Category: Journal

November World | Duane Herrmann

October 26, 2021

Gray November sky,
trees are bare again
and the wind chills,
soon, I will be older.
Trees are full of birds,
going one direction:
fleeing south
ahead of cold and freezing;
long waiting is ahead.

Duane L Herrmann was surprised to find himself in 1951 on a prairie farm.  Still trying to make sense of that, he’s grown fond of grass waving under wind, trees, and moonlight.  He survived a traumatic, abusive childhood embellished with dyslexia, ADHD (both unknown at the time), cyclothymia, now, PTSD.

Dear Autumn | Yuu Ikeda

October 25, 2021

What wraps me calmly

is only you.

.

Even in scorching darkness,

your eyes become a lantern,

your breeze caresses my cheeks,

and your colors plant a hope

in my empty space.

Yuu Ikeda is a Japan based poet.
She writes poetry on her website.
Her published poems are
“On the Bed” in <Nymphs>,
“Pressure” in <Selcouth Station Press>,
“The Mirror That I Broke” in <vulnerary magazine>,
and more.
Her Twitter account :
@yuunnnn77

Autumn Truths | Britta Benson

October 22, 2021

Summer lingered long, never took.

Light spilled, sat easy, asked for a truce.

Now, laughter darkens, learns to wait.

A season peels off trees in golden ochre, bloodred, rust.

Eyes roll, all colours whisper, no intention of remaining.

‘Hear me’, the caught leaf sings, pinched between two fingers.

I close my fist.

The faintest heartbeat stops.

Britta Benson is a happiness & poetry blogging, circus skills instructing & common butterfly following German, a writer, performer & linguist thriving in Scotland, her chosen habitat since the year 2000.
Britta’s Blog – Letters from Scotland
Odds & Ends

The Wildflower | Shaily Agrawal

October 21, 2021

When I die, Don’t cover my grave with stones or epitaph.

Let me feel the seasons on my skin.

Don’t tend it everyday—let life take over.

Let weeds grow—wildflowers of every colour,

So, you’d think of me in death as in life–

A splash of wild colour in a bleak world.

When I die, Don’t bring fresh flowers everyday.

I won’t meet you, anyway.

I’ll be somewhere sitting in a sunny nook,

Thinking of a lost song or an old book.

So, you, too, better move on—let life take over.

This poem was first published on The Drabble.
Shaily Agrawal is a small-town Indian and a working mother. Her skewed perspective is apparent through her stories on her blog: https://fishinthetrees.home.blog/ You can read her first short story collection, The Forest Bed on Amazon Kindle.

In Autumn | Phillip Knight Scott

October 20, 2021

It’s likely I’m in Autumn. The leaves reflect the glint

of the sun — lower in the sky though still creating

a schism in the heavens — golden light among

yellow and red foliage. I hang a bit lower these days.

Maybe I even glow a bit less bright — dimmed

.

over the years though still resolved in my journey —

silver hair replacing livelier colors.

I aged without consent, unsure how to ask the sun

to find a new pastime — one that doesn’t revolve around

changing seasons and forcing cheese into mold.

Phillip Knight Scott is a native of Durham, North Carolina, where he lives with his wife and son. He has published one book of poetry, Paint the Living, Plant the Dead, and one novel, The Alien in the Backseat, which can be found along with new poems on his website, phillipknightscott.com.

Birth Welcome | Duane Herrmann

October 19, 2021

Purple streaks across the sky,
oranges and reds,
set the autumn sun
over prairie grasses,
tan and yellow blowing,
waving under wind.
Any wonder why
I love this world
embracing me?

Duane L Herrmann was surprised to find himself in 1951 on a prairie farm.  Still trying to make sense of that, he’s grown fond of grass waving under wind, trees, and moonlight.  He survived a traumatic, abusive childhood embellished with dyslexia, ADHD (both unknown at the time), cyclothymia, now, PTSD.

Autumn Night | Yuu Ikeda

October 18, 2021

Pastel leaves
hover around my summer.
They draw pictures
full of sorrow and gleam,
and fill my memories
with cool healing.
I leave my skin to the misty dream,
then, fall asleep.

Yuu Ikeda is a Japan based poet.
She writes poetry on her website.
Her published poems are
“On the Bed” in <Nymphs>,
“Pressure” in <Selcouth Station Press>,
“The Mirror That I Broke” in <vulnerary magazine>,
and more.
Her Twitter account :
@yuunnnn77

Little Things | Shaily Agrawal

October 15, 2021

I had always been like that–

Building shrines

For dead butterflies,

And visiting

With the freshest flowers.

You had been like that too,

Loving me for little things,

Until you grew up

And I didn’t.

Shaily Agrawal is a small-town Indian and a working mother. Her skewed perspective is apparent through her stories on her blog: https://fishinthetrees.home.blog/ You can read her first short story collection, The Forest Bed on Amazon Kindle.

Flutter | Angela J Wilson

October 11, 2021

a rainy balloon drifted into sight

I looked out from this cloudy train

all my wings taken flight

left over sorrow and pain

transient, a mere passer-by

my reflection, a rusty butterfly.

Angela (she/her) was born and lives in rural North Wales, UK, she studied English and American Literature at Aberystwyth University and has returned to poetry after many years. She considers poetry an art of pure freedom. Angela was recently published in ‘Ink Drinkers’ Magazine and is currently compiling her work for her first poetry collection