Early Morning at Worden Truck Stop, Klamath Falls a sequence of American sentencesby Jonathan Yungkans November snow. Semi-trailer trucks dormant. No car braves the silence. Wind sands basalt from a volcanic peak to hover and stretch as clouds. Sky stained twilight blue with cloud dust. Sun dim though shining, earthbound withContinue reading “Early Morning at Worden Truck Stop, Klamath Falls by Jonathan Yungkans”
Category Archives: states
Pandemic Escapees by Leah Mueller
Pandemic Escapees by Leah Mueller Lying in our motel bed halfway between Washington and Arizona: fitful crossroads of a dirty central California town. Steinbeck country minus the romance. Days Inn of Westley, ground-floor room with a parking lot view, 68 dollars plus tax. I shove my ears tight against the pillows to stifle the endlessContinue reading “Pandemic Escapees by Leah Mueller”
Overnight at White Pocket by Cynthia Anderson
Overnight at White Pocket by Cynthia Anderson You sleep if you can, a blanket of cold stars pulled over your head— then rise before dawn to catch the first rays lighting those pale and painted rocks—swirled concretions of bygone dunes, shaped by wind and snow and rain, like the storm that blew in yesterday, castingContinue reading “Overnight at White Pocket by Cynthia Anderson”
Ocracoke Night Magic by Ann Christine Tabaka
Ocracoke Night Magic by Ann Christine Tabaka Night falls early on the island with no pollution from light to interfere. The blackest of black. The only illumination a diamond-studded firmament, with a brilliant pathway dividing it in two. The Milky Way is visible arching northeast to southwest. A magical experience standing on windswept beach. SaltContinue reading “Ocracoke Night Magic by Ann Christine Tabaka”
Slip Over the Edge by Ken Hartke
Slip Over the Edgeby Ken Hartke Quietly slip over the edge.Disappear without a trace.Follow the old trails.The canyon trails are worn smoothby bare feet or reed sandals.Centuries old handholds are still there. Trails wind down to hidden pools.Deep shade is cool below the canyon rimScorching sunlight is a stranger here.The breeze builds toward the afternoon.ChanneledContinue reading “Slip Over the Edge by Ken Hartke”
Sequoia Sunrise by Mark A. Fisher
Sequoia Sunriseby Mark A. Fisher iciclestarlighthanging downthrough the silentred giantswhile the thumbnail moonspills silver lightthat pools in the meadowsand slowly seeps outinto the forest’til the barest hintsof red in the eastern skymakes the first bird begin todrowsily sing, rousing chickareehidden high up in the treesand answered by a woodpeckerbeating beating beating out the rhythmfor theContinue reading “Sequoia Sunrise by Mark A. Fisher”
Cape Cod by Joan McNerney
Cape Cod by Joan McNerney Hearing waves from a distance and feeling sea breezes brush our faces, it seemed a century before we came to the ocean. So blue and bright to our eyes its rhythm broke chains of unremarkable days. Over cool sand we ran and you picked three perfect shells which fit insideContinue reading “Cape Cod by Joan McNerney”
Always Iowa by Janet Banks
Always Iowaby Janet Banks Not one recognizable face on the plane,in the airport John Deere memorabiliabeckon from the gift shop,the state, empty of love. Mother, spiffed up, her coiffure a pale shadeof apricot, Dad chewing on a bit of paperto calm his nerves as he paces,both long gone to graves. No welcoming. Kathy, once theContinue reading “Always Iowa by Janet Banks”
Woods by Joan McNerney
Woodsby Joan McNerney Sliding through archesof elms…sunshineyellow and warm as honey. Moss crawls over mudstonewhile squirrels skiparound tree stumps Imagine to be a birdin blue wind pushingair through your wing. After the long rainpine trees bendingwith cones. Branches etch evening skyturning razzle dazzlepurple red citron. Leaves drop like butterfliesfilling the floor of forestwith crunchy foliage.Continue reading “Woods by Joan McNerney”
I-70, Crossing Kansas by Sarah Russell
I-70, Crossing Kansas by Sarah Russell Asphalt casts a line to the horizon. It’s early May—wheat, a nascent green, and plowing started for the corn. Clouds loom like gargoyles in the west with slanted rain a hundred miles ahead. Billboards reading Quilt Cottage and Gove City Yarns share the berm with Jesus Saves. Stuckey‘s kitschContinue reading “I-70, Crossing Kansas by Sarah Russell”
POETRY and PLACES 