We’ve blocked the sun and choked the flower.

jpoet7/Joseph Black Photography

Silence now no birdsong tweet
Concrete pylons in the street
Conifers that once stood tall
Nesting chicks no longer call.
Plastic populates the planet
Choking cormorant and gannet
Smoking chimneys, acid rain
Deserts populate the plain.
Icebergs melting tumble down
Rising waters islands drown
Blinded by our greed for power
We’ve blocked the sun and choked the flower.
J. Poet 7 ( @wordverse.me )

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Pieces Of Me 2 ~ A Poem By Walt Page, The Tennessee Poet

Part 2 of the life and times of my friend ~The Tennessee Poet~

Walt's Writings

Several of my followers have suggested I do a poetic
memoir of my life – things I’ve done, places I’ve been,
things I’ve seen, etc. I will do these Pieces Of Me
periodically in no particular order. This is Pieces Of Me 2.

Wagner College Intramural Diving Champion, 1965
Member Tau Kappa Epsilon (TKE) Fraternity
Summer job – clerk typist
Worked at Defense Subsistence Supply Center in Brooklyn, NY
Tested for pilot training in US Air Force
Qualified for Navigator training
Polyps found on sinuses – no flying
Trains as Missile Launch Control Officer
Married in 1968
Drummer with The Zodiac Zoo
Drummer with Davey B & The Sonics
Miscarriage of first baby
Honorable Discharge, January 1971
Started work at Ausable Chasm, April 1971
Planned and developed 120 ste KOA Kampground
Promoted to Assistant General Manager
President of Adirondack Attractions Association
Drummer with Herbie Rock Band
Drummer & lead singer…

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Pieces Of Me 1 ~ A Poem By Walt Page, The Tennessee Poet

Read about the life and times of ~The Tennessee Poet~

Walt's Writings

Several of my followers have suggested I do a poetic
memoir of my life – things I’ve done, places I’ve been,
things I’ve seen, etc. I will do these Pieces Of Me
periodically in no particular order.

Insight into The Tennessee Poet
Born as a Preacher’s Kid
Named Walter A. Page, Jr.
Dad was English and Irish
His father was also a preacher
Mom was a red-haired Scottish lass
Her father was a Lindsay
Grew up in a musical family
Took piano and trumpet lessons
Settled on drums
Played drums in school marching band,
Swing band, jazz band and
Symphony orchestra
Have one older brother
Paul – a redhead
Born in Ogdensburg, NY
Lived in Massena, NY
Moved to Westport, NY on Lake Champlain
Then to Lisle, NY
Dad became pastor of
The Oakwood Heights Community Church
n Staten Island, NY when I was 16
Graduated high school
Then 4…

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Forever My Muse

Reblogged on Today from the Man Shed. Just love this Joe, doggie poems get me every time.

A Thing for Words

Has it been five years, or even six,
since we went on that final ride?
I think of it whenever I see that photo
of you and me sleeping, my head
on your shoulder and your patience
on full display. You were my muse.
And even though I’ve stopped
high-stepping over that place
in the carpet where you used to lay,
(I even found myself hurdling shadows
after the carpet was removed)
you have your way of coming back
to inspire some poem I didn’t know
I had within me. Like this morning,
when I found a golden Golden hair
shining in the back of a drawer
while I searched for something
I can’t recall now. It must have been
this poem. You knew I needed you.
You’ll always be my muse, just as I
will always be the man you led
toward art at the end of a leash.

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Tomorrow’s Bread

Kevin Barrett's Blog

I tire so of hearing people say,
Let things take their course.
Tomorrow is another day.
I do not need my freedom when I’m dead.
I cannot live on tomorrow’s bread.
―   Langston Hughes
.
On This Day In:
2018	Impeach 45: Make America Great Again
2017	Training Shoulders
2016	You Just Have To Care
Day 4 – Blending
2015	My Slow Education
2014	Great Service
2013	You Really Should Wear More Sweaters
Here I Am God
2012	The Serenity Prayer
2011	The Victory Of Life

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Eleanor McEvoy, Ailie, Paula Meehan, Moyra Barry : Ceiliúradh Mhna Na h-Eireann (Celebrating the Women of Ireland 5)

Don’t allow this pass you by without taking a few moments to read Thom’s inspiring words and listen to melodious voices.

The Immortal Jukebox

A little over ambitious with my scheduling!

I forgot that not only did I have a duty to celebrate the season of St Patrick here on The Jukebox I also had to celebrate in person and recover from those celebrations!

So, a little delayed, but I trust well worth the wait, the Official Immortal Jukebox St Patrick’s Day Post!

Now read on ….

All Hail St Patrick!

All Hail the Women of Ireland

Today we conclude our tribute to the intelligence, wisdom and beauty the Women of Ireland have brought to the arts of Song, Poetry and Painting.

Songs by Eleanor McEvoy (At the Mid Hour of Night & A Woman’s Heart) & AIlie (The Rocky Road to Dublin).

A Poetry Reading by Paula Meehan  – ‘The Pattern’.

A Painting by Moyra Barry (1886-1960) : ‘Cinerria’

More years ago than I care to count seeking sanctuary from the crazed cacophony…

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Words, invaders and natives alike. Poetry from the pen of

~The Poet’s Poet~

His poetry is but a product of his thoughts

Many words written live their life on the margins of a page

Others, he makes them hooligan words

Destructive words, monstrous, rainbow colourful words

He can make words portray waves lashing against rocks.

Sound like waterfalls, flutter like butterflies

Imagination when slowly and reluctantly raised from its slumber

Can cause words to be undisciplined, need supervision, revised.

The work of the poet, writers in general

Is to knock their arrogance into a cocked hat.

From the shelter of the mighty oak

He sat transfixed

Watched as the hare moved through a flourishing meadow

He wondered about the hare’s vulnerability

It and his own longevity

Not for very long as the hare bounded out of sight.

Wrapped up in his rhapsody of words

He would oft times write poetically on individual occurrences

A simple sestet

Otherwise a poem might never reach its conclusion

Was this then a poem or an illusion?

© Chris Black. March 2019

#Poetry #amwriting #SpokenWord

Listen to a spoken word version on #soundcloud  

Musical accompaniment #Sonata in A Minor K59 (L241) Album Horowitz: the Celebrated Scarlatti recordings – expanded edition. By Domenico Scarlatti, Vladimir Horowitz.

Dolores Keane, The Evertides & Eavan Boland : Celebrating the Women of Ireland 1)

Do check out.

The Immortal Jukebox

March now.

The sun shines hot and the wind blows cold.

Summer in the light and winter in the shade.

March is the month when the Immortal Jukebox, in the run up to the St Patrick’s day festivities, celebrates the enormous contribution Irish artists have made to the World’s treasury of Poetry, Song and Paintings.

This year’s posts are in celebration of the works, so often under regarded, of the Women of Ireland.

Each post will feature a song by an established singer and another by a singer or group who may not yet have gained fame outside of Ireland.

I will also be showcasing a Poetry reading and a Painting.

I hope I will be making introductions that will lead you to further exploration.

Today :

Songs by Dolores Keane and The Evertides.

Eavan Boland reading :

‘The Lost Art of Letter Writing’, ‘Quarantine’ and ‘The Emigrant Irish’.

A…

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Nature’s model

You might also like to check out his nature photos.

jpoet7/Joseph Black Photography

Nature’s model

I cannot wait to take a walk

Inhale the morning air

Take a snapshot of my thoughts

And then with you I’ll share.

In the treetops songbird sounds

Echo beauty that surrounds

Capture colour, palette pour

Like an operatic score.

Gentle whisper, lilting leaves

Creates a softness in the breeze

Opens senses, pleasant phases

Nature’s model that amazes.

J.poet 7 ( @wordverse.me )

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Submitting to Poetry Journals & Competitions: A Beginner’s Guide

a dreaming skin

Chatting to writers during the recent #JanuaryWriteOff 30 Day Challenge, it became clear many people find the process of submitting to poetry journals and competitions quite daunting. From formatting to bios to fees, there can be a lot of hoops to jump through and I thought it might be useful to walk you through the process.

What Goes into a Submission?

When you’re preparing work to send out into the world, you will need to prepare a package of information comprising some, or all, of the following:

• Your work, presented in accordance with the competition or journal’s Submission Guidelines;
• A short writer’s bio;
• A cover letter and/or a completed application form;
• An author’s photo;
• Competition or Submission fees (if applicable).

Let’s take a look at each of these in more detail.

Submission Guidelines

I’ve attended lots of workshops given by editors and publishers, and they all go something…

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