. “Thou, in our wonder and astonishment, Hast built thyself a livelong monument.” —John Milton, “On Shakespeare” First Prize: $200....

. Ode to the Zeer Across the Sahel states, the humble zeer, A pear-shaped or full-bellied earthen pot Strains muddy water, turns it cool and...

. Oversimplification What so many people tend to say or write, Reduces complex issues of today, To merely simple packages of black or...

. Hard To Tell With attributes that only those who know him understand, A countenance deceptive, and a being hard to gauge, Within what seems...

. Leave Above the land, suspended, green and grand and splendid, we furnish food for trees, whisper with the breeze till cold winds bluster in and...

. August Foraging “It’s hot, it’s dry. No fun outdoors; No fungi, flowers, foliage, fruit For us to eat where Nature stores Wild food. The...

. New Directions, or Deviations? by Joseph S. Salemi Many years ago I read an account of a discussion between Ezra Pound and an interviewer...

. DoorWay Canto 7: Flight to The Eyrie In Canto 7, the narrating Pilgrim Poet deviates from the Zodiac, leaving Sagittarius, to visit the...

. The Worst of Our Convictions When, finally, the last church shuts its doors; when we run out of new identities to choose from; when the politicians...

. Phoebus I saw the sun catch in your hair, Your silhouette against the glare. I heard your laughter rise and fall And shatter in the frozen...

. An Invitation While treading my locality's __New-slathered pavement grass, There came a flying, loud "hello" __From sprightly Mr. Das. "Black...

. The Mannequins Are Melting The mannequins are melting as we speak Now that the summer heat wave's at its peak. __While passing by the clothing...

. Hope Hope feels so strange these days, at times a bit Like something old that now no longer fits; It’s stretched beyond repair and somewhat...

. The Web of Sustenance __Voraciously the lion feeds, But leaves the scraps for jackals and hyenas— __To each according to its needs, In Nature’s...

. Lucifer’s Lament They’ve gone too far. They’ve set the bar So high that I’m no longer star Of My own show. Their hellish plot Has hurled Me...

. Holding Dad's Hands . Friday May 3, 2019 I’m driving fast (at least it’s fast to me,) The nurse’s call gives reason for my haste. She says...

. It Won’t Happen Here There were anti-Semites in our Congress, And still they said:  “It will not happen here.” Anti-Jewish protests broke...

. Paperbark Maples The leaves grow bright with dew; the trunks grow dark. A contrapuntal autumn morning stirs. The smoothest trees are wrapped with...

. Dublin Swans “Wholly serene and sure, with regal composure, allows himself to glide.” ---Rainer Maria Rilke, “The Swan” I stop to watch...

. Prodigious Dreams Let not these Autumn notes lead you amiss. Autumn, indeed, is come (the signs are all around). This aging empire wanes, its...