January 2016 | poetry
–dedicated to Gandhi and King
wage a war of peace
a war of peaceful ways
a war of peaceful means
let violence be validation of violent
let murder be mandate of murderers
let bloodstains stain bloody, blood soaked hands
but let conquerors conquer by means of peace.
wage a war of peace
a war of peaceful ways
a war of peaceful means
let legacies of brave be legacies of peace
let ways of strong be peaceful ways
let days of wise be peaceful days
to the end so it is to always seek.
let violent be violent
let murderers be murderous
let clamorers clamoring conflict clamor
but let wise, let strong, let brave,
let courageous, conquerors champion
the ways of peace
by Jerry Johnson
Jerry Johnson is a new writer to the Connecticut/New York area. He does performance poetry at several venues in New York City and has published one e-book, “Good Morning 2015, An Inspirational Journey”.
January 2016 | poetry
(Inspired by Patrick Leigh Fermor)
In dark latitudes
beyond the mountains
clouds gather
fluorescent and frosted
in a disturbing array
shivering
with summer lighting
Unknown figures
in the wilderness
bode ill
with spells and charms
keep close
to spreading spokes
of campfire light
In unreported river islands
lies an atmosphere
of pre-historic survival
where children look
like the adults
the refuge of an otherwise
extinct species.
by John Kropf
January 2016 | poetry
Conquests illuminate weaknesses
Conquests illuminate weaknesses
As pastels set off primaries
We are all relative to primates and colors
Tripping strapped to the desk
Eclipsed by ourselves
Hidden beneath the surface
Unknown unborn
Irrational suppositions on existence
Keep us occupied
While we wait for the real moments
Of transcendence and transformation
Into something worthwhile
Opinioned to be
The next
Evolution
Incarnate
The Night Lou Reed Died
The night Lou Reed died
Every bar in the city
The big borough city
Played the poet
Who encapsulated
What drove us down to town
Took us back into our lives
And captured what needed encapsulation anticipation
Dreams to live to die by
Sometimes shuddering our way home
Whilst we tried to recall our listless motivations
To get our asses out of lost towns
And onto the bridges that always smiled at us
While we waited for acceptance or acknowledgement
Something that made the beat worth defending
The cripples chalice-sing
Past sifted by the moment
by Josef Krebs
Josef Krebs’ poetry appears in Agenda, Bicycle Review, Calliope, Mouse Tales Press, The Corner Club Press, The FictionWeek Literary Review, and Burningword Literary Journal. A short story has been published by blazeVOX and a chapbook of his poems will be published soon by Etched Press. He’s written three novels, five screenplays, and a book of poetry. His film was successfully screened at Santa Cruz and Short Film Corner of Cannes film festivals. The past seven years He’s been working as a freelance writer for Sound&Vision magazine having previously worked at the magazine for 15 years as a staff writer and editor.
January 2016 | poetry
Because the window in my heart was left open wide
The cold crept in quietly to chastise vein miracles.
Because the cold crept in quietly to chastise vein miracles
The breath frosted over in wisps of ether demons.
Because the breath frosted over in wisps of ether demons
The downy innocent flesh tingled untouched in restless slumber.
Because the downy innocent flesh tingled untouched in restless slumber
The ancient aging entombed in tattered blankets birthed shadows.
Because the ancient aging entombed in tattered blankets birthed shadows
The convict ghosts escaped the confines of darkened corners.
Because the convict ghosts escaped the confines of darkened corners
The voices of laughing children vanished from the garden.
Because the voices of laughing children vanished from the garden
The twisting vines brought the carousel down in disrepair.
Because the twisting vines brought the carousel down in disrepair
The grains of lost futures trickled through ticking hands.
Because the grains of lost futures trickled through ticking hands
My calloused feet ran to the edge of earth.
Because my calloused feet ran to the edge of earth
The memory of home forgot its own misunderstood importance.
Because the memory of home forgot its own misunderstood importance
The abandoned thoughts seeped into cracks in the ceiling.
Because the abandoned thoughts seeped into cracks in the ceiling
The attic spilled all the wreathed secrets once hidden.
Because the attic spilled all the wreathed secrets once hidden
The desolate crimes waged weary war on the sun.
Because the desolate crimes waged weary war on the sun
The unsettled darkness killed countless candles with unassuming precision.
Because the unsettled darkness killed countless candles with unassuming precision
The goose-pimple flesh was cataloged intently by naked fingers.
Because the goose-pimple flesh was cataloged intently by naked fingers
The fall of Eden passed through ruin with pardon.
Because the fall of Eden passed through ruin with pardon
The shedding of buttons and cotton adorned vested rituals.
Because the shedding of buttons and cotton adorned vested rituals
The sighs in wanton throats swallowed the night sky.
Because the sighs in wanton throats swallowed the night sky
The faultless stars were lost in our universal vision.
Because the faultless stars were lost in our universal vision
I stood with bleeding feet on the doomed shore.
Because I stood with bleeding feet on the doomed shore
I could not hear static voices calling for home.
Because I could not hear static voices calling for home
The window of my heart was nailed decisively shut.
Because the window of my heart was nailed decisively shut
The winds of the weathered world could not escape.
Because the winds of the weathered world could not escape
The wisdom creaked within the echoes of hollow bones
Because the wisdom creaked within the echoes of hollow bones
The internal cacophony transformed broken chords into infinite symphonies.
And all other sounds muted in tapestries of silence
Eternally whispered in tones of varied octaves into myriad ears,
But the discorded choir sang deaf songs they understood
Because tongues only form words familiar to their corpus melodies.
The consequence of the speaking, the touching, the seeing
From the last to the first, the admission in living
Paid alone in exhalations of seeds of hardening wax
As autumn comes calling to consequently consume summer’s fugitive flame.
by Adam Huening
Adam Huening lives around Bloomington, Indiana, in a house with three kids and one beautiful, understanding fiancé. He is often listening when no one thinks he is, making copious notes for use at a later date. He writes because he is compelled by forces greater than himself, and, although he knows not what these forces are, he feels it is unwise to argue. Read his other stuff in 1947, Soliloquies Anthology and Poetry Quarterly.
January 2016 | poetry
Photo printed with Funding Appeal, 1965
That behemoth Bel-Air,
its tail stopped by a tree,
lurches outside the photo frame
hiding its eyes, but most of all
stilling its mouth –
metal teeth in a tight grill
tensed to spill the truth.
It knows too much of the four
posed along its flank,
its silver trim and steel doors
a backdrop of comic relief
for the rescued souls
about to disappear into the bowels
of the rear-facing third seat
for a ride to Sunday School.
Innocence lost
in the House of Orphans
festers in greasy rivers
of soiled minds.
Just ask the coiffed one
staring intently
into the Brownie,
a little Red Riding Hood,
her headband taming tresses
loved by the wild boar of the night,
or the boy in black and white,
his skinned head and summer smile
claiming joy—
joy down deep in his heart,
one less waif on the streets
thanks to the largesse of donors.
That taller boy, arm behind his back
looks fit for service, if only
his new clothes weren’t hiding
cigarette burns —
scars that turned his heart to ash
and tossed it in a twilight zone.
The youngest,
a girl with a bob and a bag
looks like a proper wife in training
standing on the promises of a full belly
bound for glory in that Bel-Air –
such wishful thinking, these crafted fruits.
The children look pretty as their picture.
If only we could hear that car
spewing the old siren songs:
the Lord loves a cheerful giver,
and suffer the little children,
and public prayer has its reward.
by Janet Reed
Janet Reed teaches writing, literature, and theater for Crowder College, a small community college in the midwest. She lives large among her books, pets, and friends. Writing since childhood, she started submitting work for others to read this fall and is pleased that several pieces have been published.
January 2016 | poetry
June 27 Deadwood, SD
God has more surprises. The sun is not hot. Stars are
not light. Grass appears to bend, is rigid. I send away
grief. I want change. Want it good; the back forth of
seesawing guilt, the black-white of yearning. The earth
is mud-scarred red and green. This is what desire feels
like, it’s our slow-wicked last chance. From here we can
touch the end of the world, jagged and dull; God is not
finished with us
June 30 Pierre, SD
This is where the blue begins, where the sun clang clangs
against the sky. This is where the storm begins, raw heat
of lightning, the thick brogue of thunder. This is the flat-
black of motion, the blinking of eyes. We are a wayward
thread in a worn sweater, an almost closed door. When it’s
over we’ll be flax-winged and overflowing, we’ll be pock
-marked with stars before we crash to earth.
by Alex Stolis
