Culture

. Race and Color, 1992 I see white and you see black and other shades of skin in fact. Though we have different colored skin, we're very much alike within. Our blood is red and I must say: "We love and hurt...

. The Pillar of Fire from Exodus 13: 19-29 A giant, flaming pillar bars our way; The sea yawns open for the Hebrew tribes Permitting them to flee; the horses neigh With fear---sights bound to mystify our...

. The Wound in Christ's Side Culprits inflicted countless injuries On Jesus’ body during fifteen hours; The spear-thrust (last of loathsome savageries) Ripped out from His dead Heart, for sins of ours, Water...

. Elagabalus Consults His Soothsayer You must, Soothsayer, probe into Rome’s mind And speak of any hidden threats you find. Your Emperor commands you: show your skill Lest I subject you to my godlike...

. Oh…I See! While sitting in the park one day, my beagle lying near, a little girl came strolling up---I’d say ‘bout four years old--- And asked me ‘bout a big ol’ tank. She queried, “What is...

. The End Unraveled string may be rewound, __A hidden thing be sighted; A missing object may be found, __A fallen object righted; A candle snuffed can be relit, __And if a glass has spilled, That doesn’t...

. The Mystery of Poetry The mystery of poetry __is found between the lines. The poet sends the signals while __the sentence shows the signs. Alliterative artifices __alert the adept minds. The power of each...

. A Screw ‘Em Sermon for Government-Anointed Experts “Political language... is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable, and to give solidarity to pure wind.” ---George Orwell Dish up...

. Marching with the Mourners In Memory of Richard and Rob inspired by the Halt Hospital Homicide Rally I attended in San Antonio on March 25, 2023, for those who lost their lives to evil...

. La Muerte In those days, no king ruled in Ithaca. A pack moved in with communist ideals: An orgy funded by another’s store. Wine flowed like beer, with all the women free. All except one. Plus one too old...

. Signs of the Times . I. Hymn 6-6-6 a rondeau Hymn 6-6-6 on high display— The devil’s number where we pray Before the Lord—is that a thing? Is Jesus Christ no longer King? Must Satan now be met...

f Jägermeister "Like arrows in the hands of a warrior __are children born in one’s youth. Blessed is the man __whose quiver is full of them." ---Psalm 127 My quiver’s full, as David said, With children...

. . Ballerina The balanced ballerina on her toe was poised with perfect posture—back and chest. The crowd, in silent awe, enjoyed the show, as she maintained a flawless arabesque. The dancer twirled to...

. Song of the Wailing Women Her spirit has gone forth. Return her to the earth, Released from work and words; In death she is the Lord’s. Did Adam bury Eve? Leave Abraham to grieve The wife no longer...

. The Glass Delusion of King Charles VI of France ‘His malady grew worse every day until his mind was completely gone. Sometimes he thought he was made of glass and would not let himself be touched. He had...

. Pastoral Calls—Part 3 of 3 . Midnight Encounter He was tall, well-built, and handsome and as far as I could tell, If it wasn’t for the crystal meth—intelligent as well. He was in and out of jail and...

. The following is an excerpt of Don Quixote by Miguel Cervantes, encompassing most of Chapters 1 through 8, including Don Quixote getting his start, acquiring his squire Sancho Panza, and going on the...

. Dialogue on a First Grade Science Textbook Many spiritual traditions throughout history have perceived all things, animate and inanimate, as living. "Usually religions teach people to believe spiritually so...

. To the Reader of Verse Ah, lover, critic, arbiter of verse, divulge your passions, fill a lusting soul with praises. Let the balladeer coerce the skeptic. Let the troubadour cajole Antaéus: wrestle not with...

. In celebration of World Poetry Day, write a limerick on the theme of World Poetry Day, poetry in general, or poets. Post it in the comments section below. Learn how to write a limerick here. An example is...

. How to Write Contemporary Poetry a pantoum in free verse composition keep letters lower case. dump classical tradition then cite the marketplace. keep letters lower case make use of ampersands then cite the...

. Ex-Freedom of Speech In fact, most liberals don't support free speech today, And often see a need for censorship instead. They claim “misinformation” causes broad decay, So free speech ends if they...

. Ponzi Your promises mean nothing if they lack fidelity.  It grieves a man to hear such welcome words, then have them taken back without the least regret before a year has passed.  I thought our future was...

. The War on Children “I quoted some Scripture, I said that there are only two genders. And apparently, because there are transgender students in the class, this was considered bullying.” ---Josh...

. The Leprechaun Come mid-March, the leprechaun Glides up and o’er the rainbow, Playful as a unicorn That’s prancing in a meadow. With greedy eyes glimmering, And shim’ry as a peacock, He slides to...

. "The Lark in the Morning" is a traditional Irish song performed on classical guitar by poet and professional musician Jeff Eardley: . . Jeff Eardley lives in the heart of England near to the Peak...

. Freedom Convoy Song To bravely speak is to turn on the lights, __To silence darkens all of our debate; Yea, We the People know free speech unites __What foreign censorship did separate. The former, it is our...

. St. Jerome’s Cicero Obsession based on St. Jerome’s letter to his disciple St. Eustochium in Rome, A.D. 384 When I was young and foolish long ago, I traveled to Jerusalem alone To fast and pray away from...

. Θαλῆς 2.0 In days of yore, Thales, the famous sage, Went out on a stargazing walk and fell Straight down an overlooked and vexing well. A passing woman mocked him: “At your age You ought to know...

. Britomart and Marinell In Edmund Spenser's epic poem, The Faerie Queene, Britomart is a female knight who represents the virtue of chastity.  Marinell is a knight whose mother has prophesied that he...

. The Scottish Gourmand A culture-rich country which lay to the east where we were invited to conference and feast from Cuba to China, and some of the rest they bade them here gather and money invest for...

Pastoral Calls—Part 2 of 3 . Face-to-Face A weeping woman called me on the phone And said, “My daughter’s in the county jail. They will not let me see her on my own She’s charged with murder with no...

. The Very Best Business by Giuseppe Gioachino Belli (1791-1863) translated from Romanesco by Joseph S. Salemi First I was a gardener (a disaster), Then a bookseller. I made even less. So did I change my...

. El Melon There is a maze or map on melon skin Even the blind could read and seek to solve. A little girl watches the housewives, deft, Touching the head shapes swiftly, one by one, Until they somehow know...

. Why Strike? With prices high and living standards low, Our times are like what our grandparents knew. They fought world war; we slave for war abroad And soon will labor through retirement too. We export...

. Farinelli A thousand thanks, Martini, for your visit. Bologna is a town of balladeers. You’ll love it! Now I wonder, how long is it Since we both quit Madrid? Ah! Twenty years Since I last sang before the...

. Lean on Him after Ecclesiasties We labor long beneath the sun. Forgotten soon by everyone. We come from dust and end the same, Depart this life just like we came. It’s all just chasing wind...

. Ruben “We have words that speak of the ongoing presence of such privations: orphan, widow, widower. And perhaps the fact that we have no word for the parent who has lost a child is itself a testimony...

. Civics 101 Jejune excuses used too many times Do not undo the doer from the deed: A miscreant accused of many crimes Is not the type of model children need. A partisan devoted to a cause Who votes his...

. Eulogy for a Them We gather here to celebrate a him Or her (an it? a they?) and in the end A prophet of the present who could bend Reality to suit their loosest whim. For whatsoever they had been or...