literary magazine – Whispers and Echoes

Love, Young and Old | Peter Matthews

February 3, 2023

Oft our hearts go where they will

and we are dragged behind them; still

our minds stand little chance of calm,

but hopefully no lasting harm.

It’s just a passing phase we’re told.

As we get older we get bold.

Then love is gentler, softer, kind,

and permanence will still our mind.

We’re blessed to match like hand in glove

Enriched with deeper lasting love.

Peter Matthews, a country boy at heart, lives with his wife in the suburbs of Nottingham, England. His greatest achievement is that he has aged fairly gracefully but has avoided growing up. Peter has written poetry from the age of sixteen and blogs regularly at www.pollymermaid.wordpress.com.

At the end of the day | Britta Benson

February 1, 2023

At the end of the day,

I have a question:

Where did my words go,

after I sent them into the world?

Is there a secret spot beyond ethers,

perhaps buried deep in a soul,

where all the lost ones,

that didn’t get caught,

all the lonely ones,

that never quite reached,

all the heavy ones,

that simply fell,

and fell,

keep

falling?

Britta Benson is a circus skills instructing German, a writer, performer and linguist thriving in Scotland, her chosen habitat since the year 2000. She runs a creative writing group, The Procrastinators, and writes a daily blog, Britta’s Blog – Letters from Scotland (brittasblog422041504.wordpress.com) as well as her poetry blog, Odds & Ends (oddsends707138946.wordpress.com). She also stares out of her window a lot and drinks far too much tea.

Featured for February 2023

February 1, 2023

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The three chosen Editor’s Picks for February 2023 that will be featured on the Whispers and Echoes homepage for the month are:

Poetry

Whispers and Echoes Poetry and Flash Fiction Index | January 2023

January 31, 2023

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Whispers and Echoes returned after a short break in the second week of January 2023, and began sharing the beautifully written submissions that had been sent our way during last open submissions window.

To see what we shared – or what you missed – in January, check out the links below. Enjoy!

Poetry

Rituals of Change | Angela Hoffman

January 30, 2023

A soft summer rain

The amber and golden leaves

The first snowfall that quiets all

The thaw and drip of spring

break apart the ordinary days

strung out like gray socks on the clothesline

elevate them

into sacramental garb.

Angela Hoffman’s poetry collections include Resurrection Lily (Kelsay Books, 2022) and Olly Olly Oxen Free (forthcoming, Kelsay Books, 2023). She placed third in the WFOP Kay Saunders Memorial Emerging Poet, 2022. She has written a poem a day since the start of the pandemic. Angela lives in Jefferson, Wisconsin.

https://www.facebook.com/angelahoffmanpoet

Against the Storm [Triolet] | Julie A. Dickson

January 27, 2023

Shuttered windows against the storm

Birds huddled high up in the trees

Sit by the firelight that’s warm

Shuttered windows against the storm

For sunbathed afternoons I mourn

Comforter wrapped around my knees

Shuttered windows against the storm

Birds huddled high up in the trees

Julie A. Dickson advocates for captive elephants, loves rescued feral cats, is a Push Cart nominee, former poetry board member and a poet. Her work appears in various journals including Misfit, Open Door,Blue Heron Review, Masticadores and Ekphrastic Review. Dickson holds a BPS in Behavioral Science.

https://www.facebook.com/julie.dickson.94/

In the dark | Nolcha Fox

January 25, 2023

of early morning

stars stud silence ears.

Black the cloak

that warms the waiting

for the sunrise to appear.

Nolcha’s poems have been published in Lothlorien Poetry Journal, Alien Buddha Zine, Medusa’s Kitchen, and others. Her three chapbooks are available on Amazon. Nominee for 2023 Best of The Net. Editor for Kiss My Poetry and for Open Arts Forum. Accidental interviewer/reviewer. Faker of fake news.

Website:

https://bit.ly/3bT9tYu

Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/nolcha.fox

My Detached Memory | Lynn White

January 23, 2023

I think of it as a detached memory

floating free

engulfing me when I least expect it

and then

leaving

without a trace.

I can’t recall it.

Not for sure.

But clearly

it remembers me.

Lynn White lives in north Wales. Her work is influenced by issues of social justice and events, places and people she has known or imagined. She was shortlisted in the Theatre Cloud ‘War Poetry for Today’ competition and has been nominated for a Pushcart Prize, Best of the Net and a Rhysling Award.