

Christi Byerly, who's lived in six countries on three continents, runs Awaken Coach Institute. She trains depth coaches from all over the globe. Find Christi on Twitter @ChristiByerly and on Instagram @byerlychristi

Stupid Is

Bright Pink Pill