Primitive Reflexes by Thomas Mampalam In the space of one hour: coma then a blown pupil, extensor posturing. Hemicraniectomy to relieve swelling from a large cerebral infarction. The […]

Southbound by Sharon Ackerman My dad’s family bible and watch finally arrived in the mail to me nearly twenty years after his death. How it happened is a circuitous story, worthy o […]

Message by Mary Christine Kane Last night I called you. Moon sharp, I said, like an important message. Look up. The sky has opened its story and shined its shy star. It’s a p […]

In a Chapel Near the Loire by Elisabeth Murawski The pulpit floats high above the chairs. She cranes her neck to see, twists a little clockwise to hear. The priest’s suspended t […]

Not Every Deed by Tom Gengler Not every deed in the annals of my family was given an account. It could not be. But the gospel writers and eyewitnesses each translated […]

The Old Man by Richard Weaver In the darkening slush of afternoon traffic, he unfolds a chair beneath a lone sycamore then urges his body into its crooked shape. Always at this […]

Sweet Dreams by Harsh Ramchandani Colors behind your eyes A slow pastel dusting Forming speckled images Of a distant ocean roar Your pillow listens in To the lawless deep […]

Spring! by Sharon Ackerman Ireland’s goddess Brigid, patroness of practicalities such as farming, infants, and dairy labors, is associated with Spring and also poetry. And w […]

Raking Leaves by Beth Copeland Beth Copeland has earned an Honorable Mention in Streetlight’s 2022 Poetry Contest Raking Leaves Dry oak leaves are riddled with BB-sized […]

Rain in Dublin by Gary Beaumier Gary Beaumier has earned an Honorable Mention in Streetlight’s 2022 Poetry Contest Rain in Dublin I want to know what happened to the 90 year old […]

Progress Report 50 Years after Reading Black Elk by William Prindle William Prindle has earned an Honorable Mention in Streetlight’s 2022 Poetry Contest Progress Report 50 Years after Reading Black Elk Last night […]

When the Waters Rise or Storm Descends and Chicken, 2 poems by Michael Quattrone When the Waters Rise or Storm Descends Each family will have gathered what is durable and light. How far will the little ones walk before they […]

When I was very young, I memorized the poem “Fern Hill” by Dylan Thomas, unaware that I had been drawn into poetry of place. Short-sighted, I read it as a poem about the loss of innocence which mirrored some […]

Sure to Glisten by Ashley Taylor The vermillion sun salts our mouths, warmth brimming with the sapor of brine. I write on my arm the torrid air a salve for wounds pleasure […]

Mollypops, we called them, stomping
with our small shoes,
heaving them like baseballs,
bursting them green
against the barn wall.
We were children, seeking
to destroy, as children do,
leaving the […]

Is it the nature of desire or
the desire of nature to reveal
how little we have evolved.

Is it the few words of a person or
a person of few words who
commands our attention.

Is it the history of violence […]

……………………………………………………………Inspired by, “What’s Broken,”
………………………………………………………………………………….Dorianne Laux […]

What an impressive turnout this year! We received such a broad spectrum of poetry this go-round, such an interesting blend of sestinas, free verse, couplets and some that made skilled use of rhyme. As always, I am […]

 
Wall paintings
are for looking at.
Mirrors are not. Mirrors
are puzzles for finding
your way in or out.
Once, I found on my way
a geode thinking itself
an unfertilized egg
thinking itself
to […]

Ocean wind pushes the four of us
with such force that we lean onto each other
perched side-by-side on a pile of rocks –
daughter, mother, daughter and the father
standing behind. The mother’s face cov […]