I’m switching off the “fix it” button in my head – you will do what you will do. I’m tired of being the responsible one, the sensible one, the reliable one. I refuse to be your safety net anymore so fly though the air without me, if you dare. A few broken bones will do ya good. Continue reading To the 2 I’s
Think of me as grass stain, skinned knee, sliver of new moon, unseen tremors or the chill rasp of sparked surprise, rose petals and blood in the palm of your hand, teardrops coated in phosphorus. Say hosanna. Let it mean Save Me. ~~~ Credits: Milo Gallagher, Robert Okaji, Christina Clark, Christine Beck, Clare Martin, Erren Kelly. So this is my first attempt at the Cento, defined as “a poetic form made up of lines from poems by other poets” on Poets.org. Essentially, I perused the “poetry I like” tag on my Pocket account and pulled lines that spoke to me. … Continue reading Cento: When I Go
Looking up on a breezy almost-Autumn day, the grey half-moon hovers in an expanse of azure, a thumbprint from the hand of a pale blue dot. Continue reading Morning Meditation: Day Moon
My poem, “Another Poem About the Moon”, was just published in the new issue of Literary Orphans. Huge thanks to Mike Joyce, Scott Walden, and Peter Marra for allowing my work to grace their pages for the third time. I also want to thank Kaia Pieters, featured artist, for the beautiful photography that accompanies my piece and the others in this issue. Beautiful work, indeed. Earlier this month my poem, “Bring Down the Babies”, was published in the beautiful Mockingheart Review. This journal specializes in publishing poetry and is curated by the wonderful Louisiana poet Clare Martin. If poetry is … Continue reading Recent Publications
I read a poem a while back that said “real New Yorkers” don’t visit the 9/11 Museum. It’s only for tourists. It made me sad, soul-sad, in a way I can’t even describe. I thought about my own reaction when I visited. It was one of only two times in my life I burst into tears, shocking myself. I didn’t feel it coming, until it was there in all its’ raw power. The emotion that wells up unexpectedly is a part of our human-ness. I’ve thought of that poet’s words often, feeling a little lost for him, for his cynicism. … Continue reading Real New Yorkers (9/11/16)
He Was So Beautiful (After Alice Paalen) He was so beautiful every day his smooth brown face his hair cropped close silver and coal stolen from narrowed eyes from looks of scorn amid the cypress he walked next to water the egrets nest hidden secrets are beautiful between four lips three black words on a crumpled white page in a pocket in a drawer so many wings unable to fly Continue reading He Was So Beautiful
I’ve learned to walk through water, to breathe tiny breaths. You lick the salt from my skin but it falls from your mouth onto a barren bed. Sweat and blood dissolve then reappear like invisible ink. The pool I lie in is stagnant, droplets levitate just out of reach. Bone and sinew recoil, expand, one foot in front of the other. Continue reading Going Forward
Lament for Mandevilla The rain falls turning life yellow, stealing nourishment. The vibrant red of new beginnings hangs pale and drained. The sky is a thief one day, a savior the next. ***** Another day of rain in New Orleans. Even the tropicals have had enough. My poor Mandevillas. Continue reading Lament for Mandevilla
Dark Air (After Chika Sagawa) Sunlight skipping through the garden doesn’t always dispel cold shade. Still legs rest on a warm stone bench, half-forgetting the whip of running through meadow grass. Continue reading Dark Air
August is Women in Translation Month, a movement originated by book blogger Meytal Radzinski in 2014 which she details here. Basically, it’s an effort to encourage and spotlight translated books by women which are severely underpublished as compared to men. Meytal has posted supporting statistics for the past year on her blog here. 2015 was the first year I participated in WIT month. I chose and read three books and enjoyed them all. Honestly, what initially drew me to this effort is that I enjoy reading about other cultures and hadn’t read many books by non-American authors. I didn’t even … Continue reading My Book List for Women in Translation Month
