THE DIARY

My poetry prompt for NaPoWriMo and Cheer Peppers is the first dreamscape painting I ever did and it hangs on my mom’s wall. It’s called the Night Ballet. It’s about a ballerina nobody wanted because she didn’t look like ballerinas are supposed to look. But it’s ok because she finds a place she can be…

DREAMS

My poetry prompt for NaPoWriMo and Cheer Peppers is this piece of digital art I created of a girl fulfilling her dream to be a ballerina. It flows through dance A tickle we cannot feel Not at first anyway But like a lovely seed That grows miraculously Or a painful thorn That digs and digs…

FROZEN LINES

I’ve committed to doing NaPoWriMo this month with the Cheer Peppers. That means 30 days of poetry. I’ve gotten out of the habit so these will be super short and since I’ve been spending most of my time painting these poems will be inspired by something I’ve painted. Many little deaths fall onto a blank…

THE COMMENT POEMS BOOK by ROBERT WERTZLER

I have a friend I met years ago on WordPress who is consistently supportive and kind. He published a book that I just received in the mail. It’s so clever. Over the years he would comment on a poem with his own poetry. Not just for me but for so many other poets. So this…

THE BEST JOY

Sometimes I feel like the ghost Whispering ideas That take root Pushing you Like a gentle breeze To feel better To be better To continue on Forward and back Rocking you When it’s dark Singing into you Comfort and joy Until the sun rises Sometimes I feel Like a ghost Fully visible Yet wholly unseen…

LOVE BIRDS

I was a blank spirit Depleted and forsaken Walking over tiny twigs Snap snap snap crack Cotton hung from the sky Like little gauzy curtains Billowing in front of me And the breeze was a ghost Stripping flowers from trees These things I noticed Somehow I knew These things would save me But still I…

SELF LOVE LIVES IN AN ORCHARD

The song had words Only I could hear They passed by Crumbling corridors And floated Over cracked linoleum Drifted through Burnt up rafters And settled In the distant trees Beautifully loving words Spoken with my voice Just perched Far beyond reach And I am lonely Knowing my self love Lives in an orchard

READY TO LISTEN

There is a kind of knowing That lives in your heart It has no form or shape It has no empirical data It’s abstract action An emotional drawing That takes residence Like a cockroach Drunk on absinthe A horrible knowledge You know exists But your brain It’s a coward Not as brave as your heart…

NATURAL PREDATORS

The forest is full of predators Majestic feathers or soft fur Brutal hunters underneath A chorus of sweet bird songs Escaping from piercing beaks Colorful patterns that play and hide Just waiting with their toxins To protect, paralyze, or kill Humans are scary beautiful too Men are the apparent hunters Some are natural protectors And…

A STORY

Don’t think Walk slow Stay steady Focus on steps Close off sound Close off smell Shallow breath Step into shower It’s cold Sharp inhale Shock Water warms Wash hair Wash body Then cry Cry harder Feel your body Shaking Breaking Washing down drain… No… Stop thinking Feel the water Stand until It grows cold again…