Martha Bowman, Tea Leaf Reader, New York City, 1947: A Fictional Monologue

Debbie Lynn Miller
5 min readOct 19, 2024

By Debbie L. Miller

I guess I’m what you’d call a Bohemian, a unicorn in a horse world. I don’t have children, by choice, which is unheard of in these times. And, I’m a redhead. There are still people who consider redheads to be witches, or at the very least, strange and scary. They also see being childless the same way, actually. The way I see it, it’s just one more thing that makes me special, which is okay with me.

I also don’t shave my legs. What for? I can’t see the use. Why get rid of something that could be the source of my special powers?

Anyway, yes, I’m a tea leaf reader. I know, I know. It’s a parlor trick, it’s not real, it’s a scam. I’ve heard it all. The talk doesn’t bother me because I know who I am and I know I have a gift. And, people who come to see me believe I have it, too. That’s all that matters.

I grew up in Cleveland, the Midwest. Not a place where you’d think psychic people would come from. I left when I was 16. I didn’t graduate from high school. Didn’t see the use.

I started following the carnival circuit and rode the rails. I don’t care if you believe me or not. I traveled around a lot and saw a lot of this country. I loved the carnivals. The most interesting people work at carnivals…

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Debbie Lynn Miller
Debbie Lynn Miller

Written by Debbie Lynn Miller

Brooklyn satire writer Debbie L. Miller is published in The Belladonna Comedy, Frazzled, The Haven, The StopGap, Greener Pastures, and The Syndrome Magazine.

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