Poetry by Mary Bone

Image | Min An

Music Healed Me

Music healed me,

reaching into my innermost thoughts.

My soul was touched by a violin

playing in the distance,

drawing me out of sadness,

replacing the emptiness with joy.

Vessels of God’s Grace

We are all vessels of God’s grace,

serving others,

across the human race.

Fill us up, Lord,

to over-brimming.

Pour us out, Lord.

Show us your face.

The hand of God

rests on us all.

He will pick us up when we fall.

Nostalgia

I had wild cravings in a forest,

while searching for the jam of life.

A clarinet plays in the distance.

Nostalgia of another time.

© Mary Bone

Mary Bone

Mary Bone has been writing poetry and short stories since childhood. She has written two books of poetry. Some of her poetry has been published at Masticadores USA, Poetry Catalog, Literary Yard, Spillwords, The Oklahoma Today Magazine, Literary Revelations, Blaze Vox Spring 2025 Issue online, and other places.  Recent poetry is upcoming at eMerge Magazine and Zest of the Lemon.

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Pilgrim by Ajanta Paul

Image | Stefan Stefancik

Pilgrim

He travels light, his whole life 

rolled into a cloth sling bag,

barefoot and bereft of boons.

He carries an atlas of dreams

within him, vast seascapes 

of river meeting ocean 

where he hopes to perform 

penance in the estuary

of old age. Sluggish tides

pull at his body as the

hardened soles of his feet

test the lap of water.

His pilgrimage has brought him

far into the cold, gusty border

of river and sea, white and grey.

The almanac in his soul

flutters open to the leaf

of a holy day of ritual baths.

He takes a dip in the currents

and feels his burdens 

flowing away from him.

He is lighter than when 

he had started out,

his eyes, wise beyond their light. 

© Ajanta Paul

Ajanta Paul

Ajanta Paul is a widely published poet, short story writer, and literary critic. He was a former Principal of Women's Christian College, Kolkata. A Pushcart nominee, Ajanta has been published in literary journals including Capella Biannual Journal, Offcourse, The Statesman, The Wild Word, Atticus Review, and Spadina Literary Review. 

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STORM IN THE DISTANCE by Ray Whitaker

 

Image | Dziana Hasanbekava

STORM IN THE DISTANCE

She walks intently forward

unafraid of grey’s lack of definition

fearing, respecting only the flickering red

not minding the temporary, wavering oranges

disregarding the black...

knowing there is still something green somewhere.

Even tho something is burning

out there

perhaps in a county far away

where strife makes humanity cry.

White snow refreshes everything.

© Ray Whitaker

Ray Whitaker

Ray has four books published and two chapbooks. His work has been published in eleven different countries. Ray was a Delegate to the 2024 Writers’ International Panorama Festival. He participates regularly in several Zoom poetic events worldwide. Among them, he has been spotlighted on a US National Poetry broadcast from Quintessential Listening Poetry Online Radio in 2024, and also an International Poetry Recital hosted by The Fertile Minds out of India.  In July 2025, he was the featured poet in David Leo Sirois’

Spoken World Online, which is associated with Spoken Word Paris.

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Silent Prayer by Linette Rabsatt

 

Image | Sachin C. Nair

Silent Prayer

 

I saw the older folks

come into the church

bow their heads silently

and pray

but today

I think audibility

is key

to call on the Father

to help us to be

a better version of ourselves

let these prayers

sing loudly through

the valleys

and echo through the mountains

let our supplications

flow like water

tumbling down like a fountain

and piled into the sea

praying away disasters and misery

pleading for God’s infinite mercy

a supplication

for forgiveness for our bad deeds

in this loud prayer

I cry and can hardly breathe

because indeed

I have done wrong

but I hope that my audible prayer will reach the ears of God

© Linette Rabsatt

Linette Rabsatt

Linette Rabsatt is a Virgin Islands poet with roots in the British Virgin Islands and the United States Virgin Islands. She began writing in 1996. Her work is available in her Kindle book, Be Inspired: Poems by Linette Rabsatt, and on her blog, Words of Ribbon. Linette writes to inspire the world with her words.

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Man Outside a Store by Peter Mladinic

 

Image | Timur Webber

Man Outside a Store

I slip him 3 folded ones, take the thanks

in his glazed eyes home,

to sit at a table. He might offer a name,

steal the flat screen, the china.

I might ask if the sound of rain on a roof

brings to mind a mother’s face.

He has hands to wash cars and dishes.

Is my 3 abetting a man kicked by

the system? We trade lives. He pulls away

in my Jeep Wrangler. In an alley

behind, housed the Tiger Rose pint I uncap stays in its paper sack as I drink it down.

This poem is from Peter's book Files of Information. 

© Peter Mladinic

Peter Mladinic

Peter Mladinic's most recent book of poems, Maiden Rock, is available from Uncollected Press. An animal rights advocate, he lives in Hobbs, New Mexico, United States.

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A New Light by Dawn Pisturino

Image | Anna Shvets

A New Light

I extend my hand to you

And offer you my love,

Not to lead you astray,

But to show you a better way to live.

Hate and anger will never bring you joy.

They can only drive love away.

Bitterness bites the soul,

Making it smaller.

Envy shrinks the heart,

Turning it to stone.

Arise, my friend, to a new light

And drive the darkness away.

© Dawn Pisturino

Dawn Pisturino

Dawn Pisturino is a retired registered nurse in Arizona whose international publishing credits include poems, short stories, and articles. She has published five poetry collections, including her most recent release, Ancient Voices: Poems About Ancient Egypt, which achieved #1 Amazon New Release status in African Poetry and History of Egypt.

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Books, Balls, and Candy by Terry Allen

 

Image | Mael BALLAND

Books, Balls, and Candy

I managed to fly from Minnesota

to Florida, getting in after midnight

to be with my mother

in the hospital where she was dying,

and after she passed, I spent a week

alone in her condo, going through

everything and getting it ready

to sell, and in doing so, I discovered

a drawer full of this and that

and whatnot, the bits and pieces,

the memorabilia of a lifetime,

and in that drawer was a lock,

a small vintage Victorian

brass and iron word letter

combination padlock 

with pull sideways action,

a padlock with 4 turning barrels

that would spell the password,

READ, which I recalled

quite clearly from my childhood,

when my mother told me stories

about how the lock had traveled

from Britain to Australia

and now with her to America,

and read was one of the first words

I learned to spell, and it’s no wonder

really that the first Christmas

when I was old enough to ask

for what I wanted from Santa,

I said I’d like to have books,  balls, and candy.

First published in Boundless Anthology

© Terry Allen

Terry Allen

Terry Allen is an Emeritus Professor of Theatre Arts at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, where he taught acting, directing and playwriting. He is the author of five poetry collections: Monsters in the Rain, Art Work, Waiting on the Last Train, Rubber Time, and Preserving the Past for the Present.

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