If researchers don’t share the “dope”Will the viruses then just plum lose hope?If researchers can’t take and share their notesDoes that mean the fever’s broke?If the virus doesn’t get publicityDoes that mean for us, inoculation is no longer a medical necessity? If we go pulling a pillow over our collective heads,will it help us when…

He never raised a hand, never really lifted his eyes from the brim of his whiskey glass or his book to look, and see how the evening turned to dusk  or the morning to bright  while mother’s drones ricocheted  off the walls of the house  he is at it again he always is, he is. I…

Because I was fascinated by your manicured fingernails flipping through the hotel guestbook, I followed you to the bakery, and stood close enough behind you to smell your spicy after-shave and see the freckle on the back of your neck while you ordered a coffee, so I ordered a cinnamon roll and sat at the…

By Michael Lee Johnson Wrinkles etch stories on skin, tears carve rivers through time. Both are loyal cartographers of the heart, mapping jubilation and lancination alike, to the drumbeat of passing days. Focus on the years. Here, children burst like crocuses in Illinois soil. Old folks fade like dusk devoured by the horizon. Brief footprints on…

 The full moon tide is higher than usual. It pulls the sand and the human psyche into an all engulfing extreme. Waves like slurping tongues lap in a frantic pulse while the human circulatory system flows in erratic rhythm. Sleep disturbing dreams splash the circulatory system and morning motions require additional balance. Copyright 2026 Gerry…

I bought peaches  From men with filthy fingers Paying too high a price For a hot summer’s day sweet promise. Their truck, half empty And littered with oxygen tanks. Sparse produce of bright colors In little baskets for fifteen dollars. I paid them for the anticipation— Unthinking, uncaring With opportunistic peach juice Running down my…

Life is a journey they sayIn this journey we tour far away Have flown to diverse lands andExplored novel people and brands The best flight is the one thatBrings me home to my motherWhere love, warmth and peaceAlways become my soft cover An abode to rest, a heart to shareMother’s love is beyond compare Homeward …

Say there was a pond:  algae are one of the most important parts  of this ecosystem. When he was in his twenties, not yet married, he bought a parcel of land—110 acres. House at the forefront, solid foundation, apple orchard and woods at the back. The old timber on his property was valuable; over the…

Crosses stand on the crossways. Mist and sorrow prevail. Fire, stars and the sun rays, Temples, taverns and jail. Waves of light, warm and gentle Girls on brooms in the sky Tender kiss of a candle. Flocks of cranes flying by My old soul, tired, wrinkled, Stir my blood, cold and still I will chase…