poems
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Flood
Erica Johnson It wasn’t until I noticed the dog walkers returningfrom the singular trail ahead of methat I discovered there might be trouble at the turn –a flooded path blocking any progress forward. Cautious, I paused my walktaking a seat upon a rock half-warmedby the weakened winter sun whichhad itself been washed out for several… Continue reading
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Holiday Pricing for Record of Dissent: $4.99
Happy holidays, friends. As a little end-of-year thank you, we have dropped the price of Record of Dissent: Poems of Protest in an Authoritarian Age on Amazon to $4.99 for the entire month of December. That is the absolute minimum price Amazon will allow us to sell the book for, which means this is truly… Continue reading
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Emerging from the Penumbra
Merril D. Smith In scant light, slant light, shadows strollabove the bones unseen,remains of scattered, shattered lives,Glory, Hallelujah, we used to sing. Was this then, or is this now?The truth is marching on–torn, twisted, and trampledin scant, slant light as shadows stroll, as masked men menace, muscled maraudersfrom obscurity troll in the scant, slant light… Continue reading
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Echoes
Patricia J McLean I’m at the edge of a cliff looking over,looking over at the cracks in the rock onthe other side. I’m at the cliff edgewhere time stretches, arcs back-forward,ages stacked on ages bent, arched,tilted, earth colors, life, death, beginning, end. I’m at the edge of the cliff. I imagine I can seethe other… Continue reading
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Consequences
Benjamin Waldrum They’ll come for you next, you can count on that fact;They’ll keep coming so long as there’s more to subtract.They’ll trumpet their values — no faults, only gloss;They’ll arrive wrapped in the flag and carrying a cross. They’ll reduce human rights with the stroke of a pen;They’ll betray their own people, then betray… Continue reading
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The Silent Era
Rick Doyle There was a time when Max was silent as a moon,as a satellite in transit behind the lunar pebble,as a man whose mouth is shoveled full of earth. It wasn’t just that he couldn’t speakin public — oh, no! He couldn’t whispersweet nothings, couldn’t utter a prayer,couldn’t even tell a knock-knock joke.And this… Continue reading
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All the Naked Emperors
Patricia J McLean If we put them end to end all the naked menall the naked emperors from the firstin earth’s history to the lastthey would circle the globe.A million moons shining up at the skytheir mouths full of dirttheir penises sticking into the soft earthand their anuses would be singingreaching for a high notedescribing… Continue reading
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Everyone Loses in this Monopoly Game
Merril D. Smith The first square is empty, walkon the beach, envision a city,build it, they will come, ferry to railroad, Philadelphia day-trippers,vacationers, escapers, walk the Boardwalk,it’s the place to be seen— women in diamonds and furs—turn a corner, jumpa square, find the bootleggers and bookies,make a deal,over there, a new hotel. On another square,… Continue reading
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My Body, Your Choice
Skylar Clark Written November 8, 2024 at 1:00am—an hour after the election results. I always dreamed of having children. Two boys. Two girls.That dream, that vision, it’s been with me as long as I can remember.A life of love & chaos, laughter echoing through the halls of a big house on open land. Dogs running wild, playing with the kids.Their… Continue reading
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How to Dodge Bombs
Patricia J McLean I think it could be a night like that night in Augustjust before Utopia got a new wall to replace the brokenfalling down, rotten wood wall Or before the night like that night, or another sort of night altogetherwhen the broccoli dies of neglect, tomatoes are so heavy vines breakthe garden is… Continue reading
The Chaos Section Poetry Project 