He digs into his wallet. Hands over a $20 bill. God bless you, she says. But where's the god for lost girls in a squalling storm? She turns to go back into the Taco Bell. He shuts off his car. Gets out. Do you have a phone? No. She says. Anyone at all to call?
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POETRY: “Fall” by Jodi Autumn
The trees in their fall-best, gaudy, in their most beautiful gowns of oranges, yellows, and reds, whispered secrets to me in / their slow, slow speech. / They told me that it’s okay that some of me is always dying. / They warned that we don’t know what is to come. / They said to prepare for the worst, / but to do it in style.
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“Not All That Much” by Marc Harshman
‘Not that much, perhaps, and our only companion, / a still and remembered, peculiar silence, / a silence with weight, / and the kind of karma you can't get / from books, or gurus, or pets …’
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“The Garden You Called Eden” by Julie Pratt
‘You return to me across a chasm in time since / we last sat in your kitchen, curtains quivering in / the warm breeze, my skin damp from cutting grass / with your old hand mower, the scent of peonies / you picked that morning and of toasted cheese / sandwiches and sliced ripe pears …’
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A Poetry Sampler from John Burroughs
"John Cage Engaged and Uncaged," "Redux Isn't Pronounced Ray Do, But That Hasn't Stopped Me," and "Dog Day" by John Burroughs
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“The Revolt” by Connie Kinsey
‘My hands cramp, fingers arching backward. / Arthritis. Two Advil daily. / My lower back aches, stooping my spine. / My arches continue their path to flat. / It feels like betrayal this revolt. / I was supple and graceful once upon a time. / First a disco queen and then a yoga diva …’
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POETRY/PERFORMED: Two Versions of “BOOM BOOM” by Crystal Good
Here are two versions of Crystal Good reading/performing her iconic poem "BOOM BOOM," which reflects on strip-mining mountains and women who strip off their clothes for money.
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“Bound Stone” by Colleen Anderson
‘The beauty isn’t in the choice of stone / (a freckled, putty-grey, slightly off-round / found object, a palm-sized half-pound / of not-even-semi-precious rock) but in/ the steady, deep attention to this one / among the many …’
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Kick-starting a Youth Poet Laureate program in West Virginia’s capital city
Attention, high school-age poets and their teachers, friends, and parents: a Youth Poet Laureate program is underway in West Virginia's capital city. Here are some details.
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“Appalachian Freshwater Pearls” by Owen P. Cramer
‘I took your freshwater pearls, harvesting them / from an archeological site you call “home.” / I left nothing behind to give you pride / in where you live / because pride is a sin …’
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“Teena’s Story (for Don West)” by Bob Henry Baber
‘When I was little he seemed as strong / as the mountains, / but after a shuttle buggy busted loose / and ran over top of him, breaking his back in four places, / he just wasn't the same …’
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A Poetry Sampler from D. Scot Miller
The poems "The New Body," "Afro-surreal Generation," Woodshed," and "AfterGraph" by D. Scott Miller
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5 QUESTIONS: Creating the universe with God, Gravity, Darkness & friends
John Berry is not shy in taking on poetic tasks, including "The Broken Poem and Other Strange Ideas About God," which tracks the offhand creation of the universe as God and buddies like Gravity and Darkness lend a hand.
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“The Broken Poem” by John Berry
How God, Gravity, Silence, and Darkness whipped the universe into shape over the course of a few billion forevers ...
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“Watoga 2021” by James Cochran
‘Somewhere between Anhedonia and Ataraxy / we drive east on the turnpike in torrential / downpour, passing old man in rusted sedan / with driver's window down completely. / Is it broken, or is he just looking to feel something? …’
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“Fiery Thoughts” by Douglas John Imbrogno
‘I am a devoted householder / & secret reprobate. / I am an insomniac & / daring dreamer. / I am eternal & / dying as we speak. / I am a teller of truths / & serial liar, too …’
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PASSINGS: Recalling the ironic, sardonic, compassionate writings of PJ Laska
"It would be impossible for me to do justice either to his writing or to his intellectual prowess. But I will say, as a man, he always sought to share what he knew and never once came across as anything other than a person who could learn from any and everyone ..."
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Five Questions for Two Poets Who Keep Running With Whiskey
How did West Virginia's longtime Poet Laureate plus an MFA Creative Writing professor-poet-musician end up "Running With Whiskey" around West Virginia and the world? We have questions, they have answers. Plus, of course, poems.
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POETICS: 3 Poems by James Cochran
'She says Jesus / has spoken to her, told her not to drink coffee / or Redbull, that black tea is okay. / I feel jealous of such direct communication / with a higher power, then wonder if I would / stop drinking coffee if Jesus told me to ...'
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POETICS: 3 Poems by Doug Van Gundy
'These are the hours I love the best, / when the golden light of summer has climbed / to the top of the abandoned building next door / and all of the neighborhood / cats have come out from the woodpile / beneath the back porch to carouse and fight ...'
