Poetry

. The Prayer Blanket ---as related to me by my friend Tim Cassar, who recently survived a brain cancer operation by Brian Yapko The paramedics came. They took my friend To where there was no earthly pain or...

. WHO Anyone in the world, of any age or background, may participate (SCP Membership not required). Among members of the Society of Classical Poets, everyone including Advisory Board members may participate,...

. Together The windows of our dawning day_Let light in through the dew,But outdoors ambling in cool air,_I knew that I’d find you. Close comfort, venturing apart,_We played our separate games,Dreaming the...

. I Would Say Yes ---a villanelle for Larry on our 36th Anniversary We were young and rather stupid then, But still I see that we were meant to be. I would say yes a thousand times again. From the first...

. The Comings and Goings of Heaven and Earth Clouds’ movement in the sky, the sight of birds, phenomena that draw an upward glance, may sometimes leave us at a loss for words, uncertain if we’ll get...

. Clueless ---a villanelle How can I tell what is and isn’t true In daffy days that stupefy the wise? I’m sifting through the chaos for a clue. As brain cells dwindle to a fruitless few All down to AI’s...

. . . Steve Cooper is a retired professional career counselor. He lives near Salem, Oregon. He has one traditionally published picture book on Amazon, Don’t Eat Your Seed Corn, and several of his pieces...

. Periwinkle Don't know that I was on the spectrum, no, But I was weird. I read too much and played Pretend too much. My mind too often strayed To places so interior they’d glow With something strange and...

. A Winter's Tale There’re many strange and spooky tales, That come from England’s hills and dales. When Winter tightens up its grip, As feet and fingers start to slip. For on a cold December day, I...

. Get Along, Little DOGE-ie Should come a day my fortunes be increased, It’s guaranteed such bounty will be fleeced. For government, like vacuum cleaners, sucks, And takes one-sixth of all my hard-earned...

. Salmon Skin _Laid temptingly Upon a china dish, _Poached perfectly, A long, pink flank of fish. _Its scents amaze. Fork poised to dig right in, _I stop and gaze, Fixated on its skin: _Smooth gradient From...

. What Is a Man? “Ask now, and see, whether a man is ever in labor with child?” ---Jeremiah 30: 6 The prophet’s statement clearly is sarcastic; That men cannot birth children is well-known. But now...

. The Weight of a Father . I. The Smell of Sawdust On bawling-brother, busy-mother days, The saint who slew the dragons in her dream Whisked her through the fuss-and-fluster maze To realms where fathers shine...

. Shakespeare The Master strolled upon the beach, __And stooped to find Among the shells washed up in heaps, __Mere husks of Mind— Selecting them to suit his sense __Of what would score To entertain an...

. Florida Beach Vacation 2025 They buried me in pale white sand. _They took away my phone. The mouse was wrested from my hand _And now I’m all alone. Swift salty tears of Oceanus _Comingle with my...

. Term Limits Without term limits, nothing prevents the eruption of bribery, graft, and unbridled corruption. Too few of our founders felt our preservation depended on forced periodic rotation. Our lives are...

. When the Child Appears by Victor Hugo (1802-1885)translated from French by Bruce Phenix When the child appears, the family’s loud praiseBursts out in claps and shouting. His sweet, bright gaze__Makes...

. Boomerang He was a very handsome guy, Cute girls would stick to him like glue, And his interest in them was high, But only for a night or two. Eventually he settled down, A pretty young wife came one...

. Ode to Chronic Pain I curse your name and spit as you supply these diverse proofs that I am not divine— and yet I should embrace you for the same, so keep me still and resting, Faithful Pain. . . The...

. Reading in Bed Crowded years from now, and late one wintry night, a certain turn of phrase or trick of poetry will summon me. Pillowed in the warm lamplight perhaps you’ll look up from your book, and,...

. Stealthy Slayer Stealthy slayer, murderous sneak, A crafty trick, or lifeless freak--- I slip behind your walls unseen Despite the guards whose eyes are keen To spot, to seize the crafty foe, Whose guise...

. Durus Frater, Alma Mater Spring forward to where former arch-rivals Fall back on tall stories of the travels They enjoyed after two years of college, Before graduation sealed the knowledge Of how little...

. https://youtu.be/vAjMoMKye0c . . Andrew Benson Brown‘s epic-in-progress, Legends of Liberty, chronicles the major events of the American Revolution. He writes history articles for American Essence...

. Alotta Lip About my Hip Alotta lip about my hip On paper, phone, computer-drive. The new one at my femur’s tip Has generated verbal jive Beyond my wits. I can’t contrive The need for queries they should...

. Samhain Spree Come, gather underneath the horns _That rise out of the east! Come, join the host in revelry _To frolic, sing, and feast! The winter is upon us now, _And summer gone away, And we have gathered...

. An Update for Dylan Thomas’s Aunt "Fie on you, aunt! I’ll show you how To elevate your middle brow, And how to scale and see the sights From Modernist Parnassian heights." —Dylan Thomas, “A Letter to...

. Time and Place He gave me his coat once in Dublin At dusk in a damp, chilly draft. We spoke of those old Irish writers--- Just where had they mastered their craft? Did Wilde wield his pen in Dun...

. Soldier of the Rising Sun Date/Location: February 19, 1974---Uninhabited jungle, Lubang Island in the northern Philippines. The matter: Believing that Japan is still fighting World War II almost 30 years...

. Double Rondel for Pentecost Fire! Fire! Fire! Fire! O fire that warms my soul, You burn within to turn my love heart-whole, And burst beyond as fervor unsuppressed. Celestial flame, my most delightful...

. On Twenty Years of YouTube Dull dinner party video clips unshared shaped YouTube’s genesis, or so it’s claimed. Yet others say, when Janet Jackson bared a nipple, that a co-creator aimed to see if it...

. Auntie Barb ---a pantoum She cuts the cheats and charmers to the quick—Her tongue will skin a scoundrel in a wink.She’ll scupper every swindler’s slickest trickBefore the scoffers have a chance to...

. The Legend of Zhong Kui Zhong Kui is pronounced like “Jong Quay” One dark and dour winter day His mother sent her son Zhong Kui Along with his good friend, Du Ping To take exams held by the King. Zhong...

. Roads of Potter County Finally Spring has come north here---Always my favorite time of year.Potter will tease you in some way---Tomorrow might be a snowy day. Instead there came the green of grass,The white...

. In Urbe Hortus ---June afternoon in the South Garden of the Art Institute of Chicago Hard stone and brick, cold glass and steel Shrink behind the canopy Of intertwining leafy boughs Sprawling from each...

. My Fairytale You could be my Cinderella _I danced with at the ball. You’re the one I’m looking for _Since you first fled the hall. You could be in sleep awaiting _Like the poisoned Snow White. You may...

. In Her Fair Foundry, Nature Forges Art by Claude Gaspar Bachet de Meziriac (1581-1638) translated from French by Josh Mitteldorf In her fair foundry, Nature forges art, Divinity of beauty knows no peer. The...

. Lost Ark ---upon reading of the hunt for the Ark of the Covenant It used to be, a life ago, that fear caused me to lift my hands to hide my sight when Raiders’ climax was on screen—to peer at wonders...

. Since You’ve Been at My Side ---a villanelle Embraced by love, since you’ve been at my sideI’ve found the strength to hope for better days,As if uplifted by a rising tide. When feeling lost, with you...

. To a Virginia Bluebell You nod to me across the trail That runs before my garden seat. With clustered bells of blue you greet My visit with a subtle peal. You wave your frolic fans of green So gaily, as if...

. Still Life of a Bouquet Seems wrong to me that flowers die, A live display of borrowed time, To see them bloom from beaming buds To threadbare bones cut off from blood. Those sharp-set stems, sturdy,...