By Jessica Ursell in the remotest region of Kyrgyzstana makeshift cribtenderly placedunder a treeits darkly silveredboughslow and ladenwith bountyvast fields of crimson poppiesin the distanceas far as the eye can seeand closerthose velvety softblushing globesof creamy rougedrupesPrunus persicatemptinga tiny totpink chubby armsoutstretchedopen mouthedtwin pearlsframed by rosebud lipsindustriously imprintingher markon all thewarm tawnypeachesshe welcomesinto her crib … Continue reading Of Poppies and Peaches
Gulliver’s Wife
By Lynn White First published in Visual Verse, January 2022 It is not commonly known that Gulliver had a wifebut she accompanied him on all his journeysand Lilliput was her favourite place.Swift never wrote about her.Perhaps he found her just to daring,even though she was careful to be on her best behaviourand hide her painted … Continue reading Gulliver’s Wife
Finding the Garden
By Detlef Wieck The walk back to the rectory seemed to go in slow motion. His shoes were little protection to his fee. The holes in the soles admitted enough water that it squished between his toes as he walked. The evening had been a bitter one with the loss of one of the wealthiest … Continue reading Finding the Garden
The Brothers Alpine
By Will Eaton The alpine moss held fast with white- and green- and teal-colored gnarled fists to the flanks of ancient glacial boulders as the snow beat all around them and as the wind howled and vexed the rocks to shake and stir and moan in the frigid night air. In the midst of this … Continue reading The Brothers Alpine
Stranded
By Asia Ali Burnt oil wafted into my nostrils, making my eyes stream. “What’s wrong with it?” I asked as we all peered into the van’s engine. We had pulled over on a country road, and there were no other vehicles in sight. Darkness was approaching, the only light source a flickering lamppost a few … Continue reading Stranded
The Market
By Eno Howl Walking through the market,I was eating a pomegranate when we met.You wore last year’s clothes,shoes cut from a stranger’s Coke bottle and string.The clack of plastic on stone,the wet crack of seeds in my teeth.You stopped level with my knee.No money. Only food.They had warned me about boys like you—painted burns,borrowed bandages.I … Continue reading The Market
Across the Street
By Shrish Sivakumar and Soham M.P A pen slipped from my hand and struck the cold, hard tile. The sound woke me. I lifted my head from the desk, roused by the sound. The lamp was still on. Papers lay where I had left them, filled with handwritten notes I didn’t remember writing; time had … Continue reading Across the Street
Without Detection
By Nichole Turnbloom A wooden door, an iron key, a warm egg,a spindle, a basket of treasure. Bodies severed and gathered sing themselves wholeSkulls dressed with jewels watch with flickering eye sockets — burns: two sisters, the wired uncle, the wedding guests. The skull buried in the garden springs forth a rose bush- lest we … Continue reading Without Detection
Morning Glory
By Utkarsh Rawat The Sun does shines yeah, The Towers surpass yeah, That Rainbow does seem just alright ...The Moon looks familiar, Its night adheres,To the memories of the Stars in sight…The Rage turns warm yeah, The Winds still cuff yeah, This Garden resembles like just it was... The Sounds are calling, And Lights are … Continue reading Morning Glory
Toucan Epochs
By Ken Allan Dronsfield A flash of color moves across the emerald canopy.A long beak, like a sunrise, is poised among broad leaves.Eyes alert while surveying the tangled vines of green.Night’s humidity lingers on their glossy clean feathers.They perch on ancient branches, guardians of morning.Cacophony rises—a language unknown to humankind.Beak dips into a cluster of … Continue reading Toucan Epochs
Academy of the Heart And Mind 