At a rest stop somewhere along the Ohio Turnpike: Vacation by Wendell Berry Once there was a man who filmed his vacation. He went flying down the river in his boat with his video camera to his eye, making a moving picture of the moving river upon which his sleek boat moved swiftly toward […]
MoreThis is a picture of the jam jars in my pantry. I count thirteen and that doesn’t include the outpost colony of orange marmalade and apricot preserves that live in the back of my refrigerator. The jars have sat unused for at least a year, some much longer. If it were up to my […]
MoreForgive the unpolished copies of these poems and quotes, the yellow notepaper, the terrible handwriting, though I did try my best. This is what happens when Poem Elf has an idea but no printer, no scotch tape and no finesse with a pen. My idea was to honor two people who are gone […]
More“This is what you shall do; Love the earth and sun and the animals, despise riches, give alms to every one that asks, stand up for the stupid and crazy, devote your income and labor to others, hate tyrants, argue not concerning God, have patience and indulgence toward the people, take off your hat […]
MoreThe sixth annual Poem Elf Valentine’s Day Poem Blitz ran into some glitches this year, which is why it’s arriving so late. I knew it was going to be a few hours late because I’m on Hawaii time, but I didn’t expect (who does) to wake up on Valentine’s Day and discover my purse was […]
MoreLet us go then, you and I, When the evening is spread out against the sky Like a patient etherized upon a table; Let us go, through certain half-deserted streets, The muttering retreats Of restless nights in one-night cheap hotels And sawdust restaurants with oyster-shells: Streets that follow like a tedious argument Of insidious […]
MoreThis past week I’ve heard stories of people not going home for Thanksgiving because they’re upset their relatives voted differently than they did. Add one more to the list of disheartening effects the 2016 election has had on our country. Thanksgiving is the holiday that’s supposed to bring us together. Thanksgiving is a holiday […]
MoreWhat the Doctor Said by Ray Carver He said it doesn’t look good he said it looks bad in fact real bad he said I counted thirty-two of them on one lung before I quit counting them I said I’m glad I wouldn’t want to know about any more being there than that […]
MoreSometimes, the Field by Holly Wren Spaulding Sometimes I bring my hunger to the field. I sidestep the soft mounds, the ants at their labor, their back and forth with grains of sand. I wait in the milkweed and withering thistle, all of it turning and rustling in the wind. I mean […]
MoreWaiting At The Window by A. A. Milne These are my two drops of rain Waiting on the window-pane. I am waiting here to see Which the winning one will be. Both of them have different names. One is John and one is James. All the best and all the […]
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