I just called to say hello

by | May 30, 2010 | Prose & Poetry

Ink Sweat & Tears editor is on the roads at the moment with internet connections few and far between, so here's a short poem from Michael Estabrook that neatly sums up one aspect of communications…Only Daughter “Hi Mom, Patti,” she’d saywhenever...

Carmen Eichman was a military brat

by | May 29, 2010 | Prose & Poetry

Military Brat?So you’re a military brat?Yes, I replied, each time, quizzically obedient,though today wondering what the hell that meant.We moved every two to three years,moved in the middle of the year, managed one Christmas eve in a Holiday Inn,Christmas day on a...

June catches her breath

by | May 25, 2010 | Prose & Poetry

We mentioned the launch for Martin Figura's new collection Whistle in the previous posting – now here's another poem from that collection…DistanceSuddenly June catches her breath,wakes reeling from the vertiginous blurred curvature of the earth,its...

Chris Tracy is at the beach at dusk

by | May 24, 2010 | Prose & Poetry

FifteenDusk, high summer,the sky streaked caramel.Muffled shouts and dog barkssweep the shoreline like radar;the sand is strewn with jellyfish.I thread back, reeled in through marram and half-submerged lolly-stickstill snagged in a sudden hollow.Below, a young couple,...

Alison Brackenbury wants the sun

by | May 22, 2010 | Prose & Poetry

Souvenir My daughter could not bring the sun from Greece.So she arrived, swinging a carrier bag,Light blue, bristling with Ks, and crammed with sweets. First, there was nougat, which I knew from slabsBuried in chocolate, stale black card, as logsSulked into...

Paul Handley is caught up in tough love

by | May 21, 2010 | Prose & Poetry

Love Cliché   Rebekah believed in the power of the healing heartHearing her say this didn’t crush his heart,But a part crumbled to the floor. Another time she actually said the words,One following the other, “mission statement”.  “Never settle,”Patently...