By Plamen Vasilev In chambers veiled, where shadows creep,And talkings dance on moonlit sleep,A silent art, a hidden lore,Where secrets bloom, and truths explore.With crucible's fiery, heart-beat hum,Transmuting base to something numb,A mystic dance, a shadowed play,Of powders fine, and starlight's sway.From leaden weight to gold so bright,A transformation, pure and light,A symphony of unseen … Continue reading Alchemy
Exit in grace
By Vanaja Malathy Warm weather of springbuds of new growth pierce through my branchesmillion needles of painful pricks on my bodyi silently deliver and nurture my new birthi lose grip of my dear leavesstand in shame naked and barethey are heaped to their burialautumn winds wipe dry my tearsi stand in detachmentwinter winds blow startsnow … Continue reading Exit in grace
The Sharks Are Circling My Dreams
By Bradford Middleton I wake with a startle as three Sharks come to circle me in myOwn pool of fear as a dreamComes to horrify me awake.The sharks are as big as anySpielberg could have imagined& I know even the hint of redWould mean my imminentDemise but as I look up ISee a girl climbing … Continue reading The Sharks Are Circling My Dreams
bike ride
By Greg Wood you can ride to the sun on a bicyclepainted in spring greens.an echo of the world,travel upthroughsprawlingblues;not all the way upto the raging fire,its blazing redsits singeinggreensand whites,just to the layerbeneathwhere goldencoins of lightunfurl and spilllike waterfallsthrough yourhands,shimmeringmirrorsof eternity.soon they gush alongthe pavement ofyour past as if it, too,can be cleansedof finitudewatch … Continue reading bike ride
5 Poems
By Mike Turner Kintsugi I don’t remember the first time my heart brokeBut it has been broken many timesAnd put back together, piece by pieceSome of my own effort, some the comfort of othersSilent tears running as moonlit riversIn some ways, the breaks have made my heart more fragileOr perhaps it’s that I’ve become more … Continue reading 5 Poems
Not with a Bang
By Robert Beveridge World creaksto a haltsterile inhabitantssicken and dieno one leftto bury themlie in the streetsmummifiedlast cousinstoo weak to move Robert Beveridge (he/him) makes noise (xterminal.bandcamp.com) and writes poetry on unceded Mingo land (Akron, OH). He published his first poem in a non-vanity/non-school publication in November 1988, and it's been all downhill since. Recent/upcoming … Continue reading Not with a Bang
To Become Someone
By Alex Andy Phuong The human identity Truly is a sight to behold,And given the realityOf the heart and the soul,It is up to every individual To become purely whole,So dare to uncover the mysteryWithin a world filled with beauty,And marvel at the majestyOf the wonder of splendorWithin a home like no other,And there really … Continue reading To Become Someone
Between the Teeth
By Wu Yu Lilian wakes up in the stomach of night. Again. It is not even 5 am yet. The first lesson begins at eight, and she needs at least one hour getting dressed and wandering around the apartment purposelessly, trying to figure out what to do next. Minutes marching on, Lilian closes her eyes. … Continue reading Between the Teeth
Rattlesnake Mountain
By Bernard Martoia The drumming of rain against the Deer Head Inn’s windowpane stirred Waffle Print from sleep. After twelve straight days of sun in Pennsylvania, the weather changed, mirroring his challenging endeavor to cross New Jersey. Then, he remembered the crowded streets as he made a frantic trip to Manhattan to buy himself boots. … Continue reading Rattlesnake Mountain
Imitating Imperfection
By Laurie Nguyen Paul’s mother called him her “special little boy”, so special his teachers diagnosed him with an emotional disturbance disorder, autism, attention-hyperactivity-deficit disorder, and the occasional antisocial personal disorder without any medical knowledge whatsoever. His doctors disagreed. They were helpful, but his mother was always fiercely independent of the healthcare system; she hated … Continue reading Imitating Imperfection
Academy of the Heart And Mind 