An Ode To Fire
By Red Morse Flickering mess of light,Swaying sharp with poise,Like a ballerina pirouetting through thorns. You bite the hands of thoseWho take hold of you;With bitter passion.I wish to dance … Continue Reading An Ode To Fire
I WANT TO DIE
By John Tustin The grass will not grow where we have stepped together. The flowers will not flower in the garden And the violin sits atilt in the corner of … Continue Reading I WANT TO DIE
“5th Avenue and South Second Street” and “Golden Years”
by Thomas Elson “5th Avenue and South Second Street” One evening in this dying river town on the eastern part of the state – whose biggest exports are corn … Continue Reading “5th Avenue and South Second Street” and “Golden Years”
“Henry’s Room” and “Birds on Parole”
by Bruce Robinson “Henry’s Room” When the wind blows the door closedand shuts Henry inside the bathroom,he’s perhaps reminded of the mysteryof the shrewd proviso, or concerned aboutthe erstwhile inviolabilityof … Continue Reading “Henry’s Room” and “Birds on Parole”
“Redneck Tell No Lies”
by Gerard Sarnat “Redneck Tell No Lies” “You like tomato and I like tomahtoLet’s call the whole thing off” -Ira and George Gershwin Gerard Sarnat has been nominated for the … Continue Reading “Redneck Tell No Lies”
“Home Manufactures,” “Acorns in a Mast Year,” “Moosehead Lake,” “Nature Did That,” and “American Bittern”
by Charles Weld “Home Manufactures” We could call the creek behind the school Sea Cook Creek because that’s where our black lab, dead years ago now, dove without warning into … Continue Reading “Home Manufactures,” “Acorns in a Mast Year,” “Moosehead Lake,” “Nature Did That,” and “American Bittern”
“Lake Death” and “Natural Causes”
by Phil Huffy “Lake Death” The killer left few clues that might be found. The violence could not have lasted long. Right to the heart a mighty shock did pound, … Continue Reading “Lake Death” and “Natural Causes”
“Your flowers, my garden”
by Clover Estrada Part One. The scars that trace down my skin,past my shoulders and down my backto my arms, to my arms, to my arms – They leave reflections … Continue Reading “Your flowers, my garden”
“NEW YEAR’S EVE,” “BODY AND SOUL,” “JANUARY DREAM,” and “THE LAST HOUSE YOU LIVED IN”
by Mark Jackley “NEW YEAR’S EVE” Upon inventing the puzzle, our forebears left the garden, searching for answers, oddly shaped pieces of the picture. Tonight, uncounted snowflakes land on cars, … Continue Reading “NEW YEAR’S EVE,” “BODY AND SOUL,” “JANUARY DREAM,” and “THE LAST HOUSE YOU LIVED IN”
“Little Elegy,” “Kansas, 1950 “Dirge,” and “Nunc Dimmittus”
by Don Thompson “Little Elegy” Last night I found her name Listed in the catalog Of dead sisters. Just one of many—so many. Touching it, my finger burned, My tongue … Continue Reading “Little Elegy,” “Kansas, 1950 “Dirge,” and “Nunc Dimmittus”
“Stalled,” “The Familiar,” and “The Visitation”
by Jeanne Julian “Stalled” Once, I was corralled into competing against other tense and giddy youthful thespians delivering emotive monologues. Mid- recitation— mental block. Suspense. Voice stopped, choked by … Continue Reading “Stalled,” “The Familiar,” and “The Visitation”
“Ars Poetica,” “Nude Illusion,” and “Post Verbal”
by Darrell Dela Cruz “Ars Poetica” -For the Watergarden The pain has no singular outlet, dispersed amongst the nerves amplified in the spread which you rub as … Continue Reading “Ars Poetica,” “Nude Illusion,” and “Post Verbal”
Republic Day juxtaposition
by Anonymous Troops of soldiers march down the horizon-wide pathin unison trying to make us believe everything is in order. A few of them perhaps still working to believe the … Continue Reading Republic Day juxtaposition
“To La Scala in the Rain,” “June Brides,” and “Guilty of Something”
by Eugene Stevenson “To La Scala in the Rain” Ten hours late Octoberthrough New York rain,over Atlantic storms,under Milanese fog, toLa Scala in mist & rain. No sleep, as if … Continue Reading “To La Scala in the Rain,” “June Brides,” and “Guilty of Something”
“Crest” and “Funeral Poem Painted on Silk”
by John Tustin “CREST” My body riding on the Crest Of your body The waves of us Undulating Under the moon That guides our Force Toward the blankets of shore … Continue Reading “Crest” and “Funeral Poem Painted on Silk”
“Her Toast Untouched,” “Visiting Again,” and “One Morning Each Week”
by Thomas Elson “Her Toast Untouched” “Visiting Again” “One Morning Each Week” Thomas Elson’s stories appear in numerous venues, including Ellipsis, Better Than Starbucks, Bull, Cabinet of Heed, Flash Frontier, … Continue Reading “Her Toast Untouched,” “Visiting Again,” and “One Morning Each Week”