First World

by Linda Sanchez

By the time a human started typing in the chat box, I was spent and bordering on contrite; Amazon’s chatbot had borne the brunt of my rage. The order, placed just before bed, promised by 8am, had arrived sans the one thing I needed for my breakfast. I didn’t confess this to the bot, but everything else in the order – the frozen mango chunks, purple onions, and canned corn – had been padding to get to the free delivery minimum. The human typist offered me a replacement to be delivered, at the earliest, the next day by 8am. I baulked and created a little more rage, then dropped it immediately, embarrassed. We negotiated terms, and in the morning, at 7:46, I stepped onto my front porch in slippers to retrieve the brown paper bag – inside were four green bananas.

6S

Linda Sanchez is fascinated by the ways in which environment shapes us, and by our capacity to grow and change. Linda is a returned Peace Corps Volunteer, recipient of an Eisenhower Fellowship, and graduate of the Four Corners Writing Project in Gallup, New Mexico. She is driven to share the stories of her life - some of which you will find at Tales from Wildflower Haven. She lives in Northern MA with her husband and two beloved dogs, more often than not in a state of bliss.