Japanese Brush-Strokesby Jun Fujita TWO LEAVESUnder the scowling skyThe frozen sand-plain stretches.Curled and crisp, two leavesScud away. OBLIVIONThere is no time here.From giant trunks hoary mossHangs through the air of shadowy green.And cool drew drops. MISTAbove the settling mist,Above the phantom isles upon the settling mist,In the opalized moonlight,The whinny of a horse careers by.Continue reading “Japanese Brush-Strokes by Jun Fujita”
Monthly Archives: September 2020
Japanese Poems by Cynthia Zarin
Japanese Poemsby Cynthia Zarin Between the bent boughsof the splayed sumac the silverowl rests his head. The perimeterleft by your absence is longto walk in one day. The angel in hercredenza of extreme beautydogs swim the river I look for my heartby the lamp where the light isskitter in the wet black leaves PHOTO: UralContinue reading “Japanese Poems by Cynthia Zarin”
The Senses of Progress by David Dephy
The Senses of Progress by David Dephy I am walking on the Brooklyn Bridge now. I am listening to the trembling of the rivers. They say: “Remember us, the circumstances of the present and the past shape, the possibilities of progress.” I am walking on the Manhattan Bridge now. I am listening to the raysContinue reading “The Senses of Progress by David Dephy”
Garden of Eden by Tracy K. Smith
Garden of Edenby Tracy K. Smith What a profound longingI feel, just this very instant,For the Garden of EdenOn Montague StreetWhere I seldom shopped,Usually only after therapyElbow sore at the crookFrom a handbasket filledTo capacity. The glossy pastries!Pomegranate, persimmon, quince!Once, a bag of black belugaLentils spilt a trail behind meWhile I labored to findA teaContinue reading “Garden of Eden by Tracy K. Smith”
Letter Written on a Ferry While Crossing Long Island Sound by Anne Sexton
Letter Written on a Ferry While Crossing Long Island Soundby Anne Sexton I am surprised to seethat the ocean is still going on.Now I am going backand I have ripped my handfrom your hand as I said I wouldand I have made it this faras I said I wouldand I am on the top deckContinue reading “Letter Written on a Ferry While Crossing Long Island Sound by Anne Sexton”
darkest hour before dawn by Terrence Sykes
darkest hour before dawn by Terrence Sykes in a walachian fog as i wandered grey narrow streets bucharest lay before me dim lamp posts yielded forth precious little to light my path my unknown way mercifully the haze softened seemingly endless blocks of drab soviet-era block housing staler than week-old rye searching & seeking cobblestonedContinue reading “darkest hour before dawn by Terrence Sykes”
Rafaella Del Bourgo, Gazelle in the Berlin Zoo, 1966
Gazelle in the Berlin Zoo, 1966by Rafaella Del Bourgo I return to the gazelle, press up against the barsand she comes to me.My hand slips through, strokes the curving horn,bony socket of the eye.As long as I murmur into her ear,she will stay as close as the fence allows. Upon arrival in Berlin, address fromContinue reading “Rafaella Del Bourgo, Gazelle in the Berlin Zoo, 1966”
Once in Vienna by Ronald Baatz
Once in Vienna by Ronald Baatz I don’t want to know this stranger’s story. I want this stranger to remain an enigma to me. I don’t want to know him any more than I want to know the date and place of my death. Doubtless this stranger has many stories to share. I can tell byContinue reading “Once in Vienna by Ronald Baatz”
By Bus to Fresno by Philip Levine
By Bus to Fresno by Philip Levine I wakened at a filling station outside of Wasco to see the light breaking over the Sierras. The boy next to me asked were we there yet. He said it first in Spanish so perfect I smiled and said no. When he asked again in perfect English IContinue reading “By Bus to Fresno by Philip Levine”
Highway 58 Spring by Mark A. Fisher
Highway 58 Springby Mark A. Fisher driving east of Bakersfieldthe scent of oranges-yet-to-comefills the almost clean airthe moon not yet risen from behindthose worn down mountainsnot yet green– not yet smeared with wildflowersstill weeks awaythough the dream of themdrifts through the hillslike a tule fog Previously published in Mojave River Review Fall/Winter 2018 PHOTO: RollingContinue reading “Highway 58 Spring by Mark A. Fisher”
POETRY and PLACES 