Thwarted Ambition

by Frank J. Tassone · 10th October 2019

a toddler smiling sitting a blanket in the grass

We arrive at our niece’s house for her daughter’s 3rd birthday party—early. Mira wants to “hug the babies”—our newborn great niece and nephew, both of whom will be there. She had hoped to have them to herself.

When we pull up to the house, however, a Nissan Altima with a Portuguese flag is already parked. Her other sister pulls in behind us. When we enter the house, we see that all hope is lost: Her sisters already ogle the babies.

August sky
ignored at her own party
the three-year-old

Photo by Douglas J S Moreira

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Frank J. Tassone

Frank J. Tassone lives in New York City's "back yard" with his wife and son. He fell in love with writing after he wrote his first short story at age 12 and his first poem in high school. He began writing haiku and haibun seriously in the 2000s. His haikai poetry has appeared in Failed Haiku, Cattails, Haibun Today, Contemporary Haibun Online, Contemporary Haibun, The Haiku Foundation and Haiku Society of America member anthologies. He is a contributing poet for the online literary journal Image Curve, and a performance poet with Rockland Poets. When he's not writing, Frank works as a special education high school teacher in the Bronx. When he's not working or writing, he enjoys time with his family, meditation, hiking, practicing tai chi and geeking out to Star Wars, Marvel Cinema and any other Sci-Fi/Fantasy film and TV worth seeing.