MEET THE MADNESS A Providence twilight, late November, every man and woman dressed in gray, sliding in and out of panels or emerging from dark recesses, all faces plain, hair drab, eyes shut, tongues muted, and there, high up in the skyscrapers, mouths in windows pause mid-shriek, as, down by the riverside, water rats crack on scattered bones […]
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Before the Horoscope Nine planets juggle me on cusps And boil flood-chemistry to speed me. Will blows from Geminian ash, Sinks through quicksilver. Out-sensed, earth and fire are lit; Or fears invert that gaunt imminence Thrust all into the gulf. Beyond sear fuller flames – Tempered, reserved, Approved as solid, then abhorred As dark absorption in one […]
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PENULTIMATE for David Ferry (July, 21, 2015) At 91, David tells me that he is nearly finished with his Aeneid translation and that he has started his next book which he has tentatively called Underworld, and he is already three poems in, and when the Aeneid goes to press he’ll focus more on this newest book, but not […]
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The Fire Animal AS WE CONFLAGRATE OUR NEW PASTURES AND EXPECT THEM STILL TO FLOURISH AS WE BREATHE IN THE SMOKE INHALE AND EXPECT A BILLOW TO BLOW OUT AS WE COUGH OUT THE BLOOD OF LIFE AND EXPECT A STAIN UPON THE WORLD OUR VOICES SING WITH METAL AND WITH VELVET […]
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A pile of leaves, a hissing clump of dark greens and crisp browns, sliding along a sidewalk, swirling in a wind gust, propelled in a circular momentum, created for three seconds a glimpse into existence at its most fundamental, its most naked, its core. Author Bio: Austin Alexis has published in The Ledge: Poetry and Fiction, Paterson Literary […]
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Do not sneer at this poem Call me a bard of doom But do not sneer at this poem: The searing sun tickled the ribs of the sky it all stared, yes, that tragedy began with a safe smile squirting in the form of slender drizzles like sick tubers. they say Mother Nature is slow to anger indeed, a […]
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Quality Control By Chanacee Ruth-Killgore This, not that. No, the other way. Fix it! Turn it around; make it the same. Shh… don’t speak! Don’t question or think. Remember, conformity is the name of the game.
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Time We walk, we run We push… forward Everyday Every moment Focused on something, anything Busy-ness …but this moment Here, now Was made for stillness Silence Awe You have the time You don’t make it Receive it… This precious gift Give it… Generously Savor it… Take it in With open eyes …and heart Breathe in the sweetness… Be […]
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BARBARIANS AT THE GATES Once Rome attained its pinnacle Remained on top of things. Though forces quite inimical Sought to destruction bring. Some conquered thought despicable Rome’s impositioning Of laws it deemed applicable When “Pax-Romana”-ing Four centuries continuous Spanned Romans’ reign as king Throughout the lands contiguous Mediterranean. Just like empires classical From whom […]
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EMBRACING CHAOS – By Ray Gallucci The eye of a hurricane never can know How forcefully all its surrounding winds blow. For there in the center all’s peacefully calm While swirling around are explosions of bombs. But center is where all the chaos begins — In vertical columns air rises then spins. While most relish lull, others seek out the […]
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