#Flash the Court
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A Strong Affirmation: Nominated for Best American Essays 2027
Please join Flash the Court in congratulating this year’s nominees for Best American Essays Read the nominated writers below: “Transitions” by Jennifer Braunfelshttps://flashthecourt.com/…/transitions-by-jennifer…/“Liturgist of the Land: A Single Work Completed” by Gregory Ormsonhttps://flashthecourt.com/…/liturgist-of-the-land-a…/“Lucky” by Nate Methothttps://flashthecourt.com/2026/07/03/lucky-by-nate-methot/“Balance Exercises” by Brian McNelyhttps://flashthecourt.com/…/balance-exercises-by-brian…/“On the Anniversary of My Mother’s Death” by Amy L. Bernsteinhttps://flashthecourt.com/…/on-the-anniversary-of-my…/ My essay appeared in the…
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Why Liturgist of the Land
A Single Work Completed Does anyone experience a single work completed? A work done so perfectly that nothing more needs to be added or taken away. In my recent lyric essay “Liturgist of the Land: A Single Work Completed,” the entire meditation turns on four actions. They form the simplest structure of labor I have…
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Why “Liturgist of the Land: A Single Work Completed” Matters
Dig.Dump.Bury.Cover. Sometimes a piece of writing begins with an image that won’t leave . . . with fish remains buried in a deep hole. In “Liturgist of the Land: A Single Work Completed,” It was simple and exact: a gravedigger finishing the work in a deliberate sequence: Dig. Dump. Bury. Cover. Nothing added for appearance,…
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“Liturgist of the Land: A Single Work Completed”
Originally published in Flash the Court, March 2026 Read the full essay at Flash the Court Liturgist of the Land: A Single Work Completed Look around. People are constantly checking their cell phones. Something must be left undone. A complete fucking incompleteness, a permanent, angst-driven scratch. Sisyphus whined, “In this rhythm, I am caught.”…