Jaclynn Loibl

Moth Testicles

I’m stalling. Or rather, cleaning, adjusting blinds, and turning up and down the heat. In 22 minutes, the virtual conversational Spanish class I enrolled in starts, and I’m in nervous. Would it really matter if I didn’t show? Nah. Except… I’d know. Since I want to speak Spanish fluently, I need to talk to people.Continue reading “Moth Testicles”

Houseplant Arousal

I’d love to write long-form; informative, entertaining, and creative pieces. Tapestries that interweave and intersect cleverly and stimulatingly. I want the reader to walk away from the piece more educated and empowered or with a smile. I want to draw upon personal lessons, my education, and my experiences in counseling others to create pieces thatContinue reading “Houseplant Arousal”

Magnetic Zombie

I shoot up my hand but before the words touch the air, I’m shhhh’d. At the pulpit is the critic rambling and spitting dribble. What am I doing here anyway, I ask? Standing, I unfurl my favorite finger of the bunch, and enjoy the slam of the door behind me. I’m bumbling through sentences constructingContinue reading “Magnetic Zombie”

Struggling Orchid: A Poem

I deleted a post. I tried to delete you. Like a Jack in the Box, time winds a memory to pop. Out of gas, I break the white line. Her words edge me out, a rag doll or rather a wolf in sheepskin. She skips, hand-in-hand on the wild edge of a curb. Superb feelingsContinue reading “Struggling Orchid: A Poem”

Learning To Fly

A dismembered wing of a mallard duck my Dad killed hunting housed in a plastic bag is what my second-grade self brought to show-in-tell. And at 40-years-old, the irony was not lost on me when I stood on my front lawn this morning, mouth agape in awe at seeing the final few of my petContinue reading “Learning To Fly”

Scent Of A Woman

Out of concern about the partner of a client feeling ganged up on (this happened previously to them in couples therapy), I wonder if I over-corrected and my client felt that way. I hope not. I am sweaty; not tears coming out of my pores sweaty, but a subtle “ooh, it’s humid out” kind. SlappingContinue reading “Scent Of A Woman”

I Got A New Attitude

How do we change our have-to’s to want-to’s? I’m taking my resolutions slow and steady in the spirit of starting and ending 2023 like the tortoise. Twenty push-ups by December 31st means I have a long way to go. To see just how far, I dropped to the floor to see and squeezed out oneContinue reading “I Got A New Attitude”

Tiptoe Through The Tulips

During covid, seed-exchange programs popped up in communities to share resources. I only found out they existed when I read an article on sourcing inexpensive gardening seeds earlier today. I then found and joined one in my area. Not only did I get a 4-digit code and an address to pick them up from, butContinue reading “Tiptoe Through The Tulips”

Happy New Year!

With Mr. Rogers-like exuberance, Dave stands and says, “What do we want to do today?!” Then, answering his question says, “Are we doing it?!” My silent look says it all as I continue being treated by Evelyn’s pretend shot for an illness. It’s a sunny day, full of hope and promise on this eve ofContinue reading “Happy New Year!”

Feeling Badly

At the hockey game, I felt compelled to write the quirks of the guy seated next to me. “Didn’t practice the power kills this week, did we boys?” But I didn’t, and I don’t know why. I deny myself in posts. I shut down unworthy thoughts and feelings and then wish I hadn’t. My journeyContinue reading “Feeling Badly”