. For Liza Am I Westward Bound _The year was 1868, __The place—Old King James’ town, _Young John was by...

. The Pervading Presence The summer gleams in meadow, stream, and hill Beneath the warming sun of mid-July; No sudden...

. Simply Chilling . I. A Boring Villanelle My humdrum life has been a constant bore--- An unembellished scene of...

. After If ---with affection and all respect for dear Rudyard If you can keep your heart when all about...

. Eternal Rose, with Rows and Rows: Canto XXX of Paradise by Dante Alighieri (1265-1321) translated by Stephen Binns Six...

. On Never Giving Up On reaching the point where it's tough to find answers to _“What-are-we-doing-this-for?” And the number...

. There Are No Words ---on the July 4th Texas flash floods There are no words to quell a swell...

. When Lovely Woman Stoops to Folly… by Oliver Goldsmith (1728-1774) When lovely woman stoops to folly, And finds too...

. From Faust: The Tragedy, Part I Prologue in Heaven by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832) translated from German by...

. On Quantock Hills On Quantock Hills, as Skylarks sing aloft, A humble pilgrim walks on ways of old, In...

. The Juggler ---with special kudos to George Clooney, Whoopi Goldberg, Taylor Swift, Susan Sarandon, Tom Hanks, Mark Hamill, Robert...

. Optimism ---to the Class of 2025 The world is cold and hard and dark enough; We need not cloud...

. Never Time to Spare ---a villanelle My daughter, I am watching you with love for I’ve been there, When...

. Bodie The whistled whispers of a desert wind Drift through the dusty streets and haunted halls Where faded lives...

. Independence Day, 2025 It’s so much more than red and white and blue And stars that spangle banners flying...

. IRL —after G.K. Chesterton’s "A Ballad of Theatricals" (reprinted below) Though all the emails I receive—surprisingly politely read—Although the...

. The Playland Once in a playland caked with fresh-born mud, I saw a league of book-freed children smile collectively...

. Request for Expression of Interest SCP Poet Russel Winick has graciously agreed to host an in-person SCP Symposium at...

. Summer Family Cookout Criss-cross, hamburger toss, _Flip that sizzlin’ patty! Pretty please, and top with cheese! _You’re the Great...

. Bayesian Hubris v. Mercy Seat 11A “Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, 40, who miraculously walked away from the Ahmedabad disaster, in...

. Gorge Millennia before the Bass Pro tours, Sonar fish finders and electric reels, Some unsung pioneer dreamed baits and...

. On the Existence of Two Genders Note: This poem is written in response to the trans-driven push to promulgate...

. Therapy ---After "Help! I Can’t Stop Speaking in Iambic!" by Cynthia Erlandson Help! I can’t stop writing psychobabble!No matter...

. Every Square Inch Her every square inch, her breath, and her voice, In all this and more my soul...

. Cardinals The cardinal is my favorite bird.They mate for life, or so I’ve heard.You hear them sing antiphonally—it’s like...

. Report on Results of the SCP Survey of Poets by Roy E. Peterson and Evan Mantyk The survey had...

. The SCP Poetry Competition Winners’ Symposium Join the Symposium here: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/4772266878?pwd=V0lGeUFuSGFkeExOaTM4NlZ6NWRlUT09   You're Invited!  Who: Everyone is invited to...

. Rolling the Dice “Spontaneous creation is the reason there is something rather than nothing, why the Universe exists, why...

. A Whale is a Whale ---after Ogden Nash While laughing aloud at Ogden's smart rhymes, I was struck by...

. Hope ---in homage to Langston Hughes Hold steadfastly to hopeFor if hope should subsideLife’s a slippery slopeWhere dreams only...

. Dad and I Our sessions last an hour or two at most, for we get through them just as...

. Rodrigo’s Lament The legendary knight El Cid duels with his fiancé’s father. His rasping knavish voice profanes my good...

. New York, New York “Give up Manhattan, the Bronx and Staten Island too…” (with apologies to Rodgers & Hart)...

. A Sonnet for My One True Love Forever let the night go on and on, My body to your...

. Gruesome Grinning Gavin smooths his tie, Makes sure he’s framed against blue sky. He pats his hair—one’s out of...

. Doctor Subtilis ---Blessed John Duns Scotus (1265--1308) A proud and canny Scot from Duns am I, an infant when...

. Another Species Each time you felt some shame you could confess The sins you had committed, but instead You...

. Six Bitter were the crimson seeds, Beautiful they were to me, Sparkling like ruby beads, In his palm of...

. Archaic Torso of Apollo by Rainer Maria Rilke (1875-1926) translated from German by Josh Olson We cannot know that...

. The Prayer Blanket ---as related to me by my friend Tim Cassar, who recently survived a brain cancer operation...