October

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Morning Meditation

Author

'There is one heart whose thoughts are strong, whose very dreams are lives.' - G.M.

Evening remnants patter softly on

             the roof, though whether driblets from

an oak or just the rhythmic cadence

             of the ceiling fan is more than I can 

say. It siphons me hypnotically above 

             the bed and through the drywall, above 

the yellow house where all the branches

             congregate to share their scented secrets.     

Up and up it ushers me till I’m beyond

             the Milky Way, where there I apprehend 

that yes, surely this is someone's dream,

             if one in which I'm but a lucky participant.

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Comfortably Numb

Lauren Tyler

Figures pass by in perfect time

Fading eyes are staring into mine

There are dark circles under my eyes

And fuzzy lines on the horizon

I can feel death coming from behind

“Tell me, is the damage done?

Have they all come?”

Should I stay or should I run?

I’ve risked it all, I’ve had my fun

But I’ve become comfortably numb

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Vicissitudes

Emmy Hubbard

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The vicissitudes are coming

I feel it in my bones

Like the smell of rain,

Dark clouds rolling in,

Color gathering on my radar

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The vicissitudes are coming

And I anxiously await them

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Little Engine

Mr. Harvey

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Alarming how a well-artic-

             ulated argument can shift

our apprehension of reality—

             but then, I've heard a penny

can derail a thundering train,

so maybe it's much the same.

Either way, we need to travel 

             to the Mountains there, so help

us, Lord, to prudently determine

             proper means of transportation

that will bring us to the Peaks,

             be it iron tracks or bloody feet.

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The Question

Mr. Harvey

Yes, it was me who let it out

the cage, but I'd projected it

as tamer when I did the deed.

Now the kids are on the desks

and begging me to make it go

away, like I were fast enough to

catch it with my own bare hands,

like I were really capable to find

a way to lure it back to the safe

terrarium of theoreticals they love

to ogle but never touch themselves.

I had only hoped to pump a rush

of blood to this cold sarcophagus 

they call a class, but now it's past

my expertise, and all that I can  

do is pray they run away to find

a Teacher who possesses more

composure in the existential storm.

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Beyond a Bush

Mr. Harvey

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But what if this would constitute 

as Holy Ground as well, and that,

and even over there, and really all

of it’s aflame with something well-

beyond our marginal ability to see,

much less apprehend? And maybe

all our heads are hissing with the 

tongues of pentecostal fire, our des-

ert pilgrimage preceded by a pillar

just as big and hot as theirs. Consider

that you and I are currently engulfed

in lightning on a mountain's peak! If

this is true, Eternal Flame, forgive us 

these our sandals and our tennis shoes.

You understand, I trust, our tender feet.

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Letters

Lauren Tyle

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Notes, poems, and letters

All litter my bed

And every single one of them

Is about you.

Letters I’ll never send,

Poems I’ll never read,

And notes you’ll never see.

The only exception is this.

A poem I’ve written for you.

Something to say I still remember.

The only problem is,

Everyone will read this

Except for you.

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The Flowers on the Marble Countertop 

Addie Miles

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It has become a trend for flowers to be sitting in a glass vase 

on the white marble kitchen countertop. 

They normally appear about every 3 months or so, 

Sometimes the flowers appear more frequent.

They sometimes seem to appear

 when my life is falling apart 

Even though it is not 

The flowers bring me

comfort

strength  

perseverance 

when it seems to be impossible

 to muster them up myself

In the spring months

tulips appear on the counter top 

which happens to be my favorite flower. 

I see

the vibrance 

that they have and they

make me strive to have a vibrant energy, 

even when I don’t

think I can

I am very

 undeserving of these flowers because

 I did nothing to deserve them

I don’t always go out of my way to care for the flowers 

like they have done for me 

But the flowers keep me going 

they help push me through 

the hard moments 

and keep on coming 

Words cannot describe 

how thankful I am for the flowers 

Or the green eyed boy

 who stands on my front porch with the flowers in his hand

 and a smile on his face

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