tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23179834492661656132024-03-17T23:04:09.744-04:00Women Writers in Bloom Poetry Salon (WWBPS)Explore, Cultivate, Express Yourself!WWBPShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08173774905837162542noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2317983449266165613.post-34366777667012326232013-07-10T01:03:00.000-04:002013-07-10T01:10:47.752-04:00The Poetry Garden is now open - plant a poem...<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<!--StartFragment--><span style="color: #660000;">Iam<br />Amapola<br />Chrysanthemums<br />Guanabana<br />and the tender meat of ripe mangoes<br />My skin have bathe in crimson roses<br />And birth life<br />In a jungle of impossibilities<br />This body have<br />Rebirth scars<br />That lacerated the souls of thousands of warriors<br />Like an amazon<br />I fought my right to<br />Caress my wounds<br />And seed the pain<br />In kisses<br />engulf in the aroma of orchids<br /><br /><br />I breath cinnamon<br />&<br />Acerola<br />Sweet coconut milk travels through my veins<br /><br />Iam spicy peppers<br />Marinated in the warm<br />Sweet oil<br />Of ancient olives<br /><br />Iam rhythms<br /> Of conga<br />Timbales<br />Bongos and clave<br />Remeneando<br />Manos<br />Hombros<br />Piernas<br />Caderas<br />Muslos<br />Ancient<br />Movements<br />Encrypted<br />In every cellular DNA strand<br /><br />Yemaya is my mother<br />But<br /> My spirit is thunder<br /><br />I create universes<br />One at a time<br /><br />Iam the daughter<br />Sister<br />Grandmother<br />Lover<br />Of every dream<br />At any time<br /><br />Iam what Iam.<br /><br />A Unique<br />And<br />Extraordinary<br />Woman.<br /><br />By Carmen Bardeguez-Brown</span><br />
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<span style="color: #660000;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">this river</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">i feel like a has been saxophone
player</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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</span><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">with eyes so narrow</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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</span><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">like the slits used to make the
eyes of papier mache' dolls</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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</span><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">the Nile was created with the
tears of Nefretiti's birth pains</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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</span><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">this river i cry born of the pains
of living</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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</span><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">everyday life</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">to achieve this survival instinct</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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</span><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">you have to want it; to taste it;
to understand it enough</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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</span><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">to loathe it</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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</span><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">and when it's gone and the melody
has stopped....</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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</span><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">keep playing</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">somehow the tune blows melancholy</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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</span><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">like the little girl who couldn't find
the voice to speak to\</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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</span><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">the issues of her time</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">how could she find her tongue</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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</span><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">with the wind holding her down</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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</span><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">like a rapist, strong and
steadfast?</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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</span><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">she doesn't struggle because she
can't let them win</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">to let them win is to submit and
let it carry you on to</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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</span><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">unknown distances or</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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</span><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">maybe it's because the officials
forgot to mark down those trials of her life</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">therefore making her existence
unofficial and obtrusive</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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</span><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">so it was short and wiped out</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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</span><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">in an instance</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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</span><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">gone without a trace</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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</span><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">who was she?</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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</span><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">no wonder i feel like a has been
saxophone player</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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</span><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">the metal of my instrument is dull
and rusted;</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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</span><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">the death of its gold shine no
longer</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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</span><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">mirroring the reflection of a
horrible reality</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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</span><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">the one, i, like the little girl</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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</span><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">may never grasp because</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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</span><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">it's too slick in my hands from
the blood</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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</span><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">dripping for the cuts</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">incisions made by sharp tongues in
cryptic tongues</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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</span><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">i close my eyes and think about
the papier mache' eyes</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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</span><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">and wonder</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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</span><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">whose hands cut them out.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">By River Malik</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">© 2013</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">the shrink<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 3;"> </span>for arisa who showed me how<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><br />
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">how many feet do i need<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">after i'm all grown up<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">and collecting since before?<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">how many feet do i need<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">when ads did their jobs well?<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">will these chairs hold hips <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">in pairs and table settings </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">feed multi-mouths?<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">if i count shoes, how many<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">pairs can any pair wear?</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">how many hats cover a head?<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">with books lined up from surface</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">to surface, side to side,</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">and art covering all other ends,<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">making painted backgrounds <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">forget their color.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">how many feet do i need<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">f</span>or clothes that stretch<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">and define decades?<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">how large is 3600 square feet?<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">how small is 420 squared feet?<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">when i make naked walls,<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">and strip all cases,<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">can a foot shrink and<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">be small again?<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">when i hide my bed upright,<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">can a foot shrink and be small<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">again?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>when i give away my books,<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">my art, and recycle my clothes,<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">use only my needs during<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">the course of one year?<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">can a foot shrink and<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">be small again?<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">how many feet can <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">i shrink before i am <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">just six feet under all?<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><br />
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">By esther louise </span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">_ _ _</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"></span><span style="color: #660000;"> </span></div>
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><br />
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;">2 AM</span><a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="_GoBack"></a></div>
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><br />
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;">It was 2 AM</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;">and she was</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;">caught up in a whirlwind of conflicting emotions</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;">wondering if he</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;">was one she should give herself away to </span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;">haunted by the ghosts of relationships past</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;">never forgetting the ones who had passed through</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;">her walls</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;">leaving their images imbedded there</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;">at all hours</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;">and now it was</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;">2 AM</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;">and she found herself</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;">tired of repeating the same story over and over</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;">looking for love</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;">and finding none</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;">exchanging sex for meaningless words</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;">never to be heard from again</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;">at 2 AM</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;">and her clock was ticking</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;">time was winding down </span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;">funny what desperation will drive a woman to do</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;">when she’s done it all</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;">read every book on how to think</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;">how to act</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;">and how to attract</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;">the right man</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;">hair done</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;">nails filled</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;">everything in place</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;">but at 2 AM</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;">she always finds herself in the same space</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;">looking for love</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;">that always escapes</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;">her grasp</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;"></span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;">by Wynne Y. Henry</span></div>
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><br />
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<o:p><span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;"> _ _ _</span></o:p> <o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #660000; font-family: Times New Roman;"> </span></span></o:p></div>
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span><br />
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span style="font-family: Cambria;"><span style="color: #660000;">Trust</span></span></u></b><br />
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Cambria;"><span style="color: #660000;">From Walking in New Shoes<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></i></div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Times New Roman;"> </span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;">Trust is a choice</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;">A necessity to any entity</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;">Foundational for building</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;">The art of establishing</span><span style="color: #660000; font-family: Times New Roman;"> </span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;"></span><br /></div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;">Trust</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;">It is a choice</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;">In it, lies indescribable power</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;">Without it the possibilities remain ambiguous </span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;"><span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;"></span></span> </div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;"><span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;">Like building a fortress on sinking sand</span><span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;"></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;"><span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;">The root is unstable </span></span><span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;"></span></div>
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;">It’s like a city with boundaries </span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;"><span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;"></span></span> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;"><span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;">Trust is a choice</span></span></div>
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Earned through actions </div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;">Yet lost in the gust of raging winds </span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;">Misunderstandings</span></div>
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And false perception </div>
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</div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;">Guard it with discernment</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;">Speak to it in wisdom</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;">Search for it beneath the residue of your past</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;">Understand its’ profundity</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: Cambria;">Intentionally </span><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;">Trust is consciousness</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;">Waiting to be</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;">Attained</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;">Maintained</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;">And at time regained</span></div>
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</div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;">Trust is always a choice</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;">It’s multi-dimensional</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;">Whether we decide to trust </span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;">or we decide to be trustworthy</span></div>
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</div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;">It is still a choice </span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;"></span> </div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Cambria;">By <span style="font-family: Book Antiqua;">T</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Book Antiqua","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Lucida Grande";">éa M. Harmony</span></span></div>
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</div>
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_ _ _ </div>
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</span><br />
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<br /></div>
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<b><span style="color: #660000; font-size: large;">Authentically Me </span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: #660000;"><br />
</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 16pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">Heartfelt
<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 16pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">words that know joy
<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 16pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">live in shattered windows<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 16pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">open to fresh air in the woods,
<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 16pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">breathing
<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 16pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">Mama
<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 16pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">I write for me.
<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 16pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">You keep saying life hurts
<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 16pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">but I love my words to dance jazz.
<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 16pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">It's me
<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 16pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">Copyright © 2013 Patricia Philippe</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 16pt;"><span style="color: #660000;"><br />
</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 16pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">- - - - - - - -</span></span></div>
</div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"><b style="text-indent: 4.5pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><br />
</span></b></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">Witness</span></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #660000;"><br />
</span></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">From above the hill<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">way, way out by the gully <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">gusting through coconut-palms<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: -4.5pt; text-indent: 4.5pt;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">igniting the sweet scent of bay-leaf trees<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: -4.5pt; text-indent: 4.5pt;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">rattling on paling fences<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: -4.5pt; text-indent: 4.5pt;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">lending music to the songs of whistling frogs<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">the wild wind blew into my yard<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">chilled my naked body <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">taking a bath<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">my bath a wash-pan of water <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #660000;"> — outside in the night<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">black night, windy night<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">silent night, starlit night…<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">I looked towards the stars <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">pondering, quivering – doting…<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">the beautiful blackness <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">the quiet sublime <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">the fragrant leaves <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">my body, sluicing wet in a sea of air <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">tickled vigorously by the wind…that bears<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">witness to my clean black naked body<b>.<o:p></o:p></b></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">By Patsie Ifill</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--EndFragment--><br /></div>
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<br /></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 21px;">- - - - - - - -</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
</div>
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<b style="color: #660000; font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 11pt;">WOMAN WITHIN</b></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">Her scent entered<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">Before she and<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">Roses stood erect to<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">Take in the aroma. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">She was fragranced with<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">New birth. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">Crashing planets<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">Suckling stars for<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">Nourishment. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">Earth grew to<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">Walk her path. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">Eyes of crystal, orbed<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">Speak of futures I pray<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">Include me. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">Wishing to grow needs from<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">Wants that include<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">Her. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">Blossoms of aspirations <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">planted<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">By a single glance. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">exceedingly beautiful<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">By human definition but<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">Gods bow at her heart's<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">Glamour. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">Clamor for front seat views. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">I wish simply to<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">Know her beyond<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">The fake smiles<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">She put on for those<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">Enamored with physical<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">Beauty. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">Caring little about<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">The woman within.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #660000;">By Shye Sales</span></span><!--EndFragment--> <br />
<span style="color: #660000;"><b><span style="color: #660000;"><br />
</span></b></span> <br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #660000;"><b><span style="color: #660000;">- - - - - - - - - - -</span></b></span></div>
<span style="color: #660000;"><b><span style="color: #660000;"><br />
</span></b></span> <span style="color: #660000;"><span style="color: black;"> </span><b><span style="color: #660000;">CARVED IN PAIN:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>WHEN LOVE HURTS IT KILLS<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
<span style="color: #660000;"></span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="color: #660000;"> </span></span></div>
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span> <br />
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<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="color: #660000;">(for Jessica Tanay Andrews (1989-2010), and Marissa Alexander) </span></span></div>
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span> <br />
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<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="color: #660000;"> </span></span></div>
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"></span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"></span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"></span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"></span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"></span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"></span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: #660000;">Marissa Alexander </span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">a prophetess knew </span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">what happened to Jessica </span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">could happen to her too</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">so she armed herself with a gun </span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">what else could she have done</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><o:p><span style="color: #660000;"> </span></o:p></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">Jessica, was strangled to death</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">by her abusive boyfriend </span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">who got mad when</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">she said they were threw </span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">At first he drew a knife</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">a man trained to kill </span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">he had the skills to loop </span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">his arm around her throat </span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">until she saw gray spots </span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">and then black spots</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">until she stopped breathing</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"> </span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;">But, not before the force</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">of his blow had knocked</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">her down on the floor and so </span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">he lifted her up from where</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">she laid ripping three </span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">braids from her head</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">all of this while she was </span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;">under a protection order</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;"></span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;">If Jessica had only known </span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">what Marissa knows—</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">you can’t bring a piece </span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">of paper to a knife </span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">and fist fight—</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">you have to bring a gun</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">she might still be alive</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: #660000;">Men are physically stronger than women</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">We need to arm ourselves for the fight</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">Men are physically stronger than women</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: #660000;">If we don’t speak out</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">raise our voices against</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">men who beat and kill women</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">If Marissa isn’t set free</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">(cuz, she’s locked up unfairly)</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: #660000;">women will continue to be raped,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">strangled, shot, stalked, tied up,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">knocked across the room, foaming </span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">mouth, bitch, run over by a car,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">scratches on our legs and face, </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">a black eye, fainting, locked up in a room,</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">screaming, stabbed 38 times, a pile of bones, </span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">broken plates, crying, too embarrassed </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">to let my family know, stitches on the brow,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">ambulance, sirens loud, lights flashing,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">broken nose, busted lip, clinched fist, </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">up all night begging to live, shouting, </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">children watching behind closed doors, </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">hiding in the closet, peeping through</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">the keyhole, “I’m sorry baby,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">I’ll never hit you again,” broken promises,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">straddled and choked, eyes bulging, </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">teeth missing, sore, just so sore, </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">got to leave town, secrets, whisper, </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">dragged across the floor, punching,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;">until we’re all dead.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><span style="color: #660000;"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: #660000;"></span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">By Margie Shaheed</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
*Jessica Tanay Andrews is Margie’s niece.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>R.I.P.</div>
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: black;"> </span></div>
<div align="center">
<b style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -</span></b></div>
<strong><span style="color: #660000; font-family: Calibri;"></span></strong><br />
<b style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Picture Perfect</span></b><br />
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #660000;"></span></span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #660000;">Your mind is a blank</span></span></i><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #660000;">Coloring book,<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #660000;">And people are<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #660000;">The crayons:<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #660000;">Some crayons are sharp;</span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #660000;">Thick outlines of purple,<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #660000;">Definition and precision,<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #660000;">Emphasizing every shape;<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #660000;">Some crayons are dull;<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #660000;">Crooked swirls and<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #660000;">Messy blotches of beige -<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #660000;">Wax smeared like finger paint;<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #660000;">Some crayons are broken,<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #660000;">Rubbing, blending,<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #660000;">Blue and gray,<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #660000;">Outside the lines;<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #660000;">Some crayons are melted,<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #660000;">Distorted and ugly;<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #660000;">Bright red consuming <o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #660000;">The whole page like fire;<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #660000;">Some crayons are chipped,<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #660000;">Slashing each page<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #660000;">With jagged black lines,<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #660000;">Destroying the picture;<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #660000;">Choose crayons wisely to fill<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #660000;">Every page of your mind...<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #660000;">Favorite colors make your<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #660000;">Picture perfect.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #660000;">By Victoria Shockley<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #660000;">--------------------------------</span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<!--StartFragment--> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #660000;"><b><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Dads in the Lofts</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';">My son’s friends’ daddies are men who ignore me, men who implore me</span><span style="font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';"> busy artists and businessmen-- heads in deals</span><span style="font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';"> too important or shy</span><span style="font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';"> rich and angry, uneasy or occupied</span><span style="font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';">They coach and they prod and they boast and they nod</span><span style="font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';">They don’t want to know such opinionated women</span><span style="font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';">The puffy ones in jeans</span><span style="font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';">with visions complex, a little mean</span><span style="font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';">These guys don’t try to get to know you</span><span style="font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Their wives long-suffering, buffered or revered.</span><span style="font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';">At their parties it’s as if I’m not even there</span><span style="font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';">The men in the corner impress each other</span><span style="font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';">The moms drink bubbly, complain, and laugh.</span><span style="font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><span style="color: #660000;"><br />
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><span style="color: #660000;">By Cheryl J. Fish</span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #660000;">----------------------------------------</span></span></i></div>
<!--EndFragment--><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000;"><span lang="FR"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000;"><span lang="FR"><span style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit;"><strong>Journey</strong></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000;"><span lang="FR" style="font-family: inherit;"></span></span><strong> </strong><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000;"><span lang="FR"><span style="color: #222222; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #222222; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #222222; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">I am spent now.</span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000;"><span lang="FR"><span style="color: #222222; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #222222; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #222222; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #660000;"></span><span style="color: #660000;">Long past the time that I started</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #660000;"></span><span style="color: #660000;">Nobody told me about potholes</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #660000;"></span><span style="color: #660000;">So, here I sit with broken feet</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #660000;"></span><span style="color: #660000;">And one smile I carry in my cheek</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"></span><br />
</span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<div align="LEFT">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000;"><span lang="FR"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000;"><span lang="FR"><span style="color: #222222; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #222222; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #222222; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">I am spent now.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000;"><span lang="FR"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000;"><span lang="FR"><span style="color: #222222; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #222222; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #222222; font-size: medium;"> <span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #660000;"></span><span style="color: #660000;">At the long, wide crossroad I listen</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #660000;"></span><span style="color: #660000;">Somebody tells me about roads</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #660000;"></span><span style="color: #660000;">So, here I stand on crutches</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #660000;"></span><span style="color: #660000;">As one smile I carry on my lips.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"></span> <br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #660000;"></span><span style="color: #660000;">I am saved now.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #660000;"></span><span style="color: #660000;">In divine fulfillment of purpose</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #660000;"></span><span style="color: #660000;">No more will my feet print pain on pitch roads</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #660000;"></span><span style="color: #660000;">No more will my hands ink tears on tunnel walls</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #660000;"></span><span style="color: #660000;">I am joy that sprinkles blessings amongst the people</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #660000;"></span><span style="color: #660000;">And peace is planted and nurtured</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Producing flowers of white and gold</span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="color: #660000;"></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000;"><span lang="FR"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000;"><span lang="FR"><span style="color: #222222; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #222222; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #222222; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="color: #660000;"></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000;"><span lang="FR"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000;"><span lang="FR"><span style="color: #222222; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #222222; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #222222; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="color: #660000;"></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; tab-stops: 105.75pt;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000;"><span lang="FR"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000;"><span lang="FR"><span style="color: #222222; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #222222; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #222222; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Copyright © 2012 Nandi Keyi</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000;"><span lang="FR"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000;"><span lang="FR"><span style="color: #222222; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #222222; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #222222; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="color: #660000;"> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000;"><b><span lang="FR"> -----------------------------------------</span></b></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000;"><b><span lang="FR">Family Tree</span></b></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span> <span style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit;"><b><span lang="FR"></span></b><span lang="EN">I take you in little doses –sipping you slow</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit;"> Adjust to your bitter flavor<br />
As you roll over my tongue<br />
Un-invited<br />
<br />
In my daydreams my family tree is vast <br />
I take comfort in the warm embrace of its limbs<br />
Rest against its firm trunk for support <br />
Let leaves kiss my cheeks<br />
<br />
We sit at dinner tables<br />
Eyes cold –lips-froze shut<br />
No stories told here<br />
No comforting limbs to snuggle into<br />
<br />
</span><span style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit;">Embalmed bodies take up space going through the motions</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit;"> Polite smiles in company mixed<br />
But otherwise<br />
This is a house of zombies<br />
Winter lives comfortable within these walls<br />
Tearscannotcommittofalling<br />
Icicles form around eyelashes<br />
</span><span style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit;">I long to </span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit;"> Thaw out<br />
Peel naked <br />
Wrap up in branches<br />
Lick sap<br />
Feel bark tearing into skin<br />
</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<div align="JUSTIFY">
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit;">But this is your house</span></div>
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit;"> And while here, I play <br />
By your rules<br />
<br />
Copyright © 2012 Zoe Flowers</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<div style="font-weight: bold; text-align: center;">
<div style="font-weight: normal; text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;"> - - - - - - - - </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;">- - - - - - - - </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;">- - - - - - - - </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;">- - - - - - - - </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;">- - - - - -</span></span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;"><br />
</span></span></div>
</div>
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit;"> <b> Amnesia </b><br />
<br />
I have never had full amnesia<br />
so every mirror<br />
confirms <br />
a comely mask<br />
but begs a more pressing question:<br />
<br />
What is your mission?<br />
This time?<br />
<br />
Because a solder's stride<br />
has always propelled my thoughts<br />
led my eyes <br />
to the disquieted ether<br />
to the young woman<br />
pumping her old veins <br />
with a lie<br />
underneath a bridge <br />
near train tracks<br />
<br />
Why is that?<br />
<br />
Or why each dancing molecule<br />
is hobbled at the hips<br />
of sun kissed women<br />
shepherded into cathedrals<br />
of stone and glass<br />
made to sit through<br />
classes in compliance<br />
<br />
The whys fill up my focus<br />
just like the <br />
the statements dressed up as <br />
questions<br />
that buzz around their projections—<br />
the ones who have no mirror at all—<br />
<br />
"Did you really do that?"<br />
<br />
The gall<br />
of their thought experiments<br />
always dissonance<br />
pretending to be<br />
something else<br />
<br />
I look straight through<br />
what I see<br />
feel the ripples in the self <br />
I can't forget<br />
but can't fully name<br />
a witness and<br />
humble translator <br />
of stolen voices<br />
echoes leaping from the<br />
Atlantic <br />
whispers buried<br />
in every someplace <br />
named after <br />
every somebody<br />
turned speculator of<br />
this body<br />
<br />
My mouth<br />
must remain a drum<br />
pounding memory<br />
into the senses<br />
of all who fall<br />
into this puppet show<br />
and believe they pull<br />
their own strings<br />
entangle their knowing<br />
with the acquisition of<br />
things<br />
sleep walk into<br />
high rise coffins<br />
for a husk of a life<br />
<br />
We must become the knife<br />
that slices <br />
the gormandizer open<br />
from the inside<br />
recalls the language<br />
of light <br />
whispered into our bones<br />
by the everything<br />
that breathes through us<br />
and never again<br />
forget what we<br />
walk through dreams<br />
trying so desperately<br />
to remember<br />
<br />
By Keisha-Gaye Anderson<br />
<br />
</span><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<div style="font-weight: normal; text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;">- - - - - - - - </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;">- - - - - - - - </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;">- - - - - - - - </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;">- - - - - - - - </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;">- - - - - - - -</span></span></div>
<div style="color: black; font-weight: normal; text-align: center;">
</div>
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 21px;"></span></span><br />
</span> <br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit;"><b>A Prayer</b></span></div>
</div>
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #660000;"><b> </b></span></span><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #660000;"><span style="color: #660000;"><b>In memory, Whitney Houston</b></span></span></span></div>
</div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #660000;"> <span style="color: #660000;"></span><span style="color: #660000;"></span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">Sleeping</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">in the coffin</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">of the bed</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">she has slept in</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">for forty-nine years,</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"></span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">grief</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">the anvil</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">pushes her deeper</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">into the hard mattress</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">that once was soft,</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">when she nursed</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">her baby girl</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">sang her lullabies</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">that cradled the infant’s sighs</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">to sleep,</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"></span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">and later song.</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">Baby girl Houston</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">sang the sparrows of sleep</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">that grew into eagles</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">whose wings</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">spread like prayer:</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"></span><span style="color: #660000;"></span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">“my days are like a shadow that delineth</span><span style="color: #660000;">and I am withered like grass,</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">by the reason of the voice of my groaning,</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">my bones cleave to my flesh….”</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"></span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">Mama</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">tries to rest</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">will never sleep</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">only hear</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">“the voice of her groaning</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">her drink mingled with weeping.”</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"></span><span style="color: #660000;"></span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">*PSALM 102</span><a href="http://www.blogger.com/" name="_GoBack"></a><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"></span><span style="color: #660000;"></span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">By Pamela L. Laskin</span></span></span><br />
<div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000;"></span></span> <br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000; font-weight: bold;"></span><br />
<div style="font-weight: normal; text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000; font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;">- - - - - - - - </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;">- - - - - - - - </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;">- - - - - - - - </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;">- - - - - - - - </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;">- - - - - - - -</span></span></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000; font-weight: bold;"> </span> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000; font-weight: bold;"></span><br />
<div style="font-weight: normal; text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000; font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;"><br />
</span></span></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000; font-weight: bold;"> </span> <br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000;"><b>Three Daughters</b></span></div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span"><span lang="EN"><span style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit;">Once there was an old man<br />
who had three daughters.</span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #660000;"> One married heaven, the second—fortune,</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"> and the third—time.</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">On the right of his garden grew kindness,</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"> the left knowledge,</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"> and through the middle<br />
a row of evil sprouted.</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">He built a fence around the plot,</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"> leaving a place for love to break through.<br />
It surprised him with fruit</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"> that he never tasted before.</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">Once there was an old man</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"> who wanted to be young</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"> so he drank from the night </span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"> and forgot his name.</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">He went fishing <br />
and caught a carp <br />
with two green eyes</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"> and a violin between her fins.</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">Once there was an old man</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"> who wouldn’t take no for an answer.</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"> He asked the world to be quiet</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"> and there was silence.</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"> </span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;">He knocked on my door</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"> and asked for light.</span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"> I gave him a cup </span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"> and he turned away.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #660000;">By Sarah Stern</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #660000;"><br />
</span></span> <br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000; font-weight: bold;"></span><br />
<div style="font-weight: normal; text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000; font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;">- - - - - - - - </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;">- - - - - - - - </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;">- - - - - - - - </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;">- - - - - - - - </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;">- - - - - - - -</span></span></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000; font-weight: bold;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000;"><b><br />
</b></span><br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000;"><b>TOUCH</b></span></div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit;">my ear craves the sound<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit;">of my mother's voice<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit;">I recite my poems fluent<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit;">like her three names<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit;">I miss her touch<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit;">her suede cloak of skin<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit;">the turn of her shoulders<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit;">at sixty-one I'm still my mama's girl<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit;">how many years<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit;">can I go without her scent<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit;">her voice calling daughter<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit;">By Cheryl Boyce-Taylor</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span></div>
<div style="color: #660000; font-weight: normal; text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;">- - - - - - - - </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;">- - - - - - - - </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;">- - - - - - - - </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;">- - - - - - - - </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;">- - - - - - - -</span></div>
<div style="color: #660000; font-weight: normal; text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;"><br />
</span></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000;"><strong>blackness</strong></span><br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit;"> <br />
<em>i love the<br />
blackness of her hair<br />
<br />
i love the<br />
fullness of her cheeks<br />
<br />
i love her eyes<br />
i love her eyes<br />
<br />
i love the<br />
blackness of her skin<br />
<br />
i love the<br />
fullness of her thighs<br />
<br />
i love her eyes</em> <br />
is she a valley<br />
or a mountaintop<br />
is she an ocean<br />
or a riverstream<br />
i am a path <br />
coursing through <br />
her...i rest at each <br />
dip, and breathe <br />
her in...<br />
<br />
i can hear<br />
my heart breaking<br />
even as i focus<br />
on her pleasure<br />
even as i delight in<br />
her smile...<br />
<br />
i’ve decided its<br />
time to dream her up<br />
more regularly so we<br />
can travel the length of<br />
our bodies together, and so <br />
we can traverse our tongues and <br />
see where all these proverbs<br />
come from, and then of<br />
course i’d like to discover<br />
new places with her in hand, <br />
that way we can grow silent<br />
with laughter together. so, <br />
i purse my lips and squint, <br />
searching for her frame. there <br />
she is, galloping ahead of me. <br />
book in hand, i rush after her,<br />
i really love your hair...<br />
<br />
By Nzingha Tyhemba</span><br />
<div style="font-weight: normal; text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000; font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #990000;"></span><br />
</span></div>
</div>
</div>
WWBPShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08173774905837162542noreply@blogger.com108tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2317983449266165613.post-69171083298232762182012-05-17T16:24:00.000-04:002012-05-17T16:24:38.015-04:00The Art Shed: A Place for Visual Artists to Shed Their Light!WWBPS is now accepting submissions for the "Art Shed" from visual artists of all levels. Submission guidelines same as for print, except that all artwork must be in jpeg format. Email: womenwritersbloom@gmail.com with "Art Shed" in the subject line.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbM-WoCZrt600uWd23eD1P1bL6hvndgs1ypQH-8GOI3MRVSQD5vDtJ3wRJ1ac3V5Bi1LAXmVEYyvqaGOke_FI_1CGOJgFLMkA5EKJMFcoSulsdN_4DWOX8-Qk5TtHBFyHhIGmXzi2nukXG/s1600/The+Naked+Truth+by+Michal+Mahgerefteh.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" kba="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbM-WoCZrt600uWd23eD1P1bL6hvndgs1ypQH-8GOI3MRVSQD5vDtJ3wRJ1ac3V5Bi1LAXmVEYyvqaGOke_FI_1CGOJgFLMkA5EKJMFcoSulsdN_4DWOX8-Qk5TtHBFyHhIGmXzi2nukXG/s200/The+Naked+Truth+by+Michal+Mahgerefteh.jpg" width="163" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Naked Truth <br />
by Michal Mahgerefteh</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigXBLBeNDMPfddCSlgj62Q10I8O3Qg6z1CfilHxmzRXQxC90hL3Xh-YSTfqGHQcPMiMwQyBacWkOdjvLSX4ZBcv6KBoG1uW9_cyQ-sl1BmqSqzgH7aw_y2kwvNOJ7OY1FP6rwesrLRBumB/s1600/swoon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigXBLBeNDMPfddCSlgj62Q10I8O3Qg6z1CfilHxmzRXQxC90hL3Xh-YSTfqGHQcPMiMwQyBacWkOdjvLSX4ZBcv6KBoG1uW9_cyQ-sl1BmqSqzgH7aw_y2kwvNOJ7OY1FP6rwesrLRBumB/s200/swoon.jpg" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Artwork by Sheila Slaughter</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWAePAvpUF6E5onRd4M-dUjq4DQGdgZBq-UE0jjxM-AOQCw2JX_u8BYeYNU5guZSC-n_rqPXw8bMRFmDniAhRCK_dgQPu2gpqbJF-V-qNtz6aJkZdeEEt2nWewOfkh2hnmGalkp0kFku03/s1600/mail.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWAePAvpUF6E5onRd4M-dUjq4DQGdgZBq-UE0jjxM-AOQCw2JX_u8BYeYNU5guZSC-n_rqPXw8bMRFmDniAhRCK_dgQPu2gpqbJF-V-qNtz6aJkZdeEEt2nWewOfkh2hnmGalkp0kFku03/s200/mail.jpeg" width="149" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sacred Feminine<br />
by Sheila Slaughter</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>WWBPShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08173774905837162542noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2317983449266165613.post-79701704860706444692011-04-25T20:31:00.000-04:002011-04-25T20:31:04.900-04:00WWBPS Launches Our First Poetry Salon!!!<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Thank you so much to all our wonderful participants who attended our first ever poetry salon on Saturday, April 23, 2011! Our event was a great success. Thank you to all the beautiful, talented, creative women poets & writers who shared your work and to those who just came to show your support. Women Writers in Bloom Poetry Salon (WWBPS) looks forward to gathering again at our May 2011 event. Below are some photos from our launch event! </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><br />
<img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieLwNyuWNuC4lh-lH5OJd7w6PHhGoAOGHGy8IV2hVkc9AKzfmPnBDk54s3SGnqcD7fjK9v-ar9u5T90sKmVyeIR3Lyz54Fq7iOPsmVDE11pkoi510SckWlIAeZYNTuH93rezO82fIWfEsk/s288/My%20Uploaded%20Photos.jpg" style="cursor: hand; height: 300px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 400px;" /><br />
<br />
<img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj8tBf3fu7j7m0byJho7cIdWAt5AuGNWAM5NN_dfxnwcV4QLvtUgV4CTS1yM5PP5rpwdsmbe3D4my7T4XTi4XgGAQ2-NfWGyuJen1j9WiQoxLMLlQp0yoWeWE55kIR9HYII7fuCHDgi10I/s288/My%20Uploaded%20Photos.jpg" style="cursor: hand; height: 300px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 400px;" /><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4SQ-3TMrA6SoPRGYMzn04Kj5u72sgjg9lf52T1uEJ83drFF4CsgKN9pQH41uG8Z-wyAmwr9DBiZq_P293rLHsxcMIQjWJe0eFxifiwPiLTMmpba3ayMfnfoIN1cdXmMrmtyMM5NYxyBdk/s288/My%20Uploaded%20Photos.jpg" style="cursor: hand; height: 300px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 400px;" />WWBPShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08173774905837162542noreply@blogger.com9