Anemone
His hands smell of anemone and mushrooms
on a spring morning.
The sea is as flat as he is silent.
He’s a man who deals with silence and water, with
the weight of the stones in his pockets.
The tide has just begun to come back in, and he’s on the beach,
walking toward the town where I live alone, taking pictures of angles
and shadows that look like things they aren’t.
There are no waves at this time of day; there is only him.
I pretend that he is my father and I am his daughter.
I pretend that I have never been kissed.
I think about the way that he walks, and how he smells like my mother’s garden
in the summertime, before it was taken away from her by the wind.
![Zdjęcie WhatsApp 2024-05-26 o 22.39.12_c4b1f4a1.jpg](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/1e9562_fd48d8f1c6fb4a869d66b453b5f6d8dc~mv2.jpg/v1/crop/x_182,y_0,w_916,h_931/fill/w_212,h_216,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_auto/Zdj%C4%99cie%20WhatsApp%202024-05-26%20o%2022_39_12_c4b1f4a1.jpg)
Claudia Wysocky, a Polish writer and poet based in New York, is known for her diverse literary creations, including fiction and poetry. Her poems, such as "Stargazing Love" and "Heaven and Hell," reflect her ability to capture the beauty of life through rich descriptions. Claudia also shares her personal journey and love for writing on her own blog, and she expresses her literary talent as an immigrant raised in post-communism Poland.
Broken Window
You know that broken
window? the one that
lets rain warp floors
heat escape
arguments
for everyone
to hear?
maybe it’s better
we keep it
maybe it’s better
we’re a warning
to others
![unnamed.jpg](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/1e9562_5c32ad67a5244c6d9ef0314d022b1fbb~mv2.jpg/v1/crop/x_71,y_0,w_433,h_576/fill/w_172,h_229,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_auto/unnamed.jpg)
Erin Jamieson’s writing has been published in over eighty literary magazines, including two Pushcart Prize nominations. Her poetry chapbook, Fairytales, was published by Bottlecap Press and her most recent chapbook, Remnants, came out in 2024. Her debut novel (Sky of Ashes, Land of Dreams) came out November 2023.
Salutation
Crows being crows
Before the traffic starts
And the night ends
Alone in the shower
Gazing at my privates
Completely insignificant
Knowing you’re alive
Just a mile or so away
Asleep in your bed
The world awakening
So soon to engulf us
Within its vast whim
Restraint is an infection
Cleared up with a cup
Of French roast coffee
I’ll call you tomorrow
Knowing you’re alive
Is enough for the moment
But watch out mi amore
Insignificance is contagious
I might just kiss you
![IMG_2770.jpeg](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/1e9562_a7d63f67552d4889a77e1a37216a3c37~mv2.jpeg/v1/crop/x_0,y_1,w_2320,h_3085/fill/w_172,h_229,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_auto/IMG_2770.jpeg)
Jay Passer's work has appeared in print and online since 1988. He is the author of 15 collections of poetry and prose and one novel. A native of San Francisco, he currently resides in Los Angeles, California. Passer's most recent collection of poems, Son of Alcatraz, released in February, 2024 by Alien Buddha Press, is available from Amazon
Doing Fine
Beth phoned from the west coast,
after a year of silence,
and everything she said
was a variation on “I’m doing fine”
and my response never got beyond
“so am I.”
Same as when we were together,
she was fine, I was fine,
we were both fine.
All that fineness
and the earth cracked beneath us,
and we split apart
in tears and anger.
Distance helps with fineness.
Now, there’s just some static on the line.
![JohnGrey 9.jpg](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/1e9562_efdc8fa1a87e41c4b170cbbecae3e5f6~mv2.jpg/v1/fill/w_133,h_199,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_auto/JohnGrey%209.jpg)
John Grey is an Australian poet, US resident, recently published in New World Writing, North Dakota Quarterly and Lost Pilots. Latest books, ”Between Two Fires”, “Covert” and “Memory Outside The Head” are available through Amazon. Work upcoming in California Quarterly, Seventh Quarry, La Presa and Doubly Mad.
Prayer for A Certain Type of Truck Driver
In my less spiritual moments when I am riding my bike in my hometown or on narrow coastal roads, I pray that a certain type of truck driver - alternative American flags flying, slogans blaring swear words about presidents, engines revving full penile throttle, the farts of toxic black smoke, windows winding down so a wanna-be quarterback can shout at me to get off my expletive bike or raise a finger - suddenly breaks down in the middle of their nowhere, engine sputtering, no idea why, just a molten manhood. Maybe they find redemption in the realization that a bike might not be so bad after all. But I doubt it.
![MF Headshot.jpg](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/1e9562_fdccbb01f07f4f8ea7c688acca87bf9d~mv2.jpg/v1/fill/w_134,h_210,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_auto/MF%20Headshot.jpg)
Matthew James Friday is a British born writer and teacher. He has had many poems published in US and international journals. His first chapbook ‘The Residents’ is due to be published by Finishing Line Press in summer 2024. He has published numerous micro-chapbooks with the Origami Poems Project. Poems are forthcoming in The Potomac Review, Weber - The Contemporary West Review and The Amsterdam Quarterly (NL). Matthew is a Pushcart Prize nominated poet. Visit his website at http://matthewfriday.weebly.com
remember you
washing my hair—
I stamp my feet—
spit into my hands—
run them thru
the distance
![meggeson, sean_m and m_the odd.jpg](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/1e9562_c8bb15df9d004b2a99b76dcc69b2e674~mv2.jpg/v1/fill/w_133,h_210,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_auto/meggeson%2C%20sean_m%20and%20m_the%20odd.jpg)
Sean Meggeson lives in Toronto, Canada, where he works as a psychoanalytic psychotherapist. He has written and lectured on such topics as Lacan & James Joyce, neurodiversity, and alternative rock. Sean recently has had poems in A Thin Slice of Anxiety, Scud, Scab, Stink Eye, and others. Check out his blog: www.lippykookpoetrymachine.blogspot.com
X: @lippykookpoetry