Enjoy these poems and please email the poets (where applicable) and give them some feedback!

                     THE DANCE

If words could speak, they'd be in paintings colorful 
and dull, only suggesting life. 

Nature would be just a phrase interpreted by gentlemen 
wearing dark brown suites with arms extended and hands 
inviting towards ladies dressed in long green gowns topped 
with red and yellow hats that are tilted to the sky. 

Melancholy is one of my favorite seasons.  Where nights 
fall in line to protect the days.  When blue is blue but not 
blue enough.  Where traffic lights blink anxiously awaiting, 
wondering if the cars will ever listen.


Gustave W. Blache III (c) theartspirit@hotmail.com

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A SMALL CHILD'S PRAYER

When I was a small child,

I prayed out loud
I begged God quietly
I promised to be good
I willed his breath
I fell on my knees
Tried praying again.

I bargained
I pleaded
I demanded
I shouted
I cried

But...my father closed his eyes and died.


Glynis Hill-Chandler (c) jazzyghc@aol.com

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BEST FRIEND

It makes me want to cry when I think about if my loved one was to die.
For if it was to come true, I will surely die too.
My whole confidence and love revolves around him.
For he is my best friend, and I love him far past the end.
He is the one who holds my chin.
Whether I lose or whether I win, he seems to say, "Keep your head 
up and try again."
I express my love through this pen and I'll do it over and over again.
You are my brother and you are unique like no other.
It makes me want to cry that I can't see you everyday.
I hope and pray every night that you are okay.  
And you're going to be okay because you are the best of all the rest.
When it comes to the test, you always know what to do or say, even
if it's a bad day.
You are very intelligent and smart, and very kind at the heart.
You always do all you can, and that's what makes you a strong man.
Thank you very much for the nicest sister-in-law whom I love
very much too.
I want you to know I miss you and can't wait to see you again, cause
you're my best friend!


Ayesha Calloway (15 years old)  (c) hstiaes@exchange.palic.com

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WHO GETS IT?

The artist paints a picture
the photographer paints one
What does it say,
anything at all
A line of a single color
image of a lock
you are reading words
does it make sense
Is it supposed to?
Who gets it?
An artist creates for oneself first
the audience second
who gets the gratification
If it causes conversation,
it's great color
beautiful image
words flow like water
Who gets it?
Are you supposed to?


Dlonzo (c) Dlonzo0411@aol.com

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I DREAMED


I dreamed of a distant land

I dreamed of a time long past

Was it just my youth that made it so attractive?

I dreamed of an island...
With brown-skinned children
And salt-encrusted screens and dirt-swept floors.
I dreamed of the scent of the Ilang-Ilang.
All encompassing,
All so insulating.

I dreamed of a parched earth...
Only growing cacti
And the worst kind - they leaped out to catch you!
I dreamed of the desert,
but leading to the deepest blue sea...
baby squid washed along the beach.

I dreamed of humid valleys whose moutains 
slopes defied planting and travel.
I dreamed of roads washed away by rains against 
the backdrop of shadowed mountains.
Always so lush, so rich,
All so insulating.

One could feel at home here...

Insulated...safe...


Cheryl Stocker (c) stockercp@arlaw.com

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          MY BIRTHDAY WISH

For my birthday wish today, I pray, Lord.....let me be

Thankful, first of all, for your Son who died for me
Let me appreciate the good human being you created in me
Let me exploit my strengths and work on my weaknesses

Let me be equally grateful for the good and the bad,
the happy and the sad times in my life,
for without the lows the high would lack meaning

I wish to be a better friend,
a more supportive sister
and a more loving daughter

Would that I become more productive, more ambitious,
and give more back to my community and my people

And, then, I would be the kind of woman
that men dream about,
the kind which inspires men to sing songs of love
and write words of devotion

I would know peace in my mind
and joy in my heart
and salvation in my soul

........for my birthday wish........


Cinda M. Crawford (c) CMCTX@aol.com