summernight love
i trace the carvings
on the old bridge
adèle weers, Switzerland
new girlfriend
trying on
our song
Alan S. Bridges, USA
weight gain
a layer of dust
on the scale
stay-at-home dad
crushing on the women
of Sesame Street
Alex Fyffe, USA
one year older
I keep my wishes
to myself
Amy Losak, USA
crayon moon
my granddaughter
explains purple
Andy Burkhart, USA
just before
words take shape . . .
the dance of three dots
Arvinder Kaur, India
retirement planning . . .
another dollar in
the swear jar
B.A. France, USA
slipping the dress from her shoulders
the space between treble
and bass
Ben Gaa, USA
medicine cabinet
an unhealthy amount
of mirrors
Benedict Grant, Canada
104 a slight wobble in one step
Bill Cooper, USA
a box full
of tangled cords and cables
in the closet
all my life a collection
of missed connections
Bob Lucky, Portugal
after midnight
my sentence missing
its period
Brad Bennett, USA
somewhere over the rainbow flag
cactus blossom
no pronouns
to fit me
Bryan Rickert, USA
used books––
running a finger down the spine
of a cat
Chad Lee Robinson, USA
eying the needle
I hold my narrative
by a thread
Cynthia Anderson, USA
the cool
floating in the room
Kind of Blue
Dan Burt, USA
spending time
playing games
on his iPad
he fails to score
with his wife
enjoying expensive
patio furniture
we sit
in the shadows
of debt
Dave Read, Canada
my neighbor
this year
the Christmas lights stay
David Grayson, USA
inner child . . .
no breadcrumbs marking the trail
home
Ed Bremson, USA
first sunday brunch
the lipstick stain
inside my mask
Elizabeth McMunn-Tetangco, USA
even mosquitos
shun this pale skin
chemotherapy
Erin Castaldi, USA
black kajal––
the woman in the mirror
asks me for a drink
Eva Limbach, Germany
divorce proceedings––
finding ways to divvy up
the Gods on the altar
Geethanjali Rajan, India
placemat quiz
at the roadside diner––
we argue in true and false
Genevieve Wynand, Canada
damselfly
I, too, am mistaken
for what I am not
super pink moon
gravid with ideas
I can’t carry to term
the language we employ conotoxins
GRIX, USA
berry picking . . .
a refugee mother’s hands
furl unfurl
Ramadan moon
I make peace
with the inner demons
displacement camp
a Syrian boy befriends
the snowman
Hifsa Ashraf, Pakistan
cloudy morning
the clunk of bottles
in her shopping cart
Jackie Chou, USA
iPhone factory––
the many parts
of the ego
Jacob D. Salzer, USA
recess break
opening our Crown Royal
marble bags
Jacquie Pearce, Canada
her birthday
the tug of a clock’s
small hand
Jamie Wimberly, USA
drop-dead looks
a fanged cobra coiled
around her navel
Jay Friedenberg, USA
a rod over my shoulder dreaming one fish two fish red fish blue fish
Jo Balistreri, USA
missing in action
the loose ends
of a cloth poppy
poplar trees
the phantom scent
of strange fruit
in the blink
of a neon sign
homeless
Joe McKeon, USA
recessive gene
their daughter’s eyes
not quite blue enough
John Hawkhead, United Kingdom
ghetto garden
the seedlings
that never grow
9 pounds 4 ounces
she asks me
if she feels the same
fairy tales
yet another book
on parenting
Jonathan Roman, USA
the twang in her voice
as she sings over the sides
North Carolina BBQ
Joshua Gage, USA
newly unfamiliar
what your eyes tell me
about me
Julie Schwerin, USA
spring breeze
the old man outpaced
by his cologne
silver dollar moon
scratching his lottery
over the trash bin
June Rose Dowis, USA
recipe card
the faded name
of an old friend
Justin Brown, USA
I peel away
the stars from the wall . . .
empty bassinet
Kayla Drouilhet, USA
headstone
still caring
what they think of me
Keith Evetts, United Kingdom
southern heat
drawing out
the -ouge in red
Kelly Sauvage, USA
gender reveal
the smoke
matches the sky
Kevin Valentine, USA
virtual communion
we can all get pissed
during the sermon
LeRoy Gorman, Canada
rising tide
the brush of his fingers
across my thigh
covered in graffiti jesus
Lori A Minor, USA
never too old
to act my age
hula hooping
Louise Hopewell, Australia
postman’s delivery:
he says he enjoyed my poem
about hydrangeas
Maeve O’Sullivan, Ireland
foreign land
among unknown sounds
my mother tongue
Mallika Chari, India
spring formal first dip of the season
Margaret Walker, USA
two weeks’ vacation
no-one I know
at the laundromat
newly-widowed
she buys her first
strapless bra
Marietta McGregor, Australia
whetstone
i sharpen
my wit
Marilyn Ashbaugh, USA
strand by strand
she loosens our pin curls
Sunday mass
Marilyn Fleming, USA
lifted restrictions
me and the cat share
a buddha’s belly
Marina Bellini, Italy
brassiere shop
the salesclerk and I
size each other up
Mary Stevens, USA
cemetery stroll all the parallel shadows
Matthew Markworth, USA
we into I
our into my
translating loss
Maurice Nevile, Australia
late <season> wind––
a <bird species> flicking <choose: water, weeds, rhinos>
from the <choose: birdbath, bird feeder, refrigerator>
Michael Dylan Welch, USA
Zen garden
the urge
to take a stone
meditation hall
flipping the enlightenment
off and on
Michael Henry Lee, USA
mu
will i ever find
what i can never lose
Mike Rehling, USA
silencing
my bamboo flute—
an ambulance’s siren
Milan Rajkumar, India
midday siesta
i slowly drift
into my childhood
Dr. Mona Bedi, India
stale bedroom
the fumes of her
past loves
Mona Iordan, Romania
his first roti––
the migrant worker
feeds the stray
Neena Singh, India
rain delay––
tic-tac-toe
on a baseball
Nicky Gutierrez, USA
rye whiskey
telling her a name
that’s not mine
day’s end
I edit the laundry list
of who I’ve been
Nika, Canada
nickname
the new friend who thinks
he knows me
slave quilt
great-gran’s voice
in and out of sleep
Pat Davis, USA
blue sky
my thoughts
finally sober
Pere Risteski, North Macedonia
that priest
before his little lie
i knew him
Philip Guignard, Malaysia
a week
and it still won’t blossom––
watercolor practice
Pippa Phillips, USA
“No Loitering”
he begs for change
somewhere else
R. S. Evans, USA
voters queue
the first-timer
hums a melody
Ramesh Anand, India
polo match
her parents choose
a fine groom
Ravi Kiran, India
sparrows
twittering in a scarecrow’s ear
conspiracy theories
Rick Jackofsky, USA
nephew’s play-doh
the form
memories take
Robert Moyer, USA
retirement
toasting Tuesday
with what’s left of Monday’s wine
Robert Witmer, Japan
my turn to hunt
the warmth of father’s hand
still on the gun
Ron C. Moss, Australia
whatever
the radio gives me
Friday night drive
Ryan Hediger, USA
summer afternoon
things dad can do
with his eyes closed
chromebook
the escape key
missing
hill
I’m so
over it
Sarah E. Metzler, USA
toy tugboat––
high tide
on the bathroom floor
playing Scrabble––
we both try
to let the other win
Sarah Ockrim, USA
carefully tracing
their paper hearts
self-contained classroom
Sari Grandstaff, USA
quid pro quo
my last word
for yours
Shloka Shankar, India
inflammatory claims . . .
praying for the strength
not to post back
Stephen C. Curro, USA
midnight station
the drunk speaking
in tongues
Steve Black, United Kingdom
Sunset Blvd––
an old woman sitting
on a bus bench. . .
still waiting
for my 15 minutes of fame
bulging eyes––
the tell
when I’m yelling
at you
in my head
Susan Burch, USA
divorce party
shattering the pinata
on the first hit
susan spooner, Canada
vaccinated
still
Rapunzeling
bee sting
expanding
my vocabulary
Tanya McDonald, USA
puberty
my son’s voice changing
me
seasons spent weathering into self-worth
Terri L. French, USA
kids asleep
ice cubes
tumbling
into glasses
wallet keys phone
mask
Tim Cremin, USA
luxury hotel––
towels so fluffy
the suitcase won’t close
Tom Staudt, Australia
pharmacy queue
whispering the name
of my antidepressant
Tomislav Sjekloća, Montenegro
nymphaea stalk
I keep stroking
his ego
Vandana Parashar, India
stuck in traffic
he sends friend requests
on Facebook
Vasile Moldovan, Romania
alone
inside the mosque
my black skin
the only contrast
to this white world
Waliyullah Tunde Abimbola, Nigeria
adding sugar
the teaboy stirs
me up
Yasir Farooq, Pakistan
Prune Juice Journal of Senryu & Related Forms 
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