—Poetry by Jackie Chou, Pico Rivera, CA
—Illustrations Courtesy of Public Domain
THE ROCK
There's a rock on my chest.
Its jagged edges
rub against the flesh.
I try to wiggle it off,
but it sits there stubbornly,
like a cat who has found
a sweet spot to snuggle on.
There's a rock in my heart,
of the dullest gray.
I paint glitter over it,
and now it shimmers
like a star.
There's a rock on my chest.
Its jagged edges
rub against the flesh.
I try to wiggle it off,
but it sits there stubbornly,
like a cat who has found
a sweet spot to snuggle on.
There's a rock in my heart,
of the dullest gray.
I paint glitter over it,
and now it shimmers
like a star.
THE FACADE
My smile,
fastened to my face
with a volatile tape,
is falling off.
A black fountain
spills from the hole,
where the curved lips were.
Its wrath
floods the ground
under my feet,
swallowing the room
all around me.
My smile,
fastened to my face
with a volatile tape,
is falling off.
A black fountain
spills from the hole,
where the curved lips were.
Its wrath
floods the ground
under my feet,
swallowing the room
all around me.
HOW TO WRITE A PRETENTIOUS POEM
Use the word bone a lot—
bone-brittle, bone-cold, bone-glow,
even if you're far from skin-and-bones.
Set the poem on some sort of stone—
a stone bench, stone steps,
stone statue of a Greek god.
Choose images that are cold,
like icicles, naked branches,
the moon,
to reflect the barren heart.
Mention a mirror,
usually a rusty one,
to show the passage of time,
and call it the looking glass.
Throw in a female antagonist,
a witch, a school bully,
who feuds with the poet
using alchemy.
Lastly, end the poem
on a philosophical note,
with a general word
like world, universe, life.
Use the word bone a lot—
bone-brittle, bone-cold, bone-glow,
even if you're far from skin-and-bones.
Set the poem on some sort of stone—
a stone bench, stone steps,
stone statue of a Greek god.
Choose images that are cold,
like icicles, naked branches,
the moon,
to reflect the barren heart.
Mention a mirror,
usually a rusty one,
to show the passage of time,
and call it the looking glass.
Throw in a female antagonist,
a witch, a school bully,
who feuds with the poet
using alchemy.
Lastly, end the poem
on a philosophical note,
with a general word
like world, universe, life.
NO SLIVER OF LIGHT
If I were to describe my day in colors
it would be the lackluster metaphors
of a one-trick poet’s
third confessional poem
an overkill of familiar images
like dandelions dancing
in sidewalk cracks
a monochrome word palette
of different shades of gray
the emptiness between lines
of pencil scribbles
a one-woman melodrama
reflecting only my own woes
If I were to describe my day in colors
it would be the lackluster metaphors
of a one-trick poet’s
third confessional poem
an overkill of familiar images
like dandelions dancing
in sidewalk cracks
a monochrome word palette
of different shades of gray
the emptiness between lines
of pencil scribbles
a one-woman melodrama
reflecting only my own woes
THE CUTEST BOY IN THE ROOM
The rain has stopped.
Sunlight is spilling
through the Venetian blinds,
leaving strips of shadows
on the striped blue carpet.
Something shattered
glistens on the floor.
I gather the pieces
and hand them to you,
wary of their jagged edges
against my skin.
Those fragments of a heart,
that broke for another girl.
_____________________
Today’s LittleNip:
I'm selfish, impatient and a little insecure. I make mistakes, I am out of control and at times hard to handle. But if you can't handle me at my worst, then you sure as hell don't deserve me at my best.
― Marilyn Monroe
_____________________
We have poems today about love and loss, in keeping with our Seed of the Week: Love, Regardless. Jackie Chou is a poet of free verse and short-form poetry whose work has appeared in various publications like Fevers of the Mind Poetry Digest, Spillwords, Rat's Ass Review, Alien Buddha Zine, and Highland Park Poetry. Her collection of poetry, Finding My Heart in Love and Loss, has just been released by cyberwit in January, 2023 (https://www.cyberwit.net/authors/jackie-chou/). See also yesterday’s Kitchen for a Villanelle from Jackie. Welcome to the Kitchen, Jackie Chou, and don’t be a stranger!
Today is a very busy poetry day in Northern California, starting with Mosaic of Voices in Lodi featuring Leticia Del Toro, William O’Daly and Nancy Gonzalez St. Claire, with Victor Contreras on guitar. Then Sacramento Poetry Alliance presents Rooja Mohassessy and Tamer Mostafa plus open mic at 4pm; Sac. Poetry Center has a book release of Chimera by Brad Buchanan at 6pm; T-Mo Entertainment’s Love Show starts at 7pm; and Brickhouse Poetry with Juni Speaks plus open mic opens its doors at 7pm at the Brickhouse Gallery in Sacramento. Click UPCOMING NORCAL EVENTS at the top of this column for details about these and other future poetry events in the NorCal area—and keep an eye on this link and on the Kitchen for happenings that might pop up during the week.
___________________
—Medusa
The rain has stopped.
Sunlight is spilling
through the Venetian blinds,
leaving strips of shadows
on the striped blue carpet.
Something shattered
glistens on the floor.
I gather the pieces
and hand them to you,
wary of their jagged edges
against my skin.
Those fragments of a heart,
that broke for another girl.
_____________________
Today’s LittleNip:
I'm selfish, impatient and a little insecure. I make mistakes, I am out of control and at times hard to handle. But if you can't handle me at my worst, then you sure as hell don't deserve me at my best.
― Marilyn Monroe
_____________________
We have poems today about love and loss, in keeping with our Seed of the Week: Love, Regardless. Jackie Chou is a poet of free verse and short-form poetry whose work has appeared in various publications like Fevers of the Mind Poetry Digest, Spillwords, Rat's Ass Review, Alien Buddha Zine, and Highland Park Poetry. Her collection of poetry, Finding My Heart in Love and Loss, has just been released by cyberwit in January, 2023 (https://www.cyberwit.net/authors/jackie-chou/). See also yesterday’s Kitchen for a Villanelle from Jackie. Welcome to the Kitchen, Jackie Chou, and don’t be a stranger!
Today is a very busy poetry day in Northern California, starting with Mosaic of Voices in Lodi featuring Leticia Del Toro, William O’Daly and Nancy Gonzalez St. Claire, with Victor Contreras on guitar. Then Sacramento Poetry Alliance presents Rooja Mohassessy and Tamer Mostafa plus open mic at 4pm; Sac. Poetry Center has a book release of Chimera by Brad Buchanan at 6pm; T-Mo Entertainment’s Love Show starts at 7pm; and Brickhouse Poetry with Juni Speaks plus open mic opens its doors at 7pm at the Brickhouse Gallery in Sacramento. Click UPCOMING NORCAL EVENTS at the top of this column for details about these and other future poetry events in the NorCal area—and keep an eye on this link and on the Kitchen for happenings that might pop up during the week.
___________________
—Medusa
Photos in this column can be enlarged by
clicking on them once, then clicking on the x
in the top right corner to come back to Medusa.
Would you like to be a SnakePal?
All you have to do is send poetry and/or
photos and artwork to
kathykieth@hotmail.com. We post
work from all over the world—including
that which was previously published—
and collaborations are welcome.
Just remember:
the snakes of Medusa are always hungry—
for poetry, of course!
clicking on them once, then clicking on the x
in the top right corner to come back to Medusa.
Would you like to be a SnakePal?
All you have to do is send poetry and/or
photos and artwork to
kathykieth@hotmail.com. We post
work from all over the world—including
that which was previously published—
and collaborations are welcome.
Just remember:
the snakes of Medusa are always hungry—
for poetry, of course!
