By: Josh Brown ‘Coconut’ is a term used to denigrate someone as brown on the outside and white on the inside. “The Cocont Girl” is the second collection of poems from British born Punjabi poet Sunita Thind. BAME people born…
By: Chris Durand Night Sinking into now, Worries fall away, Soon to rest my head At the end of day. Moments of release Ebb away in peace. My heart softly beats. Consciousness retreats. Covers to my chin, Sleep is almost in. The world slips out of sight, Enveloped by…
By: Joan E. Cashin Love on the Road, or What I Did Not Want to Overhear A marriage proposal at the Hilton Hotelas I ate a salad at the next table in the restaurant: she said no.A screaming match at…
By: Matthew Borczon My anger Is for you not the horse you rode in on it’s for the lightning not the tree it dropped across the road and it’s not for the soldiers who killed and died in the war who still kill and die in my dreams no my anger is for the men who start wars in the first place and at me for believing that any good would come from it it’s for the kid I was who enlisted without a clue about the man the war would make out of me ### Graveyard shift Another sleepless night and I am on the internet looking at pictures of whales who appear to sleep standing up near the surface so they can get air they sleep only an hour or two a night as long as a ship doesn’t hit them and I wonder what their dreams are about as I remember that the origin of the term graveyard shift is from the times when the dead would sometimes wake back up inside the coffin so they would tie a string from their wrist to a bell and if it rang the worker on the graveyard shift would have to dig them back up from the ground and I never wonder about his dreams because I have spent ten years on the graveyard shift shovel in hand digging soldiers and Marines women and children out of the ground as Afghanistan rang in my ears. ### I was thinking this morning for Dana About the bones of the sun and the blank stare of our kitchen clock I am listening to Bob Dylan wondering if you can ever really truly be one too many mornings and a thousand miles behind as I am wishing I could swim across the surface of your coffee cup into the light in your eyes as I reach for your hand across the table it’s weight is heavy with everything you bring to our…
By: Mary Bone The Tangled Web The tangled web was woven with care,intricate secrets were stored inside.The spider knew how to entice wary visitorsinside for a cup of tea.His house was so cozy within.Entertainment was the key,For the likes of…
By: Ute Carson My wife and I occupied this house for 55 years.My parents restored it following the Great Depression.We have shared the cooking, the cleaning,kept the yard trimmed and the roses flourishing.When the sun streams through our tall bay…
By: Jordan Zuniga The mustering of the forces, the gathering of strength,The call to arms upon the realm of France, increase the territories length!The kneeling for the honor, the placing of the crown,The swiping of the treasure and the mocking…
By: Emily Pain PainBurningAll overI am ironBeing smeltedBecoming strong and beautifulUnlike the rock I came fromAll because of the pain ### Lifeless Dead rosesWilted violetsDeceased daisiesLifeless flowersIs what makes up my gardenRotting nowMaggot foodGiving birth to new lifeThis is my…
By: Alex Andy Phuong Inspect introspectionLook into oneselfSee what lurks beneathBequeath an enduring legacyUpon an ever-changing worldFor even as time passes byPeople can still defy the skyAnd never need an alibiFor being whom they truly areFor everyone really is a…
By: John Grey I’LL HEAD HOME SOON BUT NOT YET Near dusk,shadows roll across the lake,but I refuse to give my bodyback to bone and muscle,not now when I float amid sun-sparkles,ripple the waters with my fingers,almost trap tiny slithering…