Among the Trees What kind of times are these when a conversation about trees is almost a crime because it implies silence about so many atrocities. —Bertolt BrechtYou add a teaspoon of honey, amber and gold, to the headlines you read and stir until you have an opinionYou pick sides like I pick a trailContinue reading “3 poems by Antony Di Nardo”
Category Archives: Poetry
These Hands. A poem by Lisa Reynolds
These Hands These hands have touched the deadMothers, fathersLittle ones I can’t bear To speak of – but carryLife should not be like thisNot end like thisCries echoCan you hear themHear their disbelief Return to Journal Lisa Reynolds is an internationally published Canadian Poet who advocates for social justice through her writing. In 2023, herContinue reading “These Hands. A poem by Lisa Reynolds”
3 poems by Adrienne Stevenson
Target Practicewhen as children we played gameswe could always touch homeand be freehome the lodestone of our livessanctuary and comfortwelcoming, securenow, engage empathy, considerhomes not all that far awayturned upside downno longer shelter, warmth, restpinpoint-shattered peaceonly rubble remainslest we feel complacencythose same places turned unawaresinto a rapid-fire future Contrastmust peace imply a war?surely there is aContinue reading “3 poems by Adrienne Stevenson”
2 poems by Mona Mehas
Report Tyrant’s forces left country a shamblesworld court demanded he payhe scoffed at arrest warrantflew through the dark to conceal damagesturned a deaf earto mothers’ pleasempty armshardened heartsHow many more must sufferas hawks and doves argue?Like MagicLike magicshe finds inner strength to overcome illnessLike magiche rises above shouts of ignorance and greedLike magicthey march togetherContinue reading “2 poems by Mona Mehas”
3 poems by Marsha Barber
RawWhat use is poetryexcept to sayour hearts hidein safe houses—burned alive,in kibbutzim—babies slaughtered, fed to fire,in the desert—girls raped near corpsestortured and defiled.What use is poetryas captives liein their blood,no light, no warmth, no balm.We stumble throughthis darkness,ruined, rawour only hope—to clutchour bloodied pens.First published in Am Yisrael Chai anthology, ed. Rabbi Menachem Creditor, 2023SuicideContinue reading “3 poems by Marsha Barber”
3 poems by Carole Giangrande
Doctor and Cat Gaza; heard on BBCIt doesn’t matter whose side he’s on.Forget sides. I can’t help thinking of this doctor, stunned, soul piercedby suffering; how, dazed, he searched for his terrified cat; knowing the touch of his bloodied hand would comfort a frightened creature, knowing her softnesswould bring him rest. In time, he foundContinue reading “3 poems by Carole Giangrande”
Untitled, it is. A poem by Jay Yair Brodbar
Untitled, it istoo raw on the eye, too raw for the pen. The seen cannot be unseen. A crib—emptied save a smallteddy sodden in curdles of blood.The young woman yanked outof an armored jeep, her back to the screen, cherry-red splotches congealed on her jeans. A wall lined with family photos—young marrieds, elders bearded inContinue reading “Untitled, it is. A poem by Jay Yair Brodbar”
3 poems by Poet in Residence Mansour Noorbakhsh
How Come? After, “Prayer For Sunset” by Leonard Cohen. Today could still be a good day. Believe in occasional love.A hunter, a friend of mine, spent a whole night atop a tree coaxing a bear that followed the smell of burnt honey to its death.“How come?” I asked him. “Leave a door open for imagination.Continue reading “3 poems by Poet in Residence Mansour Noorbakhsh”
2 poems by Jameson Chee-Hing
A Fallen SunThe sun shinesWe do not seeBlinded by rageWarsSenseless slaughterWe hurt each otherThe sun shinesDarkness in our heartsConsumes usThere is goodness in usWe do not seeThat light so brightBurning like a thousand sunsBut buriedVeiledLike a fallen sunWhy must it be this way?The sun has fallenIt may never rise againWhy should it?Why would it?When willContinue reading “2 poems by Jameson Chee-Hing”
3 poems by Sheila E. Tucker
knitting sockshow much more can I hear and seeof our macrocosmseared onto tv screenblasted into newspapercellphone tablet radiomother of two nakedlying face down deadmetal screws hammered into torsobullets through saturated pelvishusband’s body nearbyexcept for his headwhich rolled down a ditcheyes and mouth wide openhow much more can I hear and seechildren crushed under concretebullets tearingContinue reading “3 poems by Sheila E. Tucker”
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