Today’s choice

Previous poems

Philip Athans

by | Sep 4, 2026 | ,

 

 

 

Neveralways

—him—
Never shows up late to a single thing he’s invited to
Always brings the most thoughtful and carefully curated and perfect gift
Never shows up early and never once overstays his welcome
Always appears well groomed and clean and appropriately dressed
Never fails to smile or laugh or shake hands
Always notices what people are wearing, especially women’s shoes
Never complains about traffic, the weather, or politics
Always seems sincere in every word he says
Never avoids the difficult conversations or moments
Always seems on the verge of tears
Never admits to a single bias
Always manages to hide his feelings
Never says what’s bothering him
—it—
Always keeps it to himself
Never looks for it
Always tightly clutches it
Never says it
Always holds it
Never it
Always it
Never
Always

 

 

Editor and author Philip Athans has been the driving force behind varied media including Alternative fiction & poetry magazine and Wizards of the Coast. He lives and works in the Pacific Northwest.

Simon Williams

by | Mar 17, 2026 | ,

What were these fairies called
before we knew of hummingbirds?
Bumblebee moth because of the size?
Reed-nose moth because of the proboscis?

Daniel Sluman

by | Mar 14, 2026 | ,

just as the night sky shifts
beyond the minds

of the animals outside

the ceilings
we are pressed beneath change

in aspect & colour

Farah Ali

by | Mar 12, 2026 | ,

Notes from nature on how to survive this:
 
1. Learn crypsis and mimesis be a gecko or a mossy frog
 
2. Method actors sway like dead-leaf mantises on branches