Today’s choice
Previous poems
Afolabi Ezra
The Day Nothing Happened
It was a quiet day—
no bad news,
no sudden loss,
no reason to hold my breath.
I didn’t notice it at first,
how rare that is.
The sky stayed where it was,
the ground didn’t give way,
my phone remained silent
in the best possible way.
I drank water
without thinking about survival.
I laughed
and didn’t have to explain why.
It felt almost suspicious—
like peace was something borrowed,
something that might be taken back
if I looked at it too closely.
So I didn’t.
I let the day pass through me
unchallenged,
unquestioned—
and only later realized
it had been a gift
I almost ignored.
Afolabi Ezra
Miriam Swales
I’m waiting for news I don’t want to talk about
and scrolling through old photos to escape.
After some swipes, I see you walking away.
Chris Hardy
The night before we left we smoked opium
for the first time and didn’t sleep.
Angela France
Perhaps some small creature fallen
from where it should be. I am unsure
whether I saw it move.
Adam Horovitz
We cannot update you yet, other than to say we are caught
in a doldrums between stations and that your father can wait
as he has been waiting these past two years . . .
Sue Spiers
A woodpigeon calls
his five-note matins.
Petals ratchet wide
as the sun rises.
Alison Jones
Distance from the ground has become
a way of reminding myself,
how the earth turns her swaying tilt
John Coburn
Inside May’s warm beauty
I think of God and of the Virgin Mary.
I’ve always loved Mary.
Joe Wright
three sheep and a sharp wind, behind
which I feel involvement start
to tug.
Clara-Læïla Laudette
I’m six days late
and this is known as a
delinquent period.