You are always twenty-six.
I feel your heart in the beat of wind-
shield wipers and rain on the roof.
Continue reading Driving to Palm Beach Gardens Cemetery – Poem by KB Ballentine
Category Archives: Poetry 2014-2019
ADR poetry published 2014-2019
Beyond the Silence — Poem by K. B. Ballantine
Whispers from the walls
conquer the silence of the street.
Memories flow into and through
me: you mowing the lawn, planting
roses; her pink elephant, blue tie
scrunched in bow-shaped lips.
Continue reading Beyond the Silence — Poem by K. B. Ballantine
Shomerim at Birkenau — by KB Ballantine
Shomerim* at Birkenau
*guardians or keepers of the dead
Tagged with the numbers scarred
on my grandmother’s arm, I step through
the open gate once barred against her.
Self-Portrait at 40 – Poem by KB Ballentine
At the edge of the ocean
I find my center –
the swell and dip of rhythmic waves
journeying from place
to place, never stopping, never
reaching any home –
worrying, teasing the shore then off
again
Continue reading Self-Portrait at 40 – Poem by KB Ballentine
Voyeur — Poem by KB Ballentine
A haze hovers around the border of the valley,
smoke trees blazing into bloom, a line of cherry
blushing in between. Pollen lazes on bridges, cars.
Mental Insomnia — Poem by Darius Myrick
Stay awake
try your best to stay alive
‘til death do you part
stay up ‘til you become part of that insomnia
the best things known for us are there when you see it
you can’t see it if you sleep…
not just a nap, not just bedtime, but in many human and spiritual forms as well
Until It’s Over — Poem by Darius Myrick
We are all family
My mother father
sister and brother
through thick and thin
turmoil and grief
triumph and success
always more nothing less
not a mountain i wouldn’t climb
or a river i wouldn’t swim
to get what you need or desire
when it seems so dim.
Smile for No Reason — Poem by Darius Myrick
I bet a lot of you wonder sometimes
why do i smile so much?
why are you so goofy? what is so funny?
you know what…
sometimes i wonder the same thing
cuz my life is no joke at all
i keep a smile to leave off my pain
i joke alot to keep away my thoughts
of being insane
Continue reading Smile for No Reason — Poem by Darius Myrick
Tears of Pride – Poem by Darius Myrick
oeWhat you say could be wrong or right
how i react may not suit your interest
we could one day love each other til the end of time
and the next have this worldly intellect disconnect us from our private society
Proud — Poem by Darius Myrick
This is me,
My face, my skin, my hair
What I wear, how I think
My interpretation, my life, my story
I’m proud of it.