words can come to have no meaning if you look at them a certain way wordscancometohavenomeaningifyoulookatthemacertainway w ordsc anc ometoh aven omea ningi fyoul ooka tthemac er tainw ay word scan co meto ha venom ean in gif youlo okat hema certa inway wo rd sc an co me to ha ve no me an… Read More words can come to have no meaning ~ poetry by Paula Donovan
inconsiderate spectre clothes w/ bullet-holes in them on display in shop windows / teenagers berate their parents for being married for so long, all the cool kid’s parents got a divorce [a long time ago!] / no love letters for the lonely no wave no gentle kisses good-bye / Don’t pray for me pray for… Read More Two poems ~ poetry by William Jackson
The boldest man might have shrunk, riding around of nights, beyond the reach of the warm grasp. Loss of time, Reason to fear, Worn with travel, Defeated. Compelled to flee to the defense of their hearth, traitors, at heart, Surrender. Parting must come, Utterly, in the end. Rosa Jivani is an x-ray technician in the… Read More Hidden verse in Harry Castlemon’s Rodney the Overseer (1892) ~ poetry by Rosa Jivani
It starts … With a woman Beyond youthful giggles Accent thick Old-country rhythm A life’s experiences Wisps of gray Glasses perched It starts … With a boy Bright eyes glimmering Gloomy bodega Coins in hand Jingle, fade He dances foot to foot Asks for a Coke Quick and shy It starts … With a car… Read More It starts … ~ poetry by Mark Paxson
beautiful eyes see the ugliness of the world a [tall] woman in a blue polka dot dress stand[s] alone by a window in a library[. She’s] looking off somewhere, hands holding each other, nervous and unresponsive to the voice that’s speaking to her. decisions [are] being made but no options [are] being offered. calculated mistakes… Read More Constellations Ms (folio#073.119.82) ~ poetry by William Jackson
You gotta talk the talk ’cuz it’s a no-brainer. Don’t go down for the count after drawing a blank. The jig is up! Gotta be quick on the draw or go back to square one, Know what I’m sayin’? Ride ’em, cowboy! But when the plot thickens and it’s down to the wire, We gotta… Read More From a Random Phrase Generator ~ poetry by Hallie Dickerson
1 I paid the entrance fee To Elvis Aaron Presley’s mortal Grave, there in Memphis, Tennessee. What did I learn there? He was thee and me. 2 I tried to walk down To the sylvan river Wye. But the field was muck And mined with cow dung, And clouding the air, flies. 3 Inevitably we… Read More Five Pentagraphs ~ poetry by Kevin Brennan
The finest and the fattest is for their board, But she would rather take refuge in a convent. Moved to compassion by the anxiety, His levity and petulance, perpetually breaking out. Exhausted with his various exertions, He resolved to trust to the sagacity of his horse. And she would have compassion upon them into a… Read More Hidden verse in Ivanhoe ~ poetry by Nathaniel P. Mahar
Sonnet XX* A woman’s face with nature’s own hand painted, Hast thou, the master mistress of my passion; You look hot, girl. A woman’s gentle heart, but not acquainted With shifting change, as is false women’s fashion: Most women are bitches, but you a’ight. An eye more bright than theirs, less false in rolling, Like,… Read More A Shakespeare sonnet edited for modern Americans ~ poetry by Wim Leflore
Pru Marais is a poet and educator who lives in the eastern half of the country, though she has not told us which country.
The Disappointed Housewife 