Size / / /

When you left your body lying around

You must have known I'd borrow it.

Mere curiosity would force me.

So—what was it like?

Hmm. Where to start?

The world looked fuzzy

Until I put your glasses on

instead of mine.

A bit heavy on the nose and ears,

have you thought of lighter frames?

It was pretty odd feeling air

on my head, instead of hair;

I mean, I'd put my hand up to neaten my curls, and

there

was no hair there.

The face in the mirror was more familiar than my own,

Except that I'm not used to meeting it in mirrors.

How frequently do you think I look in mirrors, anyway?

Everything seemed a tiny bit shorter,

especially that bookcase when I put the books

back up.

The pans in the kitchen weighed a little less.

I seemed a bit more clumsy, though.

Maybe you really should do more around the house.

The mouse felt smaller in my hand.

And the fifth stair creaked when I stepped on it.

It's never done that before.

I liked not bothering with a bra.

Those other bits were kind of awkward

Until I got them adjusted.

Must be a nuisance doing that every day,

Especially since they're so sensitive.

I totally get why you fuss so much about good

underwear.

I walked really carefully in the beginning.

Talking of sensitive, umm, well, yes, it was great

No, just by myself, of course I wouldn't be

unfaithful!

So, yes, it was super.

But the reload time . . . well, takes a while, doesn't it?

Your nails were a bit of a mess,

And your skin so dry.

I took it in for a facial and a manicure.

Calm down! I brought it back, didn't I,

In better shape than when I took it.

What do you mean, cooties?




A peripatetic writer of speculative fiction, Keyan Bowes has lived in seven countries and now calls the US West Coast home. With over forty published pieces, her work can be found in a dozen print anthologies and in magazines such as Strange Horizons, Escape Pod, Worlds of Possibility, and Flame Tree Press. Clarion graduate, SFWA member. Website: www.keyanbowes.com
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9 Feb 2026

“I’ve never actually visited the pā before,” she said out loud. “Is this where they gather lāʻī to make the pūʻolo?” she asked. “Yes,” Benny responded, glancing to see where Nanea was pointing. “Here and in other places as well. Many of these ti have been growing for decades now.” She paused for a moment. “I think about all the work you guys do, you know, up in those offices, and I think that all of that work actually starts from right here, in the ground, all covered in the earth and the pōhaku and the ti. Most people don’t even know it, but it all starts right here.
sometime in the night, we heard rocking and knocking and rapping and tapping, a million trillion tiny feet
The triangles bred and twisted, replicating themselves.
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By: Natasha King
Podcast read by: Jenna Hanchey
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