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

Lost My Way

I have always been a stickler for meticulous preparation and planning, perhaps dating back to my Boy Scout days or maybe just a product of my OCD. Nothing is taken for granted nor left merely to chance. I was reviewing a checklist for our upcoming family vacation, ensuring that we had an entertaining and workable agenda of daily activities. Focused on my project, I did not notice my 11-year-old daughter approaching. She suddenly hugged me and told me how much she was looking forward to spending time with me on our vacation. I then realized I had missed the point.

Scott Finelli is a retired gastroenterologist living in Gulf Breeze, Florida. He is a member of the West Florida Literary Federation.

Say Goodbye

Embracing Weird