| 2023 Summer Muses' Gallery - Herbs & Spices |
For the 2023 Summer Muses’ Gallery, Highland Park Poetry asked poets to write about herbs and spices. These assorted plants, rhizomes, bulbs, barks, flower buds, stigmas, fruits, seeds, and leaves literally add flavor to our food, our memories, and our lives. They stimulate our senses of taste and smell, embedding in our brains and evoking memories. They also have a long history of medicinal properties. This anthology is divided into four sections: Sweet Memories, Savory Stories, Medicinal Cures, and Spicy Tales.
May these poets’ words lead you to experience herbs and spices with all your senses engaged.
Many thanks to all of the poets, who shared their writing with us. Likewise, many thanks to the contributing artists and photographers whose visual work so beautifully complements the verse. To learn more about the poets and artists, visit our Participating Poets page.
Enjoy!
Mary Beth Bretzlauf, Jennifer Dotson & Irene Hoffman, Editors
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| Section 1 - Sweet Memories |
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| Monica Cardestam, Artist |
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Dominique Galiano
Deerfield, Illinois
Old Spice
Sure footed sugar faced pancakes
honey butter canopy
plum crazy for cinnamon drizzle
dream eating it all day
Ladyfingers sticky buns sticky fingers too
young giggles adore sweet treats
and old folks deja vu
Precocious peppermint smoothies
assimilate cherries tart
stevia collagen morning dance
cadre senior start
Steamy bowl of cardio
sweet basil leads the strum
serenades my tongue a slow waltz
heart beats like a drum
| Kathleen Gregg
Lexington, Kentucky
flavoring the day
cinnamon hazelnut coffee infuses
our morning tête-à-tête
freshly picked basil garnishes
caprese salad for lunch
happy hour cilantro lime shakes up
vodka martinis
dinner of pork tenderloin rubbed
with fresh rosemary and thyme
gingerbread topped with vanilla bean
ice cream raptures our tongues
nightcap of hot spiced wine lingers
cinnamon, nutmeg, clove
on your lips
offer well-seasoned kisses
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William T. Carey
Highland Park, Illinois
Rosemary and Helen
Mom, your funeral was a cornucopia of color,
not flavors, but one spice stood out anyway.
Reposing in your handsome casket carved by Iowa monks,
did you nose the sprigs of rosemary placed around the church?
Those holy guys said that hearkened back to ancient endings.
Did you recall your favorite Tuscan Blue blooming
violet wild in Mediterranean villages,
traipsing with other fiancées while Dad officered the warship?
As you patiently awaited the eulogies,
did the aroma tickle your fancy,
imagining heaven’s schnitzel bursting with the herb?
German olfaction triggers memories more of food than romance,
but maybe that reverses in resurrection.
Though your wings just sprouted, ask Mary if she remembers
dropping her blue cloak on the rosemary bush as she fled Herod.
She may smile at your Teutonic audacity.
There’s rosemary, that’s for remembrance.
Pray you, Helen, remember me with eternal love.
I’ll pray as fiercely as Laertes, for your exit
from this scene to a happier stage.
When I snip the savory stalk for the dinner tonight,
I’ll remember your honed Wüsthof blades.
Forget your former earthly fasting.
In your new angelic kitchen
where no cutting is required
and Heinz Winkler is your sous chef,
the rosemary is evergreen, and the feasts,
like you, are everlasting.
| Cynthia T. Hahn
Libertyville, Illinois
Cat Mint
Your Maine Coon paws
rushed to trample the green,
your body rolling in heaven scent.
The earth there carries you now.
Your purr rises up the stems.
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| Marne Glaser, Photographer |
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Mark Andrew Heathcote
Manchester, United Kingdom
Taste and flavors yet unseen
It’s a recipe yearbook, no one
will believe wasn’t written over a lifetime
regardless even of earlier pages
of a dill and feta stuffed aubergine.
It’s not just a case of believing-or-having
indefatigable faith in-good-ingredients
it isn’t all knowing, regardless
-of making any concrete abstractions
that you, by yourself, can now comprehend.
It’s something you can indefinably taste
in your mouth like a slice of ripe watermelon
with a wet savoring watering tongue
tasting the aromas of spices, cardamom
tingling’s burning your eyes, yet unseen.
| Joris Soeding
Chicago, Illinois
Flavor Relics
a few bottles through three presidents
four homes and long expired
suppose some were never needed
from the standard spices in 1999
many dinners from boxes and cans
studio apartment during college
assuming no end date
or kept to reminisce another time?
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Donna Pucciani
Wheaton, Illinois
Aunt Rosemary
She was nothing like my mother,
but was “aunt” to all the kids on the block.
Aunt Rosemary is on my mind
as I stuff the leg of lamb with the needle-like herb
that imparts aromatic pleasure to the meat,
cutting the fat with its bitter tang.
I remember her red hair, the smile that flashed
at Uncle Fred, her second husband
at a time when divorce was frowned upon,
and the night she waded in the fountain.
I spent that summer down south,
the little northerner in pigtails and pedal pushers,
an anomaly among cousins who had grown up
barefoot and tanned, with calamine
dotting mosquito bites pink.
One night, Aunt Rosemary took us girls downtown
to New Orleans, dressed up for a restaurant treat.
Afterwards, having had a few drinks, she led us
to Jackson Square, removed her white high heels,
and stepped delicately into the fountain,
her full skirts swirling, her laughter bubbling
like the bright spray that sequined the torrid night.
We stood open-mouthed, watching
the kind of felicity that clings to my fingers for hours,
the fragrance that seasons a roast of lamb
ready for the oven.
First published in Last Stanza Journal (July 2023)
| Sarah Royer-Stoll
Duluth, Minnesota
Quentin Avenue
Cinnamon morning
My grandmother’s voice dances down the hall
Around the corner and down the stairs
Grandpa’s eyes bow with kindness
My belly rests
Heart full
These are weekends filled with
Clair de Lune and Pas de Deux
Dandy Day Aloe Vera
Tossing toast points to mallards
Trolley rides along Lake Harriet
Root beer from the pavilion
Lace spread before me
Fine porcelain, Japanese tea sets
Fragrant egg scramble
Chunky tomato sauce
In Wedgewood Blue Onion
Bagels from the delicatessen
Pungent smoky salmon and fresh mint
Creamy yogurt and smoldering coffee
Grist Mill granola and Max’s garlic spears
She laughs and he laughs
The peals reverberate
Their vibrance reflects upon
Crystal sparkling above the sacred table
My belly rests
Heart full
Memories a floodgate
Pang of absence
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| Charlotte Digregorio, Photographer |
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Lesley Anne Swanson
Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania
holding summer
holding summer
a little bit longer
chrysanthemum tea
First published in Mariposa (#26)
| Marilyn Zelke Windau
Sheboygan Falls, Wisconsin
Heritage in a Spoon
As a little girl, I watched my father make vegetable soup.
He chopped onions, celery, carrots,
peeled and cut up potatoes, ladled tomatoes,
added sweet corn, broccoli, peas.
McCormick tins came down from the shelf:
salt, pepper, thyme, marjoram, and dry green bay leaves!
He stirred this wonder with a long wooden spoon,
inherited from his mother.
Smooth to his hand, cracked a little at the stirring edge,
he drummed the 15” spoon off the side of the kettle.
My grandma was gone from me at age 3.
Her spoon became a favorite kitchen sight.
When it was brought out of the drawer,
I knew soup was coming!
That spoon now has a place of honor on my counter.
It towers over other utensils in a red filigree container.
The spoon can chat with the flour canister next to it,
exchange culinary advice with long stemmed garlic bulbs.
My grandma’s spoon gives advice to the new bamboo tongs,
urges a smaller wooden spoon to stand erect.
History is ladled from this spoon.
I can visualize my father and his brother
standing at the woodstove, asking when the soup will be done.
My daughters gather around me with the same question.
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Matt McGee
Thousand Oaks, California
Hearts & Minds
Like every other suburban house
in the 80’s, our kitchen had a deeply
stained wood spice rack full of 4oz jars
mounted to a wall. Their olive green lids
stood uniformly like the helmets of soldiers
ready to charge into the afternoon’s battle raging
in another dull steel pot, each a unique weapon sent
exploding in at just the right moment by the heir
of a mother’s wooden recipe box, each tattered
card a secret map designed to win over
the hearts, minds and stomachs of
those who’d strayed from home
and worked up quite an appetite.
| Lynn White
Gwynned, North Wales, United Kingdom
Ginger Beer
Back in the day he was famous
for his hash cakes with ginger bread.
Stoned was an overrated condition,
it needed spicing up a bit, he said.
Too many turgid conversations
and drowsy dancing.
Ginger’s the thing, he said
to liven things up.
Later he got into home brew.
Try some of this, he said
offering a beery mug full.
Well, I thought
I’d be a mug
not have a go,
no worries,
no stress,
everything natural,
everything herbal
suitable for vegans,
only the best,
best by the mugful,
he said.
Mugwort and ginger,
the best of the best.
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| Section 2 - Savory Stories |
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| Monica Cardestam, Artist |
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Maria Asvos
Chicago, Illinois
Oregano
The Ancient Greeks knew
that up high in Mount Olympus
the Goddess of love and beauty
Aphrodite
created ore - ganos
sweet and spicy
endowed with her charms.
Ore - ganos,
radiated a joyful brilliance
warding off evil spirits.
inviting blessings,
encircling one’s life,
with developing connections
of luck and good health.
| Gayle Brandeis
Highland Park, Illinois
Desert Herb Walk
Rosemary, lavender,
clary sage–I find myself
at home among your purple
blossoms, my own shirt edged
in lilac velvet, all of us soaking
up the sun. I rub your leaves
and you sing from my fingers
all day long, hike with me
even as you stay rooted
to your sandy portions of soil.
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CR Bolinski
Carbondale, Illinois
Spices of Life
There once was a gal named GINGER, who got ALLSPICEd up
to meet her guy, CORIANDER,
the notorious philanderer.
She felt it was THYME to end their affair.
Because of his past
she knew their relationship couldn’t last.
When at CORIANDER’s flat, he said, “CUMIN, the door’s open.”
But GINGER notices something out of whack,
then saw Meg, well… that was that.
GINGER yelled, “PAPRIKA!” Then brilliantly said, “Don’t get CARAWAY, CORIANDER’s not your love, anyway. And you’re a NUT, MEG
for taking a chance with him.
Meg got up, left in haste, well… she was out of date anyway.
But GINGER took out her MACE–just in case.
Did CORIANDER commit a CINNAMONg them?
Later, CORIANDER tried to SPIKE the punch
and didn’t say much about NUT, MEG,
told GINGER, “You’re the only APPLE PIE of my eye.”
GINGER CLOVErly said, “Silly DILLy. I came here tonight to put an end
to our affair. You were also with ROSEMARY and lied.
That SALTed the way, to end my stay.
You can have your PEPPERy life!” She said looking at the door,
“Open SESAME!
For the last time, evermore!”
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| Monica Cardestam, Artist |
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Michael H. Brownstein
Jefferson City, Missouri
An Island of Dunes
The dark blue line of night
spread over the white paste
of moonlit sand and we gathered
on the small dunes to wait
for the morning sky.
Everywhere we knew
we would find the makings
of a great salad and hungered for it.
When day broke into a bright fist,
we grabbed our buckets.
Here were the great patches
of wild onion growing strong,
white sage, white root, pieces
of white bark scattered in shadows,
lemongrass and a pond of cattail.
We cut, washed and cut some more,
mixed and stirred and cooked
this spice, that herb, over open fires
until every taste was savory,
every smell glorious.
| Paul Buchheit
Chicago, Illinois
June 10: Herbs and Spices Day
They say that every day’s a holiday.
Today’s the day we proudly celebrate
the leaves of curry, lemongrass, and bay,
and garlic cloves to decontaminate
the body. Herbs and spices, curious
and quaint, from chia seed to chicory
to elderflower. Some are humorous
like Mojo, mace and summer savory.
June 10th was also picked to celebrate
the best in gastronomic specialties:
It’s eggroll day today! And dedicate
some time to root beer floats and icy teas.
Enjoy a day of spice potpourri
embellished shamelessly with poetry!
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| Pamela Crady, Artist |
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Jan Chronister
Maple, Wisconsin
Kitchen Secret
My mother spent weeks
crafting cookies for Christmas,
stored them away in tins,
took out five of each
to place on a tiered tray
when company came for dinner or tea.
My favorites were Mexican wedding cakes
and Haystacks, chow mein noodles
mixed with peanut butter and chocolate.
Saffron bread was rationed,
recipe passed down
from family to family,
its essential ingredient
expensive as gold.
Mom brought home a few red stamens
wrapped in waxed paper,
seeped them, added the liquid to batter
along with raisins, dates, candied fruits.
Eating a yellow slice was tradition,
its unique taste enhanced by the mystery
of where she got the saffron.
| Elizabeth Stanley King
Elgin, Illinois
Globe Trotting
Spice – the subwoofer of life!
That throbbing undercurrent
whose savory taste lingers
well into the night.
Without it, life would be terribly boring.
Regional flavors from around the globe.
From Asia – Cardamom, turmeric, mustard, and clove.
Measure some of each, be very careful.
From Africa – Coriander, cumin, dill, and basil.
Crush up the seeds and mix fairly fiercely.
From the New World – Allspice, vanilla, paprika, and chili.
Flavors integrate and truly engage.
From Europe – oregano, rosemary, parsley, and sage.
Melded together and used daily.
Each flavor an ambassador.
Each day an adventure.
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| Monica Cardestam, Artist |
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Idella Pearl Edwards
Fenton, Missouri
Sage
The meaning of sage is “a very wise man”.
It boosts the function of the brain.
If we add a little sage to our food each day.
Think of all the smarts we could gain.
In this day and age, it seems to me
That wisdom is on the way out.
As we watch the news and choices made,
It fills us with dread and with doubt.
We have our daily choices to make,
I’ll give you my “sage” advice.
Take time to choose the very best,
Or you will pay the price.
| Monica Cardestam
Lake Forest, Illinois
Herbs Are My People
1.
I just can’t resist
Basil is my boyfriend herb
Oh la la the smell
2.
Nurturing mama
Rosemary lends a big hug
To tasty dishes
3.
Almost hear her purr
Sultry Lady Cilantro
Tempts you with flavor
4.
Curly stems of green
Mischievous cute child parsley
Shares wry smile and fun
5.
Green soldiers on march
To take over my garden
Mint grows like a weed
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| Francesca W., Photographer |
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William Marr
Downers Grove, Illinois
The Matter of Green Onions
- Scene at a marketplace in Southern China
A whole ten cents to buy green onions for the New Year
look here everybody, this lady has given me
A WHOPPER TEN CENTS
for green onions
the vegetable vendor half-jokingly flashed
the coin she gave him
and pronounced repeatedly the biggest event of the year
I could not help laughing heartily
as the green onions she wanted for her fish dish
were inflated to spice up
a dull market place afternoon
| Fay L. Loomis
Kerhonkson, New York
Wild Garlic
wild garlic spikes
desiccated grass
finger and thumb
nip hollow jade stem
smoky redolence
soup garnish tonight
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| Shahai by Barbara Anna Gaiardoni |
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Khalid Mukthar
Wheaton, Illinois
Ode On Short Rib Ragù
What magic doth transpire ‘tween mind and pot
That warmly welcometh what once formed cage,
But now is seasoned, salted, shredded, brought
To tenderness thy hand hath come to gauge.
I sense bay leaf draping sprigs of thyme,
Its fragrance courting parsley soft
Upon a bed of blushing carrots and
Rosemary aromatic, wont to waft
Toward my sense olfactory till I’m
Impassioned forth to rise and kiss thine hand.
| Ellen Pickus
Baldwin, New York
Salt
I have to watch myself around you.
Too much, and my pressure rises,
perilous as the oceans that contain you.
Too little, and everything is blah,
a world in black and white, no nuance.
On winter mornings, you lie beneath my feet,
a cloak spread by a knight for his queen to walk upon.
But on hot days, I feel you on my skin,
mixed with my own sweat, part of me.
I cannot live without you.
Why do we love the things that kill us?
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Jacqueline Stearns
Bloomfield, New Jersey
Spices Versus Herbs
The four of us sit in a Chinese eatery. My mom and sister Pat happily
chowing down on Hunan chicken and beef.
Dad and I look at each other. The hot scent of the chili paste,
literally makes our eyes water.
My mother and sister are team spice. Daddy and I team herb.
No beef with fermented beans and chili peppers for Dad and me.
Pot roast with brown gravy, subtly seasoned with basil, parsley, and oregano is more our speed,
as is roasted chicken with just a hint of rosemary.
Dining out in our family necessitated compromise.
Taking turns choosing restaurants.
Daddy and I opted for diners and pizzerias. Mom and Pat chose Indian.
Food preference reflects personality.
When it comes to cuisine, Mommy and Pat are bold and adventurous,
Daddy and I reserved.
If I had a spirit food it would be pasta with mushroom sauce,
gently accented with thyme, Italian seasoning, and parmesan.
For daddy it was lemon flounder and meatloaf.
Respecting other people’s preferences, agreeing to disagree.
Pat and Mommy may have been team spice, Daddy and I team herb.
But as a family we were one.
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| Catherine Schwalbe, Artist/Ceramicist & Facilitator of "The Art of Food" Workshop |
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Marie Samuel
Carterville, Illinois
Missing Herbs & Spices
Cinnamon on buttered toast
Garlic on buttered bread
Cloves in hot apple cobbler
Peppers in our beef roasted
Chicken can use a cardamom
As well as curry hearty rice
Nutmeg flavors subtly drinks
Of chocolate, coffees, teas
So on and on we get the picture
Life needs more than basics plain
At the end of each and every day
We seek a spicy musical refrain.
| Jennifer Dotson
Highland Park, Illinois
Celery Salt
Who would think an empty jar
of celery salt could be a revelation
and yet it is for us. Tucked amid
the spices in the cupboard, we
discover it our fifteenth year
of marriage. The label shows we
purchased it in our first and we
think of the jar’s journey and our own.
While celery salt is sprinkled
on Swiss cheese slices, there are four moves
[Paulina, Monticello, Washington and Park]
to new kitchens packing the jar
with its brethren and unpacking to
different cupboards. While the celery salt
adds a bit of dash to a special Sunday
Bloody Mary, two children now
round out the family unit. While the
celery salt jazzes up our scrambled eggs,
we say goodbye to two cats and
watch two kittens grow old.
A new jar of celery salt now sits
upon the shelf but we save the
empty as a talisman of all the
savor and flavor of our love and
the hope that we’ll measure our
seasons together with many more.
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Mary Beth Bretzlauf
Waukegan, Illinois
gift from French cooking gods
in the form of aromatic bouquet –
as if Julia Child herself rained these herbs
down into one bundle
in just the right balance
to fill the nose, excite the taste buds
so each slurp,
each bowl scraped clean
is perfect every time –
C’est magnifique!
[1] Bouquet Garni is a classic French blend of thyme, parsley and bay leaf used to flavor broths & soups. Source: Kitchn.com
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| Section 3 - Herbal Remedies |
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| Shahai by Barbara Anna Gaiardoni |
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Dana Fine
Highland Park, Illinois
Cinnamon
The spice flavor of
cinnamon is also sweet.
It can warm your body
from your head to your feet.
The bark of the cinnamon’s
flavor is hot.
While the twig is warmer
They are both great in a tea pot.
The bark is good for cold
in the body that feels deep.
In general good cinnamon tea
can relax you to sleep.
The twig is helpful
for colds and edema.
it is also used
for amenorrhea.
Cinnamon is helpful in many ways
and a tasty candy.
Having cinnamon in your cupboard
can be very handy.
| Tim Callahan
Altadena, California
Capsaicin, My Hot Lover
I took a dare and ate the Szechwan squid
with peppers high on that Scoville Scale.
I could not taste that squid at all: The flail,
capsaicin's burn, drove it away and hid
whatever flavor it once had amid
its purifying burn. I tell a tale
of torture I endured, that stinging vale
of craving which I fear I’ll ne’er be rid.
Yes, my addiction to this torment still,
a siren’s song, draws me to taste cayenne
and habanero, too. Perhaps some day
I’ll dare ghost peppers with an iron will
or even Carolina’s reaper when
I feel there’s but one dragon left to slay.
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Dan Fitzgerald
Pontiac, Illinois
You are my sage,
my zest,
the spicy notes left
after our meeting.
You are my bitter,
my sweet,
the sharp to my dull.
You are the aroma
of earth,
the smell of sky,
the lightest touch
in my heavy hand.
You are my strength,
my cure,
the rose petal clove
of flavor balancing my bland.
You are the summer,
the winter,
the spring, the fall,
all of the seasons I need
to feed my body
and nourish my soul.
[1] Umami is your fifth basic taste alongside sour, sweet, bitter, and salty. Japanese scientists discovered this fifth flavor in the early 20th century and called it "umami," which translates to "savory".
| Lisa Lachapelle
Sarnia, Ontario, Canada
Juniper in the Night
A Juniper in the night casts its own special shadow
One that only it can see
A magically healing shrub of a tree
Butterflies filled with hope
Keeping vigil with horoscope filled skies
Timed for night time races
As lovers roll through the rows of Juniper
Growing like a force of their own
What a blessing summer is
To know nocturnal moments and
Hemispheres of love
That grounds our souls
Like herbs and spices
Keeping nature’s secrets
If humanity may mirror the growth of fields
Cheers to berries, wine, and sunshine
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| Beatriz Gartler, Collage Artist |
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Cynthia Gallaher
Chicago, Illinois
Feverfew Headache
You see zigzags, flashing lights, stars, black holes,
so, you are abducted by a UFO?
chances are, a migraine is about to land
somewhere on the upside of your head.
When sight narrows to tunnel vision,
and your immediate destiny skirts
a white-hot horizon of sub-woofer temple throb,
don’t follow this road to its darker destination.
Instead, focus on the garden path, please do
eat the daisies, or better yet, the bitterly
fragrant leaves if the daisy is feverfew,
does your mirror reveal
A face red and flushed?
Are you having hot flashes,
but you’re a guy?
Don’t panic, make a sandwich
with feverfew’s feathery leaves
between favorite slices of hearty bread.
Then call your workplace,
not to tell them you’re calling in sick,
but are indeed coming in, because your headache’s
been abducted
by aliens.
Previously published in the author’s poetry collection, Epicurean Ecstasy: More Poems About Food, Drink, Herbs and Spices [The Poetry Box, 2018].
| René Parks
Kankakee, Illinois
Great Mullein
Softest green
leaves bring the
corn popping yellow
through thick
wooly nubs
heavy on the stalk
swinging in the wind
waving, toward the fire of a
hot black kettle
chunky flowers float in my tea
it is balm of the breath, breath balm
sipping smells through my nose, then
as I blow, lips pursed,
redolent wisps
scatter winging spirited.
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Irfanula Shariff
South Elgin, Illinois
My Herb Garden
I have planted
An herb garden
In my front yard
Packed with passion, love
And devotion
Basil, a plant from heaven
Sage, incredible admired by the sages
Mint, refreshes our spiritsOregano, the spice of life
Lemon balm, an easy scent for every home
Thyme, a stress reliever
Rosemary, the herb of remembrance
Lavender, symbolizes serenity, purity and grace
And many more
To talk about
Are living jubilantly
In my garden
These herbs
The pride of chefs
Friends of healers
Keep us calm
And put fragrance
In our lives
May the herbs on this earth
Bring total peace to our world
And unify the whole mankind
| LB Sedlacek
Lenoir, North Carolina
Hero Herbs
Plant to protect
the vulnerable ones
basil repels
flies, mosquitos
garlic repels Japanese
Beetles, thyme repels
cabbageworms. The
vulnerable plants
tomatoes, cabbage, raspberries
and roses they
may also
need neighborhood watches
for deer, rabbit, raccoons.
Growing: only half of the
battle.
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| Lakshmy Nair, Photographer |
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Lucia Lemieux
Thousand Oaks, California
Sniffing Laurels
I don’t think anyone’s ever come up to me and said,
Hey, doncha just love cinnamon?
But if they did, I’d hafta say,
Heck yea! Who doesn’t love that brittle,
unbreakable bark of brown,
that powder of burnt sienna,
that spice of all spices
I will choose to be
if we incarnate into foodstuff?
Toss me into a kettle of curry and let me add sweet to the heat,
Sprinkle me on toast of French, in toddies of tea,
mix me into the throng of gluttonous
gastronomies and try to blend me,
but I will stand out.
Cinnamon river, run to my door,
flow into my mouth and let me chew you.
Let me sweat you from my pores and freckle my porcelain.
Pour me from tiger’s breath
And soft-shoe my aching finger joints.
Cinnamon!
Oh, let me roll through the village where you first bloomed
Let me sniff your laurels until I am high in heaven
Cinnamon, help me.
I want to get lost in the smells of home again
| Tracy Davidson
Stratford-Upon-Avon, Warwickshire, United Kingdom
3 Haiku - sequence
Grandmother’s secret…
a sprinkle of paprika
on grilled ham & cheese
on a summer’s day
she still insists on hot tea…
hint of bergamot
home from the hospice
needing a little more thyme
in her herb garden
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Lakshmy Nair
Vernon Hills, Illinois
Ginger and Turmeric
A morning cup of ginger tea wakes me up,
cures my aches.
A dab of turmeric on my cheeks* or in curries
colors my life.
In the afternoon, a sip of spicy golden Chai
evokes my childhood memories.
After a pouring monsoon rain, when the earth was still damp
I would walk to my backyard,
where fiery ginger flowers and golden Turmeric blooms
rubbed shoulders.
I would watch the raindrops on petals gleam like diamonds
when the sun peeked.
My bare feet soaked in the rain, I would dig into the soil
and reach for the roots.
When the wind blew, a fresh scent of rain and spice
would kiss my nose.
Before the next downpour, I rushed back to the kitchen
where my mother would be waiting.
From the East to the West, ginger, and turmeric
follows me wherever I go.
*An Indian custom of women rubbing turmeric on cheeks as a beauty regimen.
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| Lakshmy Nair, Photographer |
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| Ann Privateer, Artist |
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Anne Alarcon
New York City, New York
Brooklyn Spice Store
While on a photography assignment for a poetry journal, my camera could not focus on an object of interest. Walking down aisles of dried spices in
opened barrels passed the Creole Seasoning beyond the Curry Leaves is
the Galangal Root Powder; it was there next to the Black Garlic among
the aroma of the Green Peppercorn, Gumbo Powder and Juniper Berries-
I remembered you sweetly.
Turning left passed the Mace, Kaffir Lime Leaves,
Cloves and Ginger Chips;
I looked for you.
Tried writing a poem, but the words were not clear.
I am hungry, taunted by the smells of spices;
I cannot eat.
What is more important than art?
Right now – everything.
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Marie Asner
Overland Park, Kansas
A Spicy Tale
Some men are attracted to perfume scents,
especially those of the floral variety such as lilac,
honeysuckle or hibiscus. Other men are smitten
with cooking odors like apple or sage.
This spring, I noticed the wind came from the south
over the Plains with a scent of cinnamon in the air.
My husband began to spend more time outside,
taking a bit of sun and smelling the air, which made
him smile. One day, while he was raking leaves,
a gentle swirl of leaves came around his knees,
hips, arms, neck and before I knew it, he was
waltzing around the yard in ¾ time. Suddenly,
a strong whiff of cinnamon in the air and he was
lifted above the yard – house – tree tops – and
heading east, gently enveloped by soft leaves.
The police helicopter would not gear up for
a swirl of leaves, but a friend who lives in Michigan,
with telescope, saw him heading due East surrounded
by soft evergreen branches at 2000 feet. The last anyone
saw of him, he was over the Atlantic waving to
a passing plane with Arctic Terns as guardians.
I hope he has a soft landing after the tropical wind is
through with him and she goes for a younger variety,
this time tempting with Brazilian chocolate.
As for me, the local weatherman is taking
me out for dinner tonight, and I am going to wear
Chanel No. 5, with peppermint tarts for dessert later.
Previously published in Rockford Review
| Jackie Chou
Pico Rivera, California
Ode to a Favorite Seasoning
Sriracha sauce adds a zing,
a spicy tang and crimson hue,
to Yoshinoya chicken, beef,
and steamed vegetables.
I’m aware of my ethnicity,
by the way I squirt it
on hotdogs and spaghetti,
turning those things I eat
into Asian cuisine.
Yet there’s a spice I love
even more than sriracha,
a dark red chili oil
with the seeds of peppers.
It sits on the tables
of most Chinese restaurants,
where I spread it on shrimp,
wonton, chow mein.
I’m sure,
if I could get some now,
I would jazz up
the care-home casserole.
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| Idella Pearl Edwards, Photographer |
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Judith Stern Friedman
Highland Park, Illinois
Horseradish Root
From ground to grinder, this villainous condiment
Is hardly the herb that warrants a compliment.
It stirs the sinuses, teases the tears,
Debuts at Seder but once a year.
Knobby nodules on brown wrinkled skin,
Root like a torch that lights fires within.
Growing its grit beneath the earth,
Its pungent punch does not match its girth.
Scrape and peel ‘til pulp is revealed.
Within its meats, its powers sealed.
Tough white threads resist my hand,
Like slaves, once bound, who took their stand.
Pile penny discs into the bowl,
The blade will do the work of my soul.
Drops of vinegar seep into the mix
Until the mortar is firm and fixed.
And then comes the ritual reckoning time
To release the lid, its contents sublime:
Torrid fumes waft into the air,
Invisible, scorching, burning hairs.
Yet, we survive the bewildering blast,
To realize that hardship doesn’t last.
It reminds us to swallow the ups and downs,
And that life is worth horseradish-ing around.
| Candace Kubinec
Greensburg, Pennsylvania
Heat
She was a dangerous sort of cook,
daring to add a dash of spice to every dish -
a pinch of red pepper, a dab of ginger,
a dollop of curry
Then after the meal, she would wink and
he knew the kitchen was not the only
room she could spice up
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Joan Leotta
Calabash, North Carolina
Red Hot: Advice for Eating Leftovers, Holiday or Otherwise
Leftover pizza,
day-old stew –
add red pepper
they sizzle anew.
Grown in my garden
picked by my hand
dried in my kitchen –
peppers cure what’s bland
Crush the dried ones
don't eat plain.
Sprinkle on that pepper
or it all tastes the same
| Arlene Gay Levine
Forest Hills, New York
Here on Earth
Today, the astonishing normal: a walk in the garden, sweet
summer tomato, sporting a frisson of Calabrian chili afloat
in a pond of sunny olive oil graced with freshly picked basil
and oregano to enjoy for lunch, an unexpected leak
possibly from that faucet in need of fixing for
these last few weeks, blessed departure of a sordid
summer cold along with, soon enough, the heavy heat
of this season, happily sniffing lavender branches snipped
earlier while singing along with a few bars of some song
about two crazy people in love while you work our precisely
enough to keep graceful decline in check, an automated
call interrupts while you scribble a poem’s first line
accompanied by the cacophony of your cantankerous
neighbor’s leaf blower chasing invisible leaves…
Later, gather tart arugula and healing sage to toss
with feta cheese, add slick pearls of Kalamata olives
enhanced by a grind of nutmeg and fennel seed, then pair
with rosemary crackers and your perfectly chilled glass of wine,
such a fine light way to dine before night, that black velvet blanket
stitched with starry signals from forever; just the ticket to accompany
grateful prayers to the One who provided this feast of hours
before sleep brings dreams full of hope for waking up tomorrow
in our wily land of light and shadow a bit more conscious,
a touch more in tune with the numinous
manifestation of it all, here on earth
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| Monica Cardestam, Artist |
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Olivia Maciel
Highland Park, Illinois
Tu huella
En mis labios la huella de tu suave beso
insufla tu espíritu en mí,
con su rama invisible de azafrán
crea un nuevo ser.
Tu huella arde y se eleva dentro de mi ser
aprendo a paladearla en mis labios,
a bendecirla con la saliva de mi boca.
El clavel rojo de tu boca,
buena miel en mí,
alivia
estremece
aflora.
| Olivia Maciel
Highland Park, Illinois
Your Trace
On my lips the trace of your soft kiss
infuses your spirit in mine,
with its ethereal saffron branch
it creates a new being.
Your trace burns and rises within me,
I learn to savor it on your lips
to bless it with my mouth’s saliva.
The chrysanthemum of your mouth,
good honey in me,
soothes
shudders
flowers.
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Peter A. Witt
College Station, Texas
My Heart Belongs to Pizza
She was a gooey delight,
bubbly as a hot August afternoon
commanding attention
with joyous oohs and aahs
whenever she entered the room.
Her olive skin was complimented
by a red pepper glaze with rich overtones
of aromatic organic tomato highlights.
Presented with her cheesy smile,
pizza invited admiration,
everyone wishing to gain
a piece of her attention.
We raised glasses of Sangiovese
to celebrate her flavorful entrance
except for lonely cauliflower pasta,
who sulk in the corner,
her parslied marinara streaked
with unforgiving tears
tired of being outdone
once again by her savory sister.
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| Monica Cardestam, Artist |
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Julie Isaacson
Highland Park, Illinois
A Spicy Relationship
We had a lot going for us, back then, you and me
Great chemistry
Engaging conversation
Connected interests
Met your very tall brother
And your overly inquisitive parents
You were a bit serious, too fast, in my opinion
You never really knew this
But we broke up over spices.
We made dinner together at your place –
It was fun, until it wasn’t
You lost your temper and yelled at me
When I had the audacity
The nerve
The chutzpah
To place your spices back in the rack
OUT OF ORDER
They were supposed to alphabetized!
Ironically, with Bridge over Troubled Waters playing in the background,
I had placed them
Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme,
Not carefully curated
Oregano, Paprika, Parsley, Rosemary, Sage, Thyme and Turkish Salt
Well, EXCUSE ME, Dr. OCD,
Your hot favored temper flared just enough for me to say,
“Uh-uh, No Thanks, Arrivederci”
Decades later, I do confess,
My matching Penzey’s jars reside in alphabetical order
And they are easy to find, while you were easy to lose!
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| Julie Isaacson, Photographer |
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August 2023 Daily Poem Archive
Petrouchka Alexieva, Carol Alfus, Maria Asvos, Michael H. Brownstein, George Cant, Mardelle Fortier, Linda Freudenberger, Martina Gallegos, Dominique Galiano, Marne Glaser, Richard V. Kaufman, Elizabeth Stanley King, Terry Loncaric, Lennart Lundh, Joan McNerney, Laura Potts, Ann Privateer, Miriam Sagan, Michael Simon, Joris Soeding, Lori Wall-Holloway, Anthony Ward, Lynn West, Peter A. Witt, Patricia Williams, Renee Williams, R.M. Yager, and Andrena Zawinski
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July 2023 Daily Poem Post Archive
Carol Alfus, Gary Beck, Renee Butner, Marc Carver, Jackie Chou, Daniel Cleary, Linda M. Crate, Charlotte Digregorio, Dan Fitzgerald, Michael Lee Johnson, Richard V. Kaufman, Tralone Lindiwe Khoza, Elizabeth Stanley King, Joan Leotta, Terry Loncaric, Fay L. Loomis, Olivia Maciel, Michael Maul, William Marr, Bob McNeil, Marilyn Peretti, David J. Rogers, Sarah Royer-Stoll, Miriam Sagan, June Sawyers, LB Sedlacek, Christine Kierstead Sheeter, RM Yager, Lori Wall-Holloway, and Peter A. Witt.
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June 2023 Daily Poem Archive
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May 2023 Daily Poem Archive
Carol Alfus, Jan Chronister, Morris Dean (aka Moristotle), Jennifer Dotson, J. K. Durick, Sheila Elliott, Dan Fitzgerald, Judith Stern Friedman, Barbara Anna Gaiardoni, Martina Gallegos, John Grey, Irene Hoffman, Maria A. Karamitsos, Richard V. Kaufman, Jennifer Leigh Kiefer, Elizabeth Stanley King, Arlene Gay Levine, Lennart Lundh, Adrian McRobb, Denise O'Hagan, Gabrielle Pearlman, Jenene Ravesloot, Diana Kwiatkowski Rubin, Susan Schubert, Lesley Anne Swanson, Brady Urban, Lori Wall-Holloway, Peter Witt, Michael P. Wright, and Andrena Zawinski.
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March 2023 Daily Poem Archive
Petrouchka Alexieva, Marie Asner, Paul A. Brown, Deby Cedars, Jill Charles, Daniel Cleary, Gail Denham, Michael Escoubas, Linda Freudenberger, Barbara Anna Gaiardoni, Martina Gallegos, John Grey, Nancy J. Heggem, Bing Hua, Richard V. Kaufman, Carol Parris Krauss, Arlene Gay Levine, Joan Luther, Bob McNeil, Adrian McRobb, Dr. Archan Mehta, Ann E. Michael Jenene Ravesloot, Nick Romeo, Alice Marcus Solovy, Leslie Anne Swanson, Curt Vevang, Lori Wall-Holloway, Anthony Ward, Lynn West, and R.M. Yager.
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February 2023 Daily Poem Archive
Petrouchka Alexieva, Carol Alfus, Giedre Antanaitis, Jennifer Brown Banks, David Dephy, Charlotte Digregroio, J. K. Durick, Barbara Anna Gaiardoni, Marne Glaser, Kate Hutchinson, Richard V. Kaufman, Arlene Gay Levine, j. lewis, Terry Loncaric, Lennart Lundh, Adrian McRobb, Denise O'Hagan, Marianne Peel, Jenene Ravesloot, Marjorie Rissman, Marie Samuel, Susan Schubert, Christine Sheeter, Leslie Anne Swanson, Michael W. Thomas, Peter Witt and R.M. Yager.
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January 2023 Daily Poem Archive
Carol Alfus, Marie Asner, Gary Beck, Herb Berman, Michael H. Brownstein, Jackie Chou, Jennifer Dotson, Laura Edington, Idella Pearl Edwards, Phil Flott, Mardelle Fortier, Kathleen Gregg, John Grey, Richard V. Kaufman, Marylou Knapik, Joan Leotta, Arlene Gay Levine, Lennart Lundh, William Marr, Joan McNerney, Adrian McRobb, Michael Minassian, Carl "Papa" Palmer, Jenene Ravesloot, Diane Redleaf, Sandy Rochelle, Mykyta Ryzhych, Susan Schubert, Leslie Anne Swanson, Lynn White, Peter Witt and Greg Zeck.
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Fall 2022/Winter 2023 Muses' Gallery - Poet's (& Artist's) Choice
Petrouchka Alexieva * Marie Asner * Nila K. Bartley * Gary Beck * Herb Berman * Mary Beth Bretzlauf * Michael H. * Marie-Louise Buteri * Jill Charles * Jan Chronister * Jackie Chou * Pamela Crady * Gail Denham * Charlotte Digregorio * Jennifer Dotson * Olivia Maciel Edelman * Idella Pearl Edwards * Regina M. Elliott * Phil Flott * Mardelle Fortier * Linda Freudenberger * Mark Hammerschick * Janea D. Harris * M. Harlene Henry-Perozzi * Bing Hua (translator Yingcai Xu) * Mark Hudson * Kate Hutchinson * Julie Isaacson * Ed Kaufman * Richard V. Kaufman * Marilou Knapik * Pamela Larson * Joan Leotta * Arlene Gay Levine * Jeffrey Lewis * Terry Loncaric * Joan Luther * Karian Markos * William Marr * LaVern Spencer McCarthy * Bob McNeil * Joan McNerney * Michael Minassian * Lakshmy Nair * Toti O’Brien * Pat Owen * Carl “Papa” Palmer * Donna Pucciani * Jenene Ravesloot * Susan Schubert * Lori Wall-Holloway * Anthony Ward * Lynn West * Lynn White * Court Williams * Marilyn Zelke Windau * Michael P Wright * R.M. Yager * Greg Zeck
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December 2022 Daily Poem Archive
Petrouchka Alexieva, Mary Beth Bretzlauf, Michael H. Brownstein, Morris Dean (aka Moristotle). David Dephy, Olivia Mciel Edelman, Michael Escoubas, Mardelle Fortier, Linda Freudenberger, Janea D. Harris, Kate Hutchinson, Richard V. Kaufman, Arlene Gay Levine, j. lewis, Terry Loncaric, Lennart Lundh, LaVern Spencer McCarthy, Adrian McRobb, Hamish McNeil, Ann E. Michael, Denise O'Hagan, Jenene Ravesloot, Diane Redleaf, Marjorie Rissman, Susan Schubert, Christine Sheeter, Curt Vevang, Lori Wall-Holloway, Court Williams and Peter Witt.
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2022 November Daily Poem Archive - Mary Beth Bretzlauf, Deby Cedars, Daniel Cleary, J.K. Durick, Michael Escoubas, Linda Freudenberger, Mary Rae Goehring, Gay Guard-Chamberlin, Esther Hague, Isla Hague, Mark Hammerschick, Richard V. Kaufman, Ann Lamas, Joan Leotta, Lennart Lundh, Joan Luther, Radomir Vojtech Luza, William Marr, LaVern Spencer McCarthy, Adrian McRobb, Michael Minassian, Carl "Papa" Palmer, Jenene Ravesloot, Julie Sheldon, Alice Marcus Solovy, Lynn West, Lynn White, and R.M. Yager
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2022 Daily Poem Archive - October
Petrouchka Alexieva, Marie Asner, Herb Berman, Jill Charles, Daniel Cleary, Jennifer Dotson, Idella Pearl Edwards, Mardelle Fortier, Linda Freudenberger, Paula Garrett, Élisabeth Guichard, Richard V. Kaufman, Joan Leotta, Arlene Gay Levine, Lennart Lundh, Karian Markos, William Marr, LaVern Spencer McCarthy, Adrian McRobb, Carl "Papa" Palmer, Donna Pucciani, Jenene Ravesloot, Marjorie Rissman, Susan Schubert, Michael Simon, Alice Marcus Solovy, Sean Waterbury, Lynn West, Court Williams, Kaylia Williams, and Marilyn Zelke Windau.
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2022 Daily Poem Archive - September
Petrouchka Alexieva, Marie Asner, Herb Berman, Jill Charles, Daniel Cleary, Jennifer Dotson, Idella Pearl Edwards, Mardelle Fortier, Linda Freudenberger, Paula Garrett, Élisabeth Guichard, Richard V. Kaufman, Joan Leotta, Arlene Gay Levine, Lennart Lundh, Karian Markos, William Marr, LaVern Spencer McCarthy, Adrian McRobb, Carl "Papa" Palmer, Donna Pucciani, Jenene Ravesloot, Marjorie Rissman, Susan Schubert, Michael Simon, Alice Marcus Solovy, Sean Waterbury, Lynn West, Court Williams, Kaylia Williams, and Marilyn Zelke Windau.
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2022 Summer Gallery Archive - Odes
Sutter Ahn * Waverly Ahn * Isra Alam * Barbara Boothe Loyd * Mary Beth Bretzlauf * Michael H. Brownstein * Paul Buchheit * William T. Carey * Jackie Chou * Morris Dean * Gail Denham * Charlotte Digregorio * Jennifer Dotson * Laura Atanacio Edington * Regina M. Elliott * Michael Escoubas * Dan Fitzgerald * Mike Freveletti * Paula Garrett * Joe Glaser * Gay Guard-Chamberlin * Cynthia T. Hahn * Mark Andrew Heathcote * Steve Henn * Mark Hudson * Julie Isaacson * Jayne Jaudon Ferrer * Elizabeth Karn * Dr. Betsy Dolgin Katz * Richard V. Kaufman * Pauline Kochanski * Dan Lambert * Arlene Gay Levine * Terry Loncaric * Amber Lucas-Hively * Joan Luther * Karian Markos * Michael Maul * Bob McNeil * Joan McNerney * Adrian McRobb * Silvia Morgan * Lucy Pabst * Carl “Papa” Palmer * Phyllis Patterson * Ellen Pickus * Ann Privateer * Kim Reed * Donita Ries * Marjorie Rissman * Barbara Robinette * Heather Sager * Marie Samuel * Julie Sheldon * Jacqueline Stearns * Judith Stern Friedman * Nick Sweet * Louella Thornfield * Curt Vevang * Lynne Viti * Lori Wall-Holloway * Lynn West * Lynn White * Patricia Williams * Michael P. Wright * RM Yager * Farrah Zabadneh * Kao Ra Zen
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2022 Daily Poem Archive - August
Waverly Ahn, Cheryl Caesar, Daniel Cleary, J.K. Durick, Idella Pearl Edwards, Linda Freudenberger, Gay Guard-Chamberlin, John Grey, Elisabeth Guichard, Steve Henn, Muriel Harlene Henry, Julie Isaacson, Paul M. Jamar, Caroline Johnson, Elizabeth Karn, Richard V. Kaufman, Lennart Lundh, Adrian McRobb, Margie Hord Mendez, Carl "Papa" Palmer, Jenene Ravesloot, Jen "Pen" Richards, Donita Ries, Esther Rose, Christine Kierstead Sheeter, Julie Sheldon, Michael Simon, Alice Marcus Solovy, Douglas Thornton, Lynn West, Patricia Williams, and R. M. Yager.
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2022 Daily Poem Archive - July
Sutter Ahn, Cheryl Caesar, Carmen A. Cisnadean, Idella Pearl Edwards, Michael Escoubas, Mardelle Fortier, Elisabeth Guichard, Rev. Lucas Hergert, Caroline Johnson, Richard V. Kaufman, Tricia Knoll, Arlene Gay Levine, Terry Loncaric, Karian Markos, Silvia Morgan, Howard Nemeroff, Carl "Papa" Palmer, Marianne Peel, Jonathan Plotkin, Jenene Ravesloot, Donita Ries, Marjorie Rissman, Ellen Savage, Michael Simon, Alice Marcus Solovy, Lori Wall-Holloway, Marilyn Zelka Windau, R. M. Yager, Kao Ra Zen, and Jill Zimmerman.
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2022 Daily Poem Archive - June
Cheryl Caesar, Gail Denham, JK Durick, Daniel Fitzgerald, Mardelle Fortier, Linda Freudenberger, Janea D. Harris, Steve Henn, Richard V. Kaufman, Arlene Gay Levine, Terry Loncaric, Barbara Boothe Loyd, Lennart Lundh, Michael Maul, Adrian McRobb, Margie Hord Mendez, Carl "Papa" Palmer, Phyllis Patterson, Drew Pisarra, Jenene Ravesloot, Sandy Rochelle, Eli Rollman, Marie Samue, Michael Simon, Curt Vevang, and Lynn West.
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2022 Daily Poem Archive - May
Emma Alexandra, Jennifer Brown Banks, Jan Chronister, Jackie Chou, Jennifer Dotson, Daniel Fitzgerald, Mardelle Fortier, Kathleen Gregg, Janea D. Harris, Geoffrey Heptonstall, Irene Hoffman, Maryann Hurtt, Betsy Dolgin Katz, Richard V. Kaufman, Pauline Kochanski, Arlene Gay Levine, Terry Loncaric, Karian Markos, Adrian McRobb, Howard Nemeroff, Carl "Papa" Palmer, Phyllis Patterson, Marianne Peel, Jenene Ravesloot, Nick Romeo, Alice Marcus Solovy, Lori Wall-Holloway, MichaelP. Wright, and Kao Ra Zen.
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2022 Daily Poem Archive - April
Dan Boyd, Daniel Cleary, J. K. Durick, Michael Escoubas, Daniel Fitzgerald, Mardelle Fortier, Kathleen Gregg, John Grey, Gay Guard-Chamberlin, Kate Hutchinson, Julie Isaacson, Paul M. Jamar, Richard V. Kaufman, Pamela Larson, Arlene Gay Levine, Jayshawn Lott, Lennart Lundh, William Marr, Adrian McRobb, Silvia Morgan, Lakshmy Nair, Howard Nemeroff, Jenene Ravesloot, Sandy Rochelle, Franky Saez, Christine Kierstead Sheeter, Gwen Van Velsor, Curt Vevang, Lori Wall-Holloway and Lynn West
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2022 Daily Poem Archive - March
Jennifer Brown Banks, Daniel Cleary, Jane Cooper, Gail Denham, Jennifer Dotson, Janz Duncan, J. K. Durick, Regina M. Elliott, Maureen Flannery, Mardelle Fortier, Paul M. Jamar, Richard V. Kaufman, Joan Leotta, Terry Loncaric, Lennart Lundh, Joan Luther, George Markoutsas, William Marr, Adrian McRobb, Wilda Morris, Susan T. Moss, Carl "Papa" Palmer, Phyllis Patterson, Marianne Peel, Marilyn Peretti, Jenene Ravesloot, Marjorie RIssman, Alice Marcus Solovy, Gwen Van Velsor, and Lynn West.
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2022 Daily Poem Archive - February
Michael H. Brownstein, Paul Buchheit, Monica Cardestam, Jan Chronister, Daniel Cleary, Tina Cole, Gail Denham, Jennifer Dotson, Regina M. Elliott, Margie Emshoff, Dan Fitzgerald, Mardelle Fortier, Janice Freytag, Cynthia Gallaher, John Grey, Paul M. Jamar, Richard V. Kaufman, Joan Leotta, Lennart Lundh, Joan Luther, William Marr, Adrian McRobb, Carl "Papa" Palmer, Jenene Ravesloot, Sandy Rochelle, and Curt Vevang.
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2022 Daily Poem Archive - January
Michael H. Brownstein, Renee Butner, Jan Chronister, Daniel Cleary, Gail Denham, Jennifer Dotson, Michael Escboubas, Mardelle Fortier, John Grey, Kate Hutchinson, Richard V. Kaufman, Joan Leotta, Lennart Lundh, Bonnie J. Manion, William Marr, Adrian McRobb, Michael Minassian, Carl "Papa" Palmer, Karen Petersen, Jenene Ravesloot, Marjorie Rissman, Marie Samuel, Julie Sheldon, Alice Marcus Solovy, Curt Vevang, Lynn West, Rev. Court Williams, and Kao Ra Zen.
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2021 Daily Poem Archive - December
Renee Butner, Vittorio Carli, Yuan Chang Ming, Jackie Chou, Gail Denham, Jennifer Dotson, Michael Escboubas, Dan Fitzgerald, Mardelle Fortier, Kate Hutchinson, Paul Jamar, Richard V. Kaufman, Candace Kubinec, Ann Lamas, Arlene Gay Levine, Carol Spielman Lezak, Lennart Lundh, Bonnie J. Manion, William Marr, Susan McClellan, Joan McNerney, Adrian McRobb, Carl "Papa" Palmer, Karen Petersen, Jenene Ravesloot, Marjorie Rissman, Terry Slaney, Alice Marcus Solovy, Lori Wall-Holloway, and Kao Ra Zen.
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2021 Fall / 2022 Winter Gallery Archive - Poet's & Artist's Choice
Marina Angione * Ellen Blum Barish * Dan Boyd * Michael H. Brownstein * Teresa K. Burleson * Renee Butner * Tim Callahan * Monica Cardestam * Yahn Changming * Hanh Chau * Jackie Chou * Daniel Cleary * Linda M. Crate * Gail Denham * Charlotte Digregorio * Jennifer Dotson * Janz Duncan * J. K. Durick * Olivia Maciel Edelman * Idella Pearl Edwards * Regina M. Elliott * Dan Fitzgerald * Janea D. Harris * Cynthia T. Hahn * William D. Hicks * Mark Hudson * Caroline Johnson * Dr. Richard V. Kaufman * Candace Kubinec * Arlene Gay Levine * Terry Loncaric * Lennart Lundh * Joan Luther * William Marr * Bruce Matteson * Susan McClellan * Joan McNerney * Michael Minassian * Wilda Morris * Lakshmy M. Nair * Howard Nemeroff * Toti O’Brien * Carl “Papa” Palmer * René Parks * Marianne Peel * Ann Privateer * Jenene Ravesloot * Marjorie Rissman * Tom Roby IV * Sue Roupp * Christine Kierstead Sheeter * Alice Marcus Solovy * Pat St. Pierre * Jacqueline Stearns * Suzanne Elia Stephan * Kay Thomas * Lori Wall-Holloway * Lynn West * Bruce Whitaker * Court Williams * Michael P. Wright * R. M. Yager
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2021 Daily Poem Archive - November
Lois Barr, Nila Bartley, Michael H. Brownstein, Joseph Kuhn Carey, Charlotte Digregorio, Oliva Maciel Edelman, Michael Escboubas, Kate Hutchinson, Richard V. Kaufman, Arlene Gay Levine, Carol Spielman Lezak, Lennart Lundh, Bonnie J. Manion, William Marr, Susan McClellan, Joan McNerney, Michael Minassian, Carl "Papa" Palmer, Marianne Peel, Ann Privateer, Jenene Ravesloot, Marjorie Rissman, Ellen Savage, Alice Marcus Solovy, Pat St. Pierre, Lori Wall-Holloway, Lynn West, R.M. Yager and Kao Ra Zen.
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2021 Daily Poem Archive - October
Emma Alexandra, Michael H. Bornwstein, Renee Butner, Danie CLeary, Gail Denham, Jennifer Dotson, J.K. Durick, Dan Fitzgerald, Mardelle Fortier, John Grey, Janea D.Harris, Arlene Gay Levine, Terry Loncaric, Lennart Lundh, Joan Luther, Bonnie J. Manion, William Marr, Susan McClellan, Michal Mendelson, Wilda Morris, Khalid Mukhtar, Lakshmy Nair, Carl "Papa" Palmer, Jenene Ravesloot, Sue Roupp, Alice Marcus Solovy, Judith Tullis, Curt Vevang, Lori Wall-Holloway and R.M. Yager.
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2021 Summer Gallery Archive - Shoes
Nila Bartley * Jessica Weyer Bentley * Mary Beth Bretzlauf * Fiona M. Campbell * Monica Cardestam * Joseph Kuhn Carey * William Carey * Chris Chandler * Jackie Chou * Jan Chronister * Hinda Cole * Tina Cole * Gail Denham * Charlotte Digregorio * Jennifer Dotson * Janz Duncan * Idella Pearl Edwards * Michael Escoubas * Indira Esson * Isadora Esson * Daniel J. Fitzgerald * Karen Fried * Judith Stern Friedman * Dominique Galiano * Cynthia Gallaher * Nancy Hepner Goodman * Alwyn Gornall * Janea D. Harris * Teresa Harris * Janis Butler Holm * Mark Hudson * Kate Hutchinson * Linda Imbler * Julie Isaacson * Paul M. Jamar * Caroline Johnson * Judith MK Kaufman * Richard V. Kaufman * Betsy Dolgin Katz * Tricia Knoll * Michael Ethan Landau * Joan Leotta * Terry Loncaric * Cindy Madara * William Marr * Michael Maul * Susan McClellan * Cassandra McGovern * Bob McNeil * Adrian McRobb * Silvia Morgan * Wilda Morris * Lakshmy Nair * Carl “Papa” Palmer * Phyllis Patterson * Ann Privateer * Marjorie Rissman * W. R. Rodriguez * Rie Sheridan Rose * Marie Samuel * Julie Sheldon * Alice Marcus Solovy * Miranda Stewart * Christine Swanberg * Nick Sweet * Kay Thomas * Connie Vitale * Lori Wall-Holloway * Lynn West * Lynn White * Diane Wlezien * Michael P. Wright * RM Yager * Yvonne Zipter
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2021 Daily Poem Archive - September
Lois Baer Barr, Michael H. Brownstein, Jackie Chou, Victoria Crawford, Jennifer Dotson, Mardelle Fortier, Marne Glaser, Carol L. Gloor, John Grey, Jaqueline Harris, Ariella Kharasch, Candace Kubinec, Ann Lammas, Arlene Gay Levine, Carol Spielman Lezak, Terry Loncaric, Lennart Lundh, Nitya Menon, Sandeep Mishra Kumar, Carl "Papa" Palmer, Jenene Ravesloot, Marjorie Rissman, Tom Roby, Alice Marcus Solovy, and Court Williams
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2021 Daily Poem Archive - August
Chris Chandler, Victoria Crawford, Jennifer Dotson, J.K. Durick, Mardelle Fortier, John Grey, Janea D. Harris, Caroline Johnson, Richard V. Kaufman, Joan Leotta, Arlene Gay Levine, Terry Loncaric, Lennart Lundh, Jean McDonough,Sandeep Mishra Kumar, Carl "Papa" Palmer, René Parks, Jenene Ravesloot, Donita Ries, Alice Marcus Solovy, Nick Sweet, Curt Vevang, Lori Wall-Holloway, Lynn West, Court Williams, and Yvonne Zipter.
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2021 Daily Poem Archive - July
Gary Beck, Daniel Cleary, Victoria Crawford, Jennifer Dotson, Maureen Flannery, Phil Flott, Mardelle Fortier, Dominique Galiano, John Grey, Paul Jamar, Richard V. Kaufman, Joan Leotta, Lennart Lundh, Bonnie Manion, William Marr, Jean McDonough, Silvia Morgan, Carl "Papa" Palmer, Marianne Peel, Marilyn Peretti, Jenene Ravesloot, Alice Marcus Solovy, Kay Thomas, Curt Vevang, and Lori Wall-Holloway.
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2020 Daily Poem Archive - September
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2009 Fall
Muses' Gallery Archive
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