The Litter I See Project

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This is where we escape the bleaching whine of fluorescent lights in language class.

This is where we learn the best places to get warm coats and international money orders.

This is where we learn who’s hiring.

This is where we teach each other how to tell a knock-knock joke.

This is where we share an orange.

This is where we hatch plans for a laundromat business.

This is where we name our restaurant.

This is where we luxuriate in the tongue of our mothers.

This is where we were standing when we learned that father died in the bombing.

This is where we take a deep breath before trying to shape English sounds.

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Christine Fischer Guy is a Toronto writer and journalist. She was a 2024 VCCA fellow and is the author of The Umbrella Mender and The Instrument Must Not Matter (coming in 2026). Her short fiction has appeared in Canadian, American and British journals. She was awarded a National Magazine Award and contributes criticism and interviews to literary journals. More: https://christinefischerguy.com/