Despite the Grim Forever Light breaks out under a black and heavy sky and the earth glows like a jewel in a velvet box. Remember me this way all my darks redeemed by the sudden glitter and flash of light escaping the crush of night- an unexpected glory brighter than any ordinary sun- a defiant shout flaming out, irrepressible against the unescapable threat of midnight still to come. Mary C. McCarthy This poem was written for the 20 Poem Challenge. Mary McCarthy has always been a writer, but spent most of her working life as a Registered Nurse. She has had many publications in journals, including Earth's Daughters, Caketrain, and The Evening Street Review, among others. She has only recently discovered the vibrant poetry communities on the internet, where there is so much to explore and enjoy.
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Bathsheba
Such an odd spot for a bath on an open roof her maid’s dark robe the only shadow in a wash of brilliant morning light. And the pose- languorous, brazen, a deliberate display, David on his rooftop might claim himself helpless, an innocent seduced into adultery by her wanton exhibition, set there in his view like sweet ripe fruit, an irresistible temptation. Was she maybe hoping for a shortcut out of marriage into widowhood, and so made sure she would be naked here for him to see? Or was a greater Schemer working out his own intents, the ultimate Director, nudging his players into their parts? Mary C. McCarthy This poem was written as part of the 20 Poem Challenge. Mary McCarthy has always been a writer, but spent most of her working life as a Registered Nurse. She has had many publications in journals, including Earth's Daughters, Caketrain, and The Evening Street Review, among others. She has only recently discovered the vibrant poetry communities on the internet, where there is so much to explore and enjoy. Swallow Child
I had no mother, no tribe. Swallows heard me crying. They gave me flight, to feel the wind, to find my spirit. They gave me a mate to birth our young in ancient cliffs. They gave me companions for warmth in winter's cold. Someday I will fly to the sun. My feathers will gleam iridescent. My home will be in cloud cliffs. I will look down on Earth's chaos where my mother disappeared. I will no longer miss her. Sarah Russell NB from the poet: I generally try to learn more about a painting and the artist to see if there is anything in the research to incorporate into an ekphrastic poem. Benjamin Chee Chee's Native American heritage and tragic death at age 32 became the cornerstone of this poem. See http://www.northlandart.com/htmfiles/bios/bio_cheechee.html This poem was written as part of the 20 Poem Challenge. Sarah Russell has returned to her first love after a career teaching, writing and editing academic prose. Her poetry has appeared in Red River Review, Misfit Magazine, The Houseboat, Shot Glass Journal, Bijou Poetry Review and Poppy Road Review, among others. Her poem “Denouement” won the GR poetry contest in February, 2014. Follow her work at www.SarahRussellPoetry.com Untitled
journey of life lays as tiny footings the imprints remain as joy of image on the silent rock surface Pravat Kumar Padhy Pravat Kumar Padhy, a graduate and Ph.D from IIT-Dhanbad, loves to blend science with literature. His short form of Japanese poems have appeared in The World Haiku Review, Lynx,The Notes from the Gean, Atlas Poetica, Simply Haiku, Red lights, Ribbons, Haigaonline, World Haiku Association, TanshiArt, The Heron’s Nest, Atlas Poetica, Skylark, Shamrock, A Hundred Gourds, Bottle Rockets, Frogpond, hedgerow, Acorn, Kokako, Presence, Issa’s Untidy Hut, The Bamboo Hut, Modern Haiku, tinywords etc. Recently his tanka have been anthologized in Fire Pearls 2 and Bright Stars, edited by M Kei. His haiku won the Editor’s Choice Award at the Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival, Canada UNESCO International Year of Water Co-operation and The Kloštar Ivanić International Haiku Contest, Creatrix Haiku Commendation Award. http://pkpadhy.blogspot.com Cluttered Colour Clutter with colour, End up with beautiful art. God did. God planted a garden in Eden. Then later said, "Consider the lilies.....Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these." ALL. ONE. Embrace the contrast. My colour is khaki. It draws me. I wear it, as I drive autumn country roads inhaling a cacophony of colour, Intoxicating myself in God's garden. Delightfully aware. Blessed. Blessed by an intense and colourful daughter who has coloured my life. And masterfully introduced me to art. Up to whenever, my art was scapes. Seascapes. Landscapes. Scenes that I could go to. ESCAPES. Now I can absorb a bit and enjoy. God also said, "Be still and know that I am God." Robert Thiessen This poem was written as part of the 20 Poem Challenge. Robert Thiessen worked at General Motors for forty years and is now retired. The challenge results are his first ever poems. Come Spend Summer in the Girl Cave
Plunk your pencils in vases, hang kimonos on nails, paint tired things glossy coral and red. Let your secrets swell like a rising sun and repurpose your lies. Bring scones, coffee; whine and be messy-- throw capes on carpets; leave rings on tables. Wear dresses that drape and poof in the wind-- like that sea-foam muumuu your husband hates-- or wear nothing at all. Get rid of your shoes and lead with your toes; settle in. You’ll be camouflaged here among the round pitchers, floral blankets and nudes. We’ll doodle dancers, sort buttons, tear magazine pictures, pose for each other or just zone out and eat jam. Sarah Carleton Sarah Carleton writes, edits, plays the banjo and raises her son in Tampa, Florida. Her poems have appeared in Houseboat, Burning Word Literary Journal, Avatar Review, Poetry Quarterly, The Bijou Poetry Review, Off the Coast, Shark Reef, Wild Violet Magazine, The Binnacle, The Homestead Review, Cider Press Review and Nimrod. She also has work upcoming in Silver Birch and Chattahoochee Review. This poem was written as part of the 20 Poem Challenge. The Unwritten Bible for the Modestly Valiant
after Susan Ariel Rainbow Kennedy “Remember to delight yourself first, then others can be truly delighted." -SARK Comfort the tiny voice. Kiss-kiss its paper-cut hands. Inspiration has no other choice; it must breathe its meddlesome, trying blooms. All creation belongs. Celebrate: the unfinished rainbow; the clover, quartered; the tigress, an insatiable albino. Nature never readdresses the flawlessness of rarities. Go forth, populate this distraught world with paint, words, unrestricted movement, slow-whittled wood and broken guitar strings. Art is everything. Un-school each unsure, gun-shy, withheld offering: give them free range to relight their own suns, until nights are no longer lonely. Befriend demons and lavish desserts with rowdy abandonment. Wet your brush so often it balds. Scribble, dribble, unfurl your queue , lay your hues, boldly. Connect to the roots in canvas. Add relish-green and mustard to seed a dance floor for the like-minded. They are out there, somewhere, waiting for your touch of madness— welcome this eve of new atoms. Let your elder-child play; her midnight ringlets will spring as yellow balls bounce those blues clear out of the sky. Cyndi MacMillan This poem was written as part of November's 20 Poem Challenge. Cyndi MacMillan poetry has recently appeared in Grain Magazine and the Fieldstone Review. Her verse, short fiction and novel-in-progress resentfully compete for her attention. She lives in New Hamburg, Ontario, home to North America’s largest working water wheel. Coffee and family allow ideas to percolate. the sun
in an act of self-immolation burnt itself out of the sky I stood on the porch I witnessed the deed I froze to death at the scene of the crime Patrick G. Metoyer This poem was written as part of the 20 Poem Challenge. When he is not engaged in visual arts, Colorado resident Patrick G. Metoyer may spin a yarn or two with his pen. He enjoys reciting and performing his creative writings. His poetry and prose in the past few years have been featured in Grand Valley Magazine. |
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