Nancy Kay

Congratulations to Celia Chandler, whose 100-word story “Thrive!” (below) has won our Drabble of the Month contest for the month of September. She has won a cash prize of CA$25. Celia won a Canadian Online Publishing Award for her series on her husband’s medically assisted death on rabble.ca in 2020. That kickstarted her writing. Since then, she’s won the 2024 Eden Mills Non-Fiction Read at the Fringe Contest and been shortlisted in several others, including the 2023 International Amy MacRae Award for Memoir. She’s thrilled this is her fourth Commuter Lit publication! Celia writes weekly from her Toronto laneway house. You can follow her at celiachandler.com. And yes, she grew up on a dairy farm.

Thrive!

BY CELIA CHANDLER

I rub her bony forehead lovingly with my palm. Her 12-hour-old hide is still silky; her black and white markings sparkle like new piano keys. My left hand pushes her muzzle down into the pail. It meets my right hand, already submerged in warm, creamy milk. I draw my fingers together like a cow’s teat and gently insert them into her mouth. The knobby tastebuds on her tongue tickle my teenaged fingers. I feel a gentle pull. I hold my breath as the suction increases and cautiously withdraw my hand. My heart beats to the slurping. My calf will thrive.