Category: 2020-21 Submissions

2020-21 Submissions

Sunday in the House of my Mind

On pillows I lay,
Listening to the bouncing drops of rain,
The music governing my day.
I’m trapped
And forced to listen to the busy, rapid voice.
It bellows and directs and it haphazard in its soldierly intonation

Its contents give no inspiration.
This pillows, the feathered thoughts and ideas squashed.
If only I could lift and let them raise into flight,
If only I could lift the blanket that weighs tons,
If only I could climb the mountainous folds of my bed,

Occasionally, I open one of my eyes,
Uneager to look at the clock,
I listen for steps and I know
That there isn’t anybody in the house
Or that there hasn’t been

Cardinal

At first it was as though I had stumbled upon
The life breathing the origins of my own
Atop a splintered fence
Blazing
Eyes of a godly thing

Taking flight as I thought it—
You are my saving grace
Ancestral spirit like paper skin
Fading
Window gaze, my pensive
Death upon the precipice
Now peer all the same

On the third day, forgotten
Nesting away
In the chasm of another
Missed for the embrace
My longing contained
By glass walls, steaming
Suffocation—yet

Come morning, I prayed
And you eluded me again.

Impressionable

I found that with the mention of the heater
Or my tongue, limp against the roof of my mouth
I could not avoid the petty sensations
To sweat profusely
And with a panicked swallow
Choke

By a passing suggestion, I am engulfed
Upon encountering the sea-bridge
Where crystal waves entice
Like dampened clay, my contortion

Then I thought myself to be
Malleable—slipping
Between your fingers like sludge
Bound for the drain, dark places
claustrophobic

My condition is demanded
In recognition of setting and speech
I entered a room of seated figures
And in a bewildered haste
Joined them

Under The Cover

Large fluffy mane saves you
Under the cover
It elevates you.

Large sharp nails feed you
Under the cover
It protects your family.

Big bushy tail supports you
Under the cover
You support your tribe.

Gleaming razor sharp teeth rip and tear apart your prey
Under the cover
It helps the tribe thrive.

Strong muscular legs help you run to animals threatening you
Under the cover
Your thoughts run on how to save your loved ones.

Oh Dear Lion!
As scary as the world thinks of you
Under the cover
You are the king of the jungle for your
Loyalty, Bravery, Support, and Devotion.

REINDEER

**R**eading in bed not sound asleep.
**E**ven your brother is not making a peep.
**I**n the dark not asleep you hear tip-toeing but not on your roof.
**N**ot a peep in the hallway but now…on the roof!
**D**eer are flying over your roof, not those types of deer REINDEER!!
**E**ven you hear”Ho Ho Ho Ho!” and you knew in a moment it must be St.Nick!
**E**ven you hear your Brother shreeks “Flying deer!” “Reindeer!” I say
**R**eindeer fly over your house and you hear St.Nick say “Merry Christmas to all and to all a GOOD NIGHT!”

Blood of a Memory

A portal to an archaic submerged treasure trove of relics from my childhood,
Analyze the prints and a chlorine rinse for clarity,
Built off consecrated, yet uncreated temples that lie in the wild woods,
Ambrosia of a youthful fantasy in all of its blind sincerity,
Is worth the remembrance, they deserve a legacy, an anthology of memories,
The descendants of our presence,
Future incarnation, heed my warning:
Reserve, restore those untainted shores,
To defend against a blood moon dawning.

Sequoia

We evolve and we grow as we go,
From a tiny seed planted in the dirt,
To a centuries old Sequoia,
Rooted deep within the earth.
Stretch our branches far and wide,
Choose a label, choose a side,
Echo their ghosts, and praise their gods-
No homeland for unholy thoughts.