By Marco Etheridge

Homemade Spicy Anger Stew:

Ingredients:

Fear cut into 1/2” cubes – 3 cups

Shame roughly chopped – 1 cup

Insecurity quartered and sliced thin – 3/4 cup

Vulnerability minced fine – 1/2 cup

Rancid Oil – 3 tablespoons

Tears of Frustration – 4 cups

Past Threats grated – 2 tablespoons

Powdered Anxiety – To taste

Syrup of childhood trauma – 1/2 teaspoon (optional) 

Heat a large stew pot and add rancid oil. Throw fear, shame, insecurity, and vulnerability into the hot oil. Sear quickly until all ingredients are blackened. Pour tears of frustration over the sizzling mess. Bring to a rolling boil and reduce heat. Season with past threats, powdered anxiety, and trauma syrup.

Simmer on low-to-moderate heat, stirring occasionally and violently, until the stew thickens to an ugly reddish color.

Under no circumstances should one substitute compassion for any of the main ingredients. Compassion negates the hot bite of anger and your Spicy Anger Stew will be rendered bland and insipid.

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Marco Etheridge is a writer of prose, an occasional playwright, and a part-time poet. He lives and writes in Vienna, Austria. His work has been featured in over one hundred reviews and journals across Canada, Australia, the UK, and the USA. “The Wrong Name” is Marco’s latest collection of short fiction. When he isn’t crafting stories, Marco is a contributing editor for a new ‘Zine called Hotch Potch.
Author website: https://www.marcoetheridgefiction.com/