WHEN YOU SMILE BACK 

I am your companion, your lover and friend
You are the heart that feels my every emotion
My heartbeat,  is the wellspring of your life
You seek your home in my arms every night
and in my hands I hold your tender heart
We've both overcoming earlier difficulties 
and have grown in many ways together
Only you truly know the beats of my heart
whether I am happy or I am somber inside
But oh, how easily you can find my smile
And when you smile back.. there is no doubt
that my pounding heart beats only for you.
   



I NEVER KNEW DREAMS CAME TRUE

Far away I may be in distance 
but in my heart you are so close
What I thought was only in dreams
has become reality in front of my eyes
I will never grieve you with my pain
Though I know you'd take it gladly
Just keep me in your prayers at night
The One above us will give me rest
You ask me what is my reality
I think you know by now
But the words are like a wish 
I dare not say it out loud
Or else it may not come true.
Just know that no matter what happens 
in my heart you will always have a place
Every time you think of me, I will appear
And in sleep, no one can take you from me... 







MY CHILDREN... WALK BESIDE ME

Walk quietly beside me
along a shore that never ends
Tell me your dreams and desires in life,
tread lightly through the twists and bends
Make me smile with your beautiful laughter
Experience a distant land
Visit me when you feel lonely
and for a moment, hold my hand
And my children, I promise you this..
I will always walk beside you when you reach a rocky trail
I will encourage you to live your dream, even if you try and fail
I will proudly cheer you on as you accomplish your every dream
I will hold you up when you feel weak
on me you still can lean
Many say they will be there for you
and many may not follow though
But when life gets too hard at times
I'll be there to walk with you
Always help another in need
put yourself in their place
Cause one day you may be the one
who needs to be shown grace.
My children, I'll always love you. Life's an adventurous race to run
Just give me a moment now and then before my days are done
For one day you will walk my path, realizing that time does end
You'll find yourself wishing you had more time on earth, but
time.. it never lends... 






YOUR SILENCE SPEAKS FOR ITSELF

We used to speak almost everyday
Life got complicated and time went by
Before I knew, it became years
I know now that you didn't know why
But I thought you would understand
I needed time to heal inside
without advice or reprimand
never meaning to hurt your pride
When you needed time I never failed
to understand why I didn't hear from you
To me our friendship always prevailed
I'm sure thoughts of me now are few
When I felt strong enough to talk again
You returned my letters that now sit on a shelf…
It was never my intention to shut you out,
and now your silence speaks for itself.
Now I am ready to let go... 

Kristy Ann Raines is an American poet and author born on April 9, 1957, in Oakland California. Kristy has five books which will soon be published. One anthology with a prominent poet from India, Dr. Prasana Kumar Dalai, will launch sometime around August 2023 and is called, “I Cross my Heart from East to West.” She has also written two fantasy books entitled, “Rings, Things and Butterfly Wings” and “Princess and The Lion”, an collection of poems in English,” Walking Without You”, a collection in French, “Little Rose Poetry”, and one in Arabic called,  “Jasmine and Roses.” Kristy has received many literary awards for her unique style of writing.

Dear Past,

I thank you for revealing life’s art,
For letting me taste its every part,
In pains, joys, words unkind or sweet,
You shaped me whole, made me complete.

Stronger now, forged by your embrace,
Wounds and scars adorn with grace,
Etched like art on canvas, body and soul,
Each story they tell, making me whole.
Those scars, in sorrow’s shadow born,
Became my drive, my fires were sworn,
You spurred me on, fanned my inner fire,
Turning pain into purpose, soaring higher.

For every tear, a clearer sight ahead,
Each ache a milestone, towards goals I tread,
Truly, you’re the gift that keeps giving still,
Turning trials into strength, an iron will.
Through trials akin to the inferno’s maw,
Earthly challenges seem but straw,
Betrayals and falsehoods left thorns to find,
Yet deeper pain I’ve met, a crucible of the mind.

Now I stand strong, a conqueror in grace,
Thankful for the storm that shaped my pace,
Thankful for a tempest of lessons and more,
A past complex and layered, its wisdom I adore.


Defined not solely by what’s already done,
You’re a prologue, a journey, a rising sun,
A force that propels me into the unknown,
With lessons as my armor, confidence has grown.


Past, I’m grateful for your steady hand,
Guiding me through this intricate land,
Now I step into Future, arms stretched wide,
Prepared for an adventure, with hope as my guide.

a tight sweater
 

anytime i see

a woman in a

tight sweater

 

i think of that

night we had

at the farm

 

alone in the

middle of

winter

 

a bottle of

bourbon

 

your tight

sweater

 

and plenty

of time to

go find a

new tomorrow

 

we never did

 

but i certainly

remember each

and every attempt
----------------------------------------------------------------------
pretend
 

pretend you don't ache

with every breath

 

pretend prayer actually works

 

pretend that some woman

will actually love you one

day

 

pretend your opinion actually

matters

 

pretend that voting can actually

change the world

 

pretend the sunshine isn't

killing you

 

pretend the rain doesn't cause

your arthritis to dance

 

pretend that blonde in the

corner isn't telling you to

fuck off

 

pretend those flashing lights

behind you aren't the police

coming for you

 

pretend these therapists

want to see you get better

 

pretend the handcuffs are

just stylish new bracelets

for all the cool kids

 

pretend that you don't think

about death each and every

day
------------------------------------------------------------------
conversations with myself
 

any sense of fun

i had in me was

beat out of me

in my childhood

 

i can remember

conversations

with myself since

the age of eight

 

i once ran away

with thirty-seven

cents in my pockets

 

i came back three

days later with

twenty bucks

and a stolen

carton of

cigarettes

 

others swear they

used to see so

much potential

in me

 

they are as

disappointed

now as my

family was

when i was

born

 

i once had a blood

clot from my left

calf to my left hip

 

i slowed my heart

rate down and asked

to die

 

i'm starting to believe

kind souls don't exist
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
and your favorite recliner
 

they never told

you that doggy

in the window

was never

housebroken

 

so, he will actually

cost a new sofa,

flooring and your

favorite recliner

 

i always liked

cats better

 

which apparently

makes me a

communist

 

i had a friend that

liked humans on

leashes

 

which apparently

makes her

 

popular

 

whatever gets

you through

the day

i suppose
-----------------------------------------------------
the best thing for him at this time
 

the father of an old friend

died this past weekend

 

it wasn't that shocking

to me, but it was unexpected

 

i used to see him at the

grocery store from time

to time

 

the years hadn't been

kind to him

 

so, i figure even though

it is hard to swallow reality

 

his death is probably the

best thing for him at this

time

 

i don't want to go to

the funeral

 

i have the feeling it would

be a high school reunion

i don't want to be invited

to

J.J. Campbell (1976 – ?) is old enough to know where the bodies are buried. He’s been widely published over the years, most recently at Disturb the Universe Magazine, The Rye Whiskey Review, Horror Sleaze Trash, The Beatnik Cowboy and Cajun Mutt Press. You can find him most days on his mildly entertaining blog, evil delights.

Johnny Mem

 

Tyranny is a soup best bifurcated by patriarchy.

so old gran always said as she baked the smells of smarm

till the windows ran from the oilskin like old men in need of salad.

Artificial brains always remind me of that dessert

 

with the tentacles and the expiration date

shining in one perfect summer like Nerf bikinis

dipped in dangerous Substacks, the halo of hernias 

lowing softly in the mistrial. If only we could return

 

not to what we were, but to what we would be in a separate discourse

with more engagement and shitposting, more gelatinous rescue

of what Arnold Schwarzenegger terminated before he was good/evil 

or evil/good. But you can’t put your face

 

in the same fire twice, for the fire may pivot to video,

but it is not the same. And neither is your face. 

“Fellini’s Mastorna …a film of no return,“ the movie most talked about in film history, finally was finished by Jennifer Glee. 

Federico Fellini wrote the script for The Journey of Mastorna in 1965 at the top of his worldwide fame and two years later he created Fellini 8 1/2.

He chose Marcello Mastroianni as the protagonist. 

After 11 years, in 1976, Fellini gave me the Mastorna script and invited me to play two characters, but didn’t specify which ones. Fellini was in a strange creative process, which for Mastorna would have had no end. 

But Fellini, in Fellini 8 1/2, speaks through Marcello Mastroianni that he didn’t know how to finish the film! 

The fact of not wanting to finish a film for which there is already a precise script, means, for Fellini, that he has already made the film! 

Actually if you put together all Mastorna’s scenes filmed over the course of 28 years, you could have Mastorna, but, of course, without Fellini’s signature. 

After 1993, many directors tried to make the film Mastorna, but only Jennifer Glee has successfully done that. 

In short, Jennifer Glee made her contribution to the Fellini 100 by coming with me to Hollywood and presenting the film at the Ruby Theater.

Jennifer began to absorb my experience with Fellini relating to his unfinished film Mastorna. 

It was decided between Jennifer and I that the role of the Fortune Teller/Mastorna would be mine. The Another talented actor would play the other main character, the young silent actor who wants to become famous despite his disability.  

The Fortune Teller / Mastorna takes the actor on a journey beyond reality, which starts at the Fellini 100 ceremony, where he informs the actor that everything is filmed and therefore the actor cannot go back, but only continue his journey trapped in motion picture film. 

There are various reversals of situations, up to an ending that is not an ending! 

My experience in the movie Mastorna with Federico Fellini and Jennifer Glee was a wonderful dream, full of ingenious creativity and magic.

Time flies you know

Now you are high then you will feel low
Sun will shine then rain will pour
Last month feels like just a minute ago
How could you just forget and let it go?

They say people come and go
If a door opens, probably one will close
You can’t remember which one you chose
Just continue and find out where it goes

But in the nick of time you will meet
The right person you will keep
On your unforgettable date, he won’t skip
Like when he first kissed you while holding your hips

In the nick of time, you will finally feel
The nice and warmth that will make you heal
You do not care how much is the bill
Yes its true, its something real 




Disapproval

All l have met with is disapproval
The hardest thing one has to face
Discouragement piled over disparagement

Questions and doubts raking your brains
In a turmoil of doubt
Thinking the worst out of yourself

Disapproval, a nip in the bud
Crushes your spirit like a sledgehammer
Leaving you with nothing else but emptiness

Kicked to the curb
Thrown under the bus
No longer under the illusion you are worth anything

Abigirl Phiri is a prolific writer and avid reader. In addition, she is a DPhil in commerce candidate at the University of Zimbabwe who finds solace in penning down poems.