a sweet scent of the willow near slender-leaved Cattails surround the silent pond of the golden dawn– Mourning Doves nostalgically “coo” in the whispering breeze of nature's wishing well.

I was walking on a forest path one cool autumn evening when I heard a fluttering sound worth investigating. I peeked into a small clearing amazed by what I could see thousands of Monarch butterflies clinging to the trees. Wings of orange and black fluttering in the air amongst the pine tree branches so captivating and rare. I could not believe my eyes such a surprising sight it was thousands of Monarch butterflies then sc...

I could have painted these pages with our picturesque potential Quivering with each written word as if it were a brushstroke ever so essential Carefully crafting every artistically assembled prose without a single exhale Sweat would have trickled down my brow as I ensured every meticulous detail Painstakingly placing words on parchment as if it were a canvas Sentimentally sketching each and every raw element of our souls,...

Play for me your unwritten melody Be authentic as you tickle the ivory Reveal yourself with each note unabashedly Entrance me with your musical honesty Play for me haphazardly Free yourself from the confines of conventionality Sing your reality off-key Hypnotize me with raw poetry Play for me your harmonious art Worry not if you’re witty or smart Worry not if you do not sound like Mozart Simply strum the strings of your h...

I cried for the world today Turned on the TV news Didn't know what to say I cried for the world today Saw them kick and punch him They thought it was okay I cried for the world today More people were shot dead Only gets worse to my dismay I cried for the world today Fighting, thefts drugs and war Will it ever just go away I cried for the world today Tsunamis, hurricanes, fires From climate change everyday I cried for the...

Breathe in peace, that’s what they say, to reduce anxiety, better yet, take a holiday. Imagine a white sandy beach, oh, I've done that before. Closing my eyes, all I see is a door. Daring myself to open it, greeted by Munch’s Scream. Why is stress like a very bad dream? I slam it shut. I prefer it that way. Letting tension manifest in my body, erupting out in illness someday.

Fingernails diving deep, into the flannel green. Picking up the puzzle piece, the one we’ve never seen. Feeling the rough edges, cardboard corrugated. The colors and shapes match, much anticipated. Adjoining touch, press. Angles instantly click. The image becomes clear, our own bailiwick. Blind-sighted so many times, dreams perhaps our foes. Being in the moment now, fears and worries, dispose. A bird's eye view of decades...

Regarding Truth and Beauty people often get too snooty since achieving them in art is overblown! For we who like to write about stuff that’s mundane and light our poems lack both and so they mostly stay unknown! But there is nothing wrong about side-stepping Falun Gong and simply knocking out a cutesy little ditty. Yes Communists are bad and all oppressors make us mad... but some of us just celebrate the witty! Grecian Ur...

An ongoing fixation upon life, death, and creation and a bunch of other existential folly, includes some inner raging about the effects of aging and prevents my mood from getting very jolly. Yes carolers are singing and the Christmas bells are ringing and some birdies even chirping in the trees. A branch is gently swaying from two squirrels that are playing... but I am also swaying from bad knees! Once taller than six fee...

My midwife first came to me and I asked for her, not to touch me. For I had recently been examined on admission and I was progressing as would be expected, for someone whose rhythms had been disrupted by the discomfort of driving to the hospital, and the cold, sterile environment of the assessment unit. Ten years today, and I still vividly remember how quickly I escaped the wheelchair and wandered to the confines of the b...

Sometimes before the red tide My body is no longer mine When I stare down At those two fat burlap sacks 

Curves like melted candle wax Dried on the floor, a shapeless mass

 I wonder if I’m just paying rent
 Not recognizing my naked form

 Now a tarp stretched tight Filled with air

 Bloated and burning
 Almost bursting Breasts that don’t feel like breasts
 A belly that bubbles grotesque A swathe of distended skin
 Swoll...

The sun has risen over both our waysSo many times apart, now we are one.No longer may we squander nights and days,You're my true love when all is said and done. Our twilight is not near, not coming soon,We'll laugh and cry, not let it come too fast,Our passions shared together 'neath the moon, The future's where we'll live, not in the past. The journey will continue hand in hand,Our pathways will be joined as we go on.It...

Covid has been with us now for over a year But facemasks unfortunately we still have to wear Boris says restrictions will soon come to an end And time with our friends we'll be able to spend But sensible and safe we need folks still need to be Or the end of restrictions we never will see Keeping our distance for a bit longer yet Making sure an end to this virus we surely will get  

You said my name, it felt so intimateas if you spread some jam upon my lipsand then you licked it off. The loving wayyou said my name had felt as if you'd kissedmy center of deep sensuality.As if the simple act of naming mehad been seductive, lustful, and unleashed. And all the time it came so naturally,no pretense, clean and true, just giving mecompletely of your heart and of your soul. So unexpected how it made me feel,...

It may be only make-believe but realenough for us until the season's sighscan drift and melt our dreams' reality.A time for us to touch. Caressing blisswith every cat-like purr of vibrant trust.We move along the patterns of the gridthat maps our place, our home within this worldthat lives expands and grows with every smile. It's only make-believe but still, it makesus free. Enough to see perfection growninto emotions trie...