by Jide Badmus It’s a rainy morning.The earth breathescold on its citizens.I reach for a blanket offlesh that is unavailable. The room is filledwith pieces of you—strands of hair,vestige of scent,mirage of smile &a ghost of your voice.There is a depressionon your side of the bed—but these walls struggleto reconstruct memories.The mirror claims not torecall … Continue reading Cold Room
by Joseph Rogers Through these wooden bars I see a scene enacted without me: joy painted across your face; an understudy in my rightful place. This vinyl booth becomes my jail, a prison of whiskey with shots for bail, while red searchlights illuminate the empty glasses that spell my fate. We spoke until the sun … Continue reading Whiskey Jail
by Rae Rozman Last night, I dreamt of uson a warm fall eveningsitting beside a campfireTom Petty crooningWildflowersfrom unseen speakerspassing a bottle of bourbonback and forth. You wore your winter coat(the lavender one)despite the heat. I burned.Took off pieces of my clothingand threw themone by oneinto the firethe flames turning aubergine and amber. Naked, I … Continue reading Persephone
by Emma Demopoulos The colors you braid into your hair Are painted on my heart Beaten by the wind and salt, They become memories of what they once were The words you write Are tucked in all my pockets They coat the inside of my clothes Reminders of what I can’t wash away The comfort … Continue reading Cartography
by Taleen Mardirossian My tongue belongs to two lovers. I spend my days with one, my nights with the other. One is older, much older, much wiser. He’s had fewer lovers, so I am careful not to lose him. I wear his poetry on my lips, his dances in my feet. He’s a wanderer, a traveler– … Continue reading Two Native Tongues
by Sage Leona in the golden hour that lasts three monthsi smoke a cigarette&&&&&&and fall in lovethe warmth feels endless, and it is{from the tan on my legs&&&&&to the taste of your kiss}tobacco lingers on my breaththe nicotine dances in my head ‘but what good thing lasts more than a season’taunt the bees who have … Continue reading Summer’s Smoke
by Melissa Chappell Upon his bed of white linen, he laid me down. I was beneath him when the sun looked upon us with its jealous eye through the polished window panes. His hands were praising me, when the stratus clouds stretched over the sun’s burnished light, denying it glory. My mouth was seeking the … Continue reading The Storm
by Ted E.F. Roberts after stretched hearts and out-loud love we writhe in a chaos of snarled sheets, haiku parts and aphorisms. nothing about you is forgettable. your breathy hushed moans and damp crescent eyes, the “C” of your toes, dancing demands, defined desires and the soft joys whispered till deep in … Continue reading Not Forgettable
by Wim Coleman I see a rainbow.I thought I’d catch you there.Now I see two rainbows.I’m calling on the only Tuesday in November.It’s three-thirty in the afternoon but only temporarily.I am at a pay phone in Pasadena.Go out in your yard and look.Look now don’t wait till you get home.Don’t stop to get dressed either.One … Continue reading You Have One Message
by Erica Jasmin Brown Let me strip for you, Take off the layers, Bare my soul in a way no one else will see. Remove the mask, Displace the veil, Show you all there is of me. Expose me, Embrace me, Love me in my purest state. Let me strip for you, Utter every secret, … Continue reading Sole Exposure (or Love Me Raw)
Dream Noir 