Category / Poetry / Spring 2021 / Spring 2021 Poetry
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Solastalgia – Kamil Czyz
Night reveals itself. I drenched the bed with fear and now through the open window, I let darkness dry skin of the fully woken, yet amazed body to the racket of aroused traffic and seagulls fishing in waste bins across the parking lot. It is the time when living things come back to life. It…
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Kalahari Skies – Judith Mikesch McKenzie
If you go to the Kalahari try to arrive in the deep desert well into the dark of night when the black is an impenetrable screen all around you when eyes are forced upward to find light to the thick blanket of stars, so bright you cannot…
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Earthworm- Jiewei Li
Earthworms are the veins of the earth. The proof is their souls carved on the ground during drought. Ground Dragons, as they are called in the Far East. While dragons mean everything in China: The root of a mountain is a throbbing dragon pulse; The place where the emperor resides is where the dragon lies.…
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Sails of the Mind – Kathryn Sadakierski
If I could be anywhere, I would be sundrenched, On the beaches of the Mediterranean, Bordered by orange and lemon trees, Sprawling green leaves In vases of white and blue, Looking out on a terrace At the teal coverlets of ocean, Its long dress unspooling In waves onto the sand That cradles my toes, Without…
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Who Are You – Brandon Bennett
She was seven years old and with her was her ever-following imaginary friend A wisp It’s real she says Nobody believes her but I do Because I have seen the other side Nobody gives her any attention Because of this fantasy they say But I know what’s real I know she sees something Nobody understands…
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Why is she searching? – Kaira Low
Her father took her to the lake To fish for old, rusty coins that had sunk to the Bottom. She asked him if she could go for a swim, And he agreed, So she dived Down into the depths of the lake until she passed By her late brother—his body Swaddled by the green, filmy…
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If you close my eyes – Evgenia Jen Baranova
*** If you close my eyes, I’ll see eagles and eaglesses. I’ll see their highland nests, their heads, and the waltz of talons. They feed their fledglings; they fall down like sabers. I open my eyes – and all of them vanish. If you close my eyes, I’ll see a small house. I’ll see the…
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Don’t Kiss When You Are in Quarantine – Sergey Gerasimov
Eight billion viruses move from one set of lips to another during a kiss. Twenty billion, if you use your tongue. His eight billions have been waiting for so long. They’ve already packed their luggage. They jump up and down, impatient. But his twenty billions have already lost all hope. No, they are not some…
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Ode to a Leather Duffel of Long Service – Ralph J. Long Jr.
I marvel at the sand spilling from your stitching years after I retired you to this back hall closet. No more taxis or jets or nights where my straining muscles kept your buffalo hide safe from icy salted streets. I ignored your heirloom worthiness, dragging you across uncounted borders. Remember Chiang Mai, Rome, Cape Town…
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Revisiting Texas – Emily Zell
Swimming through the muggy air Shoes scraping concrete Cold brew taste on my tongue Stacked, rollercoaster highways “I wonder if it will feel like driving home” Words soaked in fear from my mother’s tongue What is home but memory? Is home what fills you with nostalgia? Or is nostalgia grief of a simpler past? My…
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The Beauty – Prathim Maya Dora-Laskey
I am two years ten months old, beloved first-born: am told my face is open as windows, my smiles gems of happiness, when baby sister is born. I remember being taken to visit Amma and the wrinkly new baby too in the hospital, in the morning, right before I have to go to Mrs. Pinto’s…
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Zigzag – Joe Bisicchia
Come with me to where There is Here, the Eden we all once knew. And no matter our errant ways sometime so unclear for every bat, there is indeed me and you. Let it be…
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Finding Home – Diane Cypkin
I knew my cousin in Israel very much wanted his children to know our family story. About two years ago he sent me an e-mail sharing this concern with me. He also asked me what he could do about it. Did I have any suggestions? At that point, I gave him what I thought was…
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You Should’ve Known – Samantha Pearl
Samantha Pearl has made her way overseas performing in over 9 countries in Europe and the U.K as a session guitarist and also performing her own music. She is originally from California and her career in the states lead her to New Orleans where she is currently based. After performing 20 to over 30 shows…
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Beat of the Tye – Tony Tennyson
Tony Tennyson is an LA-based musician and composer whose musical roots originated in his home state of South Florida. At the age of three, Tony displayed an ear for music that transcended fascination to an all-consuming passion. Before he could speak fluently, he was formulating rhythmic beats and sounds on his toy drums. He developed…
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Sing a Poor Lady a Story – TL Clemens
Looking back on my time in Singapore, nothing really stands out. I remember it being expensive. The exchange rate was negligible and worse yet if you were traveling with money from the region. Which makes it a bit of a game, trying to save money, to find the cheapest hawker centers, to discover free events.…
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On His Way to Heaven – William Lee
On his way to Heaven, Jimmy waved goodbye to his mom and dad and big brother Bill. They smiled and waved back. His dad gave his favorite bike a jump-start and whispered, “Now, on your way, son.” On his way to Heaven, Jimmy jumped over his dog Lucy and cat Pepper. He booted a red…
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Paris Syndrome – Rachel Hess Wachman
As Lyla exited Charles de Gaulle Airport, her first thought was not that she was finally in Paris. Rather, she couldn’t stop thinking about Evie’s latest Instagram post and her beaming smile as she posed next to the ivory dome of Sacre Coeur. It had been two years since they’d last seen each other, but…
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Journey to the End After End – Haley Oh
“Hello there,” a voice said, waking the man. He was lying on a field of dry, colorless grass. As his eyes opened he shot up to a sitting position, gasping for breath as he looked around. “Calm down, you’re dead.” “What?!” the man said. “No…” He looked to where the voice came from. Crouched by…
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The Occasions – Jiewei Li
Of all the dreams of me being chased, there are two that stand out among the dozens of the rest. The first one is about a rescue and run. I rescued a girl from a powerful gang who was about to rape her. And since then, I had to run from their retaliation. The whole…