Natasha N. Deonarain
Glass Globe Triptych (1): Water
The porcelain figure of a brown man in a black wetsuit face down on a surfboard and paddling towards a tidal wave. A white, female figure wearing a black bikini with waist-length sandy-colored hair behind him on the beach. One hand shades her eyes. To the far right, a high, jagged cliff. The tiny replica of a toddler in green board shorts and a green hoodie drawn tight under his chin leaning far over the edge of the cliff. He stares at a large shark fin approaching the man.
*shake globe to watch the salt spray
Glass Globe Triptych (2): Snow
The female figure in a purple LuluLemon lightweight jacket and cropped yoga pants, ankle socks and Adidas, running across a frozen lake. On her head and covering her eyes, a low-brimmed black runner’s cap. The small statue of a golden labrador with its haunches supported on a red wagon at the far side of the lake. The figure of a toddler dressed in a pink snowsuit with her hood drawn tight under her chin. She stands perpendicular to the running figure and watches. A wide, zigzag crack spreads over the lake. Another crack opens on the thick convex lead glass of the orb.
*shake globe to watch the snow twirl
Glass Globe Triptych (3): Sand
The gridded pattern of ochre tile roofs with small cinder-block yards containing sage, mesquite, palo verde, agave and barrel cacti threaded with tarred streets. A roadrunner streaks over the asphalt and chases a gecko. Curled under the curve of the glass, at the far edge of the flat expanse, an enormous curtain of dust billows high above the rooftops. It darkens the sky. A porcelain figure with hands and face pressed against the convex of the globe. Her face contorted into a scream.
*shake globe to watch the sand swirl
Natasha N. Deonarain is the author of two chapbooks, 50 études for piano (Assure Press Publishing) and urban disorders (Finishing Line Press). She’s the winner of the 2020 Three Sisters Award by NELLE magazine and Best of the Net Nominee by Rogue Agent Journal. She was born in South Africa, grew up in Canada and now lives in Arizona.