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Grief of Loss and Healing through Poetry
Author: Joy Cagil

Any loss perpetuates grief, and conversely, grieving is the humankind's way of dealing with loss. William Faulkner says, "Between grief and nothing, I will take grief." Without adequate grieving, we lose our spontaneity and our sense of being alive. Life turns into something to endure and the world feels like a hostile place.

One way to mourn loss is to write about our feelings and what we have lost, but then, there are feelings for which straight prose is not always adequate, since grief refuses to accept definition. In this instance, poetry fills the gap, because poetry has the capacity to imply a lot more than what prose can achieve. Also, a poem publicizes and legitimizes our grief, making the community draw closer to us in our pain.

Probably, poetry for loss has existed before any written history. Since poetry is originally oral, it carries within itself a very long history. One of the earliest epic poems we know of is the Sumerian Gilgamesh. Inside this poem, the mighty Gilgamesh laments the death of his friend Enkidu and orders the creation to never fall silent in mourning.

The epics of Ramayana, Iliad, and Odyssey contain serious laments about the nature of loss through poetry. In Ramayana, Raja Dasharatha grieves just before his death, lamenting:
when the the season for fruit cometh he will grieve!
So is it now with me: I die of grief for Rama's exile."
After Raja dies, he too is grieved by Ayodha.

In Odyssey, Homer says:
"Even his griefs are a joy
long after to one that remembers
all that he wrought and endured.

Then, in the Iliad, Achilles' grieves.
�Why mourns my son? thy late preferr�d request
The god has granted, and the Greeks distress�d:
Why mourns my son? thy anguish let me share,
Reveal the cause, and trust a parent�s care.�

He, deeply groaning��To this cureless grief,
Not even the Thunderer�s favour brings relief.

In the Jewish tradition, a poem was the most powerful way to express grief. It probably started with David's dirge urging the Israelites to teach their children to weep and mourn. The same feeling is echoed in the Latin hymn Dies Irae where David's word is mentioned in the first stanza.

A grief poem or an elegy has always been a balm against despair. Classic or Romantic Age poets and poets up to our day have used grief to announce to the world that pain eventually teaches us solid values and an understanding of the human experience.

Of all the grieving poets, Edgar Allen Poe has raised his sorrows to the altar of poetry. Who can forget the mourning in Annabel Lee, in the mystery of Ulalume, or in Raven's bleak utterings of "nevermore"? Then, closer to our time, Whitman created a true monument for Lincoln, in "O Captain! My Captain!"

Today, contemporary poets choose a more poignant attitude towards grief. Late Stanley Kunitz's "Night Letter," Billy Collins' "The Dead," and Jane Kenyon's "Coat," are examples that come to mind. Rather than using expected phrases and conventional lamenting, these poets hint at their sorrow by shaping their lines around concrete images and physical objects. As a result, their poetry carries a genuine voice with a delicate and powerful expression of feeling.

Joy Cagil is an author on http://www.Writing.Com/ which is a site for Poetry. Her portfolio can be found at http://www.Writing.Com/authors/joycag

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For the Love of Poetry
Author: Terry Coyier

"Work is love made visible.

And if you cannot work with love but only with distaste, it is better that you should leave your work and sit at the gates of the temple and take alms of those who work with joy.

For if you bake bread with indifference, you bake a bitter bread that feeds but half man's hunger."

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Five Keys To Leaner And Meaner Copywriting
Author: Robert Warren


Grab 'em and don't lose 'em. Every marketer knows that one. Human beings have very short attention spans, so you can't afford to waste your prospect's time - give them the good stuff and then let them go as soon as you can. Writing effective marketing material is all about writing crisply with just a handful of words.

Clean writing isn't an accident, but is instead the result of the careful application of certain principles and tools. Try these five techniques for crafting leaner, meaner, more effective business copy:

Avoid modifiers. Modifiers change the meaning of other words; the most common of these are adverbs and adjectives (words that describe verbs and nouns, respectively). They're used when the writer feels that the noun or verb needs a little something extra: "the shining sun", "run quickly", etc. Get rid of as many modifiers as you can and choose nouns and verbs that stand on their own.

No lazy words. Every word should be doing real work, conveying necessary information and supporting other parts of the piece. Think of your sentences as support beams and rafters in a building, and analyze the piece word-by-word: are there any nails sticking out of boards? Anything that's there purely for show? http://www.rswarren.com/articles/fluff.php">Anything that doesn't strengthen your writing weakens it. Strip your copy down to its most essential parts, and throw out the words that are sleeping on the job.

Reduce it to a single sentence. Do you really know what you want to say? You might be surprised - try phrasing http://www.rswarren.com/articles/writing_structure.php">your entire piece into one simple sentence. Can you do it, or are you insisting that your message is too in-depth? Taking your point down to a single statement can give your copy new focus and clarity.

One thought per sentence. Sentences and paragraphs are different things. Avoid long, complex sentences built up of multiple thoughts. Keep your sentences to one thought each, keep them short and simple, and use your paragraphs for the complex ideas.

When in doubt, cut it out. Every writer has written the perfect sentence that just doesn't play along well with others. Hemingway was right - kill your darlings. If you can't figure out how to ease that bit of poetry in with the rest of your marketing piece, cut it completely and don't look back. Be merciless. You'll be surprised how often that's the best solution.

About the Author

Robert Warren (http://www.rswarren.com">www.rswarren.com) is a freelance copywriter in the Orlando, Florida area, specializing in providing for the marketing and communications needs of the independent professional private practice.

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Dimly Lit Poetry - A Moonlit Journey through Urban Decay
Author: Owen Johnston

Urban Decay
Slowly descending
The spiral staircase
Into urban decay
On this night long journey -
Preceded by flashlight
And followed by the full moon,
Whose eyes hold us all in
His view as the street light
Flickers in and out in orange shades.

Spirit of the Past
The spirit of the past
Lives in
The whispers of the wind and
The hoot of the hoary owl,
Which echoes sadly evermore
Against the lonely trees -
Who for days uncounted
Have seen the endless journeys of men
Come to and end beneath them -
This final respite
Marked by names and dates
On lonely tombs.

Ghost Hunting
There is a ghost in the shell
Of every old place -
Whether the unclaimed metal skeleton
Of an abandoned steel mill,
Or the spirit that lingers
On the grounds of a historic graveyard.
These ancient places carry
The immortal remnants
Of old civilization.

Exploring them to
Examine their secrets
Like an urban archaeologist -
Chasing down the answers
To urban legends
And ghost stories -
Simply to know
What came before.

Abandoned Factory
Once full of life,
This old building;
With memories locked away
Under layers of dust.
Cigarette butts and broken beer bottles
Litter the lonely lot.

Once vital and active
In the world of mortal men,
Now immortal in its skeletal frame -
The ghost in the shell of the
Abandoned factory
Speaks secrets of long misused tools,
Broken cinder blocks,
And locked away rooms -
Modern ruins and electric tombs
Long left behind
On this hidden highway.
And evermore in urban legend.

Stomping Ground
Traversing the rural fringes
Of urban reality,
Haunting the spirits
With lamps and curious minds.

Marble City
I know when you were born and died,
But I want to see beyond the moss
On your gravestone.
Who were you in life?

Old Church

I. Cathedral.
I go back in time as I brush webs of dust
From the stained glass window,
Wondering what secrets this
Old church buried with its dead.

II. Esoteric.
As stained as memory,
This old window yet reflects light
Like the sermons once held
In the holy hall.

Farewell Party (Leaving the Old Church)
The ravens on the roof
Stand guard like gargoyles -
These grim feathered ghouls
Perch atop the once proud passages
That they now pretend to own,
And sing a sad a cappella
In mockery of memory.

To End a Journey
I leave as the morning light
Lifts the late night's velvet veil
And the moon bids farewell
To the starry sky,
Wondering if warning signs
Will be like hieroglyphs
To a future age.

Into the Light
Walking at the crack of dawn on
This early morn,
Through fresh cut grass
And beside foggy fields,
My shoes soaked with dew -

I stop to take a drink
And pause to think:
This simple heaven�s
Greater�n
That urban hell.

Atalaya
Dark watch tower
Overlooking the lonely beach
Built without blueprint -
Summer home sculpted
From brick and mortar,
Its plans first and solely sketched
In the dreams of a genius and poet.

Ordered chaos - artistic anarchy;
The sculpture room seems to
Summon the spirit
Of the poet's late wife -
As if the ghost
Of the lady sculptor
Haunts the mossy halls
Just to finish her last work.

Manifest Destiny
How wild was the west?
How true rang the gold,
That men sought and killed
For it?

How mighty the steed,
And how much mightier
The man who rode it
And held the law on his hip?
How long the roads of those days?
How deep the secrets?
Would the spirits of
Doc Holliday and Wyatt Earp
Speak to us in the old saloon?

The above poems were excerpted from the author's upcoming online book "Dark Passage". View other online poetry at Johnston Arts - Online Publications. Join poetry discussions at the Johnston Karate Online Community.

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Complete your bookshelves with bookends
Author: Johann Erickson
When trying to decide how to best decorate a shelf or table top, http://www.onlinediscountmart.com/bookends-book-ends.html">bookends should be considered. They are great decorating accent pieces and also work as functional items, preventing book warping, decreasing page wrinkling, and protecting book covers. In addition to preserving your books, bookends add finesse to home offices, libraries, children�s rooms, and family rooms. For a unique decorating approach, place them in a bathroom to hold bubble bath reading material.


But bookends don't only hold books. They can add drama to a CD collection, accessorize photo albums, or hold folders of work to be completed�use your imagination. You can arrange cookbooks between bookends that match your http://www.onlinediscountmart.com/kitchen-decor.html">kitchen decor, whether it is roosters, apples, or http://www.onlinediscountmart.com/decorative-bottles.html">decorative bottles. Then, group with baskets, http://www.onlinediscountmart.com/decorative-plates.html">decorative plates, or a prized http://www.onlinediscountmart.com/cookiejars.html">cookie jar. Books that no one intends to read can be partnered with bookends and displayed on top of kitchen cabinets.


What kind of bookends are available? Any kind you want. You simply need to determine what material and shape the book ends need to be in order to contribute to the definition of a particular room. For example, a little girl�s room could utilize bookends that look like http://www.onlinediscountmart.com/29481.html">Noah's Ark to hold her collection of Childrens books. http://www.onlinediscountmart.com/31386.html">Brass eagle book ends would look great in a den filled with deer heads and decoys, while http://www.onlinediscountmart.com/06-33570.html">cherub characters may fit best in an elegant living room holding books of romantic poetry.


Are your books lined up neatly in a bookshelf? Don�t be afraid to jazz it up a bit. Take the books out of the case and divide them according to subject. Chances are good that you will have several titles per subject. Then purchase bookends in a style that matches the subject matter. Arrange them in groups on your bookshelf along side http://www.onlinediscountmart.com/interior-dzcor-picture-frames.html">framed pictures, http://www.onlinediscountmart.com/decorative-plates.html">decorative plates, or http://www.onlinediscountmart.com/flower-vases.html">vases.


Book ends provide an opportunity to infuse your personality or interests into a room. Because they serve a dual purpose, book ends are a justifiable decorating expense. You can preserve your books while adding a new element or focal point to your living spaces.

About the Author

Johann Erickson is the owner of http://www.onlinediscountmart.com">Online Discount Mart Please include an active link to our site if you'd like to reprint this article.

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Bringing Creativity to Poetry
Author: Jake Rose

There are many factors that create poetry. There are many factors that create all types of writing. With a poem, not only do you have to focus on meaning and style of writing, you also have to deal with size and form. Some people choose to use already made and famous forms, such as a sonnet, while others prefer free styling it. Either way, there are plenty of creative ways to make the poem stand out even more.

This is all about adding something more visual to the poem, not about actually altering the writing. Though it may seem unimportant to some, bringing the poem out of just being a piece of writing and more into a visual art can really capture the feeling and expression in the poem and make the reader�s experience more enjoyable.

The simplest way is to add artwork. This is the simplest way because it doesn�t involve actually dealing with the poem, but rather just adding some images near it. Depending on if the poem is on a website or a page of a book can determine just exactly what type of images you want to add.

The most complex would be scenery that brings the imagery of the poem to life. This can be very helpful for longer poems, those of more epic proportions, and help strengthen a particular scene or moment in the piece. For a smaller, shorter poem, this can be overpowering and not necessary.

Smaller images, a sketch of a character or object, can be effective too. It can put emphasis on certain meanings and focus in the poem. The key here is to not go overboard. You don�t need an illustration for everything mentioned, but one per page or so can just compliment the piece enough.

There is also borders, headers, or similar types of images. These don�t at first glance really have to do with the poem, meaning that sometimes the items or designs in them are not even mentioned in the poem, but they can be visually stimulating and help express a certain feeling the poem is getting across. Lighter designs, like using objects like flowers, butterflies, stars, etc, can bring a happy or romantic poem to life, while darker designs, like using weapons, bones, scary eyes, etc, can bring a sad or scary poem to life.

Another thing to consider is adding color to the poem. It doesn�t necessarily have to be in the whole piece. Like all the other visuals, this is to compliment the poem, not to overpower it. The key is to use colors that benefit the poem, such as using blue for a water poem or a sad poem, red for a scary poem or a romantic poem, green for a nature poem, and so on. There are a few ways to add color effectively to a poem.

One is to emphasis repetitious lines, phrases, or words. Not only does it make it clearer that these are repeated, it also puts more dramatic effect to them.

There�s also using color to make patterns. Even subtle hints in color can create beautiful designs, weather it makes the poem looked striped or something well-known, or a completely different and unique design. Putting a few blue letters to create a swirl might just be the thing to make a water poem pop out of the page. Or maybe it is some browns and tan diamonds to emphasize the ruggedness of a mountain poem, or green spots to compliment a tree poem.

The third way to add creativity to a poem is to play with its form. This doesn�t necessarily have to effect its style so to say. This could be as simple as indenting a few lines and making the outline curvy. It could also be making the poem look like an object: a poem about butterflies shaped as a butterfly, a poem about water shaped as a drop of water, etc. This can be very unique for short and medium sized poems.

Even putting the poem into an abstract form, with sentence breaks and not following the rules of grammar and typical poetry, can provide something different. It doesn�t half to look like a real object, or look like a common poetry style. It can be your own unique and quirky form.

Poetry doesn�t need visual aids to make it powerful. Visual aids can however make the poem more than just a poem. It blends literature with art and not only shows the author�s other talents and creativity, but can make people think differently about how they view your writing. It�s not a bad thing to think outside of the box. It�s not a bad thing to think outside of the poem once in awhile.

Jake Rose is an artist and an author on http://www.Writing.Com/ which is a site for Fiction Writing.

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Antiquated Language In Poetry - The right choice for thee?
Author: Holly Bliss

My Creative Writing professor once passed out sheets of poetry. They were in pairs according to genre or topic of the poem. Our task was to pick the poem that had a greater depth to it. The �better� poem � not that the other poem was bad, by the way � and I chose correctly in every case, except one: the correct choice had antiquated language.

I can study period poetry that has antiquated language, that�s the way they spoke back then, but I have a real problem reading modern poetry that uses antiquated language. There are exceptions, but I�ll get into that in a minute.

Before anyone gets their britches in a bunch because they love their "forsooths," let�s go over some pros and cons.

Antiquated Language CONS

-Difficult to effectively communicate your message to your twenty-first century reader.

-Can seem lofty, as if the writer is trying to be something he/she is not and a portion of trust is lost between the reader and writer.

PRO Antiquated Language

-Adds voice to certain topics

-Can add a comedic effect (as a contrast to the subject matter, etc)

NOTE: these pros and cons can be said for things like: prolific profanity and slang, as well.

Read this poem written in 1849:

Arthur Hugh Clough (1819-1861)
Say not the Struggle nought Availeth

Say not the struggle nought availeth,
The labour and the wounds are vain,
The enemy faints not nor faileth,
And as things have been, things remain;

If hopes were dupes, fears may be liars;
It may be, in yon smoke conceal'd,
Your comrades chase e'en now the fliers--
And, but for you, possess the field.

For while the tired waves vainly breaking
Seem here no painful inch to gain,
Far back, through creeks and inlets making,
Comes silent, flooding in, the main.

And not by eastern windows only,
When daylight comes, comes in the light,
In front the sun climbs slow, how slowly,
But westward, look, the land is bright.

Roberts, Edgar V.. Literature, An Introduction To Reading and Writing. seventh. NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall, 2004.

While this is a great poem as is, it is much easier to understand the parts of this poem not peppered with antiquated language.

Now that I have you convinced you, you have decided to use antiquated language nevermore.

But wait!

There are pros listed up there. Don�t use it �because it sounds like good poetry.� Like any poetic device: If you use it, use it with purpose and on purpose.

2006 Holly Bliss. All Rights Reserved. This document may be freely redistributed in its unedited form and on the condition that all copyright references are kept intact along with the hyperlinked URLs.

About the Author: Using her writing as paint on the canvas of her life, Holly Bliss is an eclectic writer, newsletter editor and an author on http://www.Writing.Com/ which is a site for Poetry.

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An Ode to Morpheus
Author: Ambreen Ishrat
Another night and Morpheus has yet again to deliver my share of sleep and so I lie on my pillow, gazing at the ceiling fan, while the rest of the world is in deep slumber.

How I wish to have hypnotized myself to sleep as counting sheep never helps, nor does hot milk. The sandman's sand has also turned colourless. Another night it is when sleep deludes my weary eyes and my overactive brain refuses to stop dwindling on the scenes of the day that has just ended and another one has started silently.

Sleep - the boundary between the two days - is missing. What's the big deal, you must think, for every now and then, a sleepless night is quite a normal thing for everyone. But for some, this is an affliction that happens more often than usual. And what makes me hysterical is the feeling that on one such desperate night, you also tend to discover that you have run out of your emergency supply of sleeping pills. So much for my emergency-coping capabilities!

The value of sleep can only be known to an insomniac and the bliss that it brings to one who is weary in soul as well. For me, sleep is what always restores my sanity, which can wear off the effects of gruesome schedules, worries and complications. It is a happy escape into the land of Oz, where I can slip into for a few hours and then come back to the familiar worrisome and often irksome daily routine. The problems remain the same, but my ability to cope with them certainly increases thrice-fold. Pimples on the tired skin reduce, the sting of heartaches lessen and deadlines become graspable. Like a magical transformation, overnight my body gets charged with energy. The brain starts brimming with activated and regenerated neurons and I rise as a new person who takes upon the irksome hurdles of yesterday with horns and does away with them.

So silent seems the world around me that I can hear the beating of my own heart. My weary eyes start to roam and scan the length and breadth of the four corners of the room. This is my room, my heaven, my prison and my hell. The walls wear my solitude like trophies and silence curls on my bed and encapsulates me like a shroud, where I lie with my hands resting neatly by my sides. I lift the palm of my hand and feel my own breath at the back of my hand - to seek reassurance that I am still alive and this isn't the silence of the grave. And if that is not enough, my mind goes on speculating on and on as to why certain things happened. At night, my mind turns itself into a backyard cluttered with half-conceived and half-aborted ideas and plans that I keep on stumbling upon. All the wonderful ideas and resolutions which flit like bats in the nook and crannies of my mind fade away on seeing the light of day. The mind is also the graveyard of memories and remembrances, which are easily resurrected in the dead of the twelfth hour. As morbidity tries to seize me, I kick my sheet off and get up, wishing no more to wait upon sleep or revel in thoughts of the past, analysis of the day just gone by and pipe dreams of tomorrow.

The chill gets the better of me and for one moment, the warmth of my bed tempts me to snuggle back again. But the body refuses to lay in monotony anymore. My mind swiftly scans the possibility of activities that can help me to kill time or to induce sufficient tiredness, forcing me to lull me back to the peaceful sojourn of sleep. A book to read maybe, a long overdue letter that needs to be answered or I can hook on the net and explore the web. All options are considered and struck off one after another, as my tired body protests. Hence, I decide to just lie low and breathe the surrounding silence in and out.

I enviously think of those who are sound asleep in their beds. I even envy those who stay up late by choice and still manage to get along with their day-to-day routine just fine. The marvellous generation of 'night people' - a different genre. What do I have in common with them? It is during such strange moments of serenity and uncanny silence that the likes of Keats heard the voice of the nightingale and so transported himself to the realm of beyond, and Matthew Arnold contemplated upon the crisis of faith for the mortals. As for me, I stand as miserable and confused as ever, feeling stupid that I have exhausted my supply of sleeping pills. I am not up because I choose to. I don't have the luxury of getting up late. With bleary eyes and a puffy and exhausted face, I must brave the world. I must get up at the crack of dawn and return late into the afternoon. Feeling panicky, I start to pace around the room. I ransack my medicine box feverishly like an addict, for a pill that might have escaped my groping fingers and must be hiding in some corner. But none are to be found. I sigh, as I can do nothing else.

I switch on the side lamp and see the room come alive in a soft hue of light and shadows, adding a delightfully mysterious and cozy look to the walls and ceiling. So often I am struck with the feeling that at nighttime, all non-living things tend to exude a life of their own. The fridge hums and drones silently, the walls whisper and breathe, as the electricity running behind them slithers, twists and runs with defying swiftness. I peer out of the window on to the street which looks deserted and dark. The carcass of a dying and spent moon is briefly revealed by the passing clouds and then its darkness again. Crickets creak, a dog lets out a churlish howl and the moths feverishly encircle the solitary lamp posts on the street, until the night watchman whistles and everything turns still, but only for a moment and then the rhythm resumes. A car passes by on the street, a midnight rider, whose stereo blare heinously and ruins the perfect harmony of the night and silence. As he passes away, the dog howls loudly in protest.

The breeze at night feels so very gentle. A few dry leaves and the ubiquitous plastic bags are sucked up by the breeze and they start to dance in whirlwind motion. The breeze turns into a wind, which twirls the leaves round and round on the deserted road, around the lamp posts and finally spits them out in a corner and then carries on its ballet alone. I prick my ears. A low rustle! Then a moan. It is the wind again. And the wind does cry. I switch on to FM radio, hungry and desperate for a human voice. The radio hums and creaks as I set the bandwidth and finally sweet sounds of rhythm and blues start to emit, filling in my jarred senses with companionship and peace. So I listen on and on, silently humming and rocking myself to sooth the dull pain in my body. I take up a long-neglected poetry book. Hours pass till I finally hear a slight chirp and then another one. The FM station has gone silent ages ago and static emitting from the radio drones on.

I keep my book away. I have survived a night without my sleeping pills and the delicate sensation of yesterday sleeps on my eyelids. I blink softly, hoping not to loose any of it. The aurora is wakening; the reign of darkness lies in recession. It's dawn and I am still looking through yesterday's eyes, though weary but with the hope that I am stepping into a new day and whatever it might bring. I will tackle it and I will tackle it well because I am a survivor, if not anything else.

About the Author

The author is a 26 years old single female, hailing from Karachi, Pakistan. She has earned her masters degree in English Literature from the University of Karachi. Currently working as a content and creative writer at an IT firm, she dreams of pursuing a M. Phil degree in literature some day. Her hobbies include reading and writing. For feedback, comments or critique she can be reached at galatia2001@yahoo.com.

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A French Teacher's Memories: How to Ride Poetry
Author: Gabrielle Guichard

I have a confession to make, I do not like poetry very much. As a part of my French teacher's job was to explain French poetry, I tended to dispose of this part in as few lessons as possible. Of course, year after year, the method proved to be little sensible: the juniors could not understand a course run at university level and I had to explain everything twice.

Usually, when pupils do not understand, they get bored and begin to chat, to conduct experiments on how to fly a paper plane, and many other activities that have little in common with the subject of the lesson.

Once, mine prefered to pretend to be riding a motorbike. Their arms were stretched out in front of them, their hands were clutching the handlebars and they were leaning to right or left, depending on the bend they had to take. It was a ballet, though it was danced by sitting people (and rather monotonous). At least, it was highly rhythmic.

I recognized this rhythme, even if it was the first time I "saw" it. It was Victor Hugo's verse rhythm. I flipped through my textbook quickly, to find a poem by Victor Hugo (you are sure there is at least one in any French textbook).

"Roar your motorbike to page xx and read in rhythm" I told them.

They read. Thanks to this ride, I was able to show them the significance of the rhythm in Victor Hugo's poetry. It was not an explanation, but I kept the control of the situation; it was not so bad a result.

Gabrielle Guichard, a French teacher who teaches French online in a Virtual Classroom.

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Dimly Lit Poetry - A Moonlit Journey through Urban Decay

Author: Owen Johnston

Urban Decay
Slowly descending
The spiral staircase
Into urban decay
On this night long journey -
Preceded by flashlight
And followed by the full moon,
Whose eyes hold us all in
His view as the street light
Flickers in and out in orange shades.

Spirit of the Past
The spirit of the past
Lives in
The whispers of the wind and
The hoot of the hoary owl,
Which echoes sadly evermore
Against the lonely trees -
Who for days uncounted
Have seen the endless journeys of men
Come to and end beneath them -
This final respite
Marked by names and dates
On lonely tombs.

Ghost Hunting
There is a ghost in the shell
Of every old place -
Whether the unclaimed metal skeleton
Of an abandoned steel mill,
Or the spirit that lingers
On the grounds of a historic graveyard.
These ancient places carry
The immortal remnants
Of old civilization.

Exploring them to
Examine their secrets
Like an urban archaeologist -
Chasing down the answers
To urban legends
And ghost stories -
Simply to know
What came before.

Abandoned Factory
Once full of life,
This old building;
With memories locked away
Under layers of dust.
Cigarette butts and broken beer bottles
Litter the lonely lot.

Once vital and active
In the world of mortal men,
Now immortal in its skeletal frame -
The ghost in the shell of the
Abandoned factory
Speaks secrets of long misused tools,
Broken cinder blocks,
And locked away rooms -
Modern ruins and electric tombs
Long left behind
On this hidden highway.
And evermore in urban legend.

Stomping Ground
Traversing the rural fringes
Of urban reality,
Haunting the spirits
With lamps and curious minds.

Marble City
I know when you were born and died,
But I want to see beyond the moss
On your gravestone.
Who were you in life?

Old Church

I. Cathedral.
I go back in time as I brush webs of dust
From the stained glass window,
Wondering what secrets this
Old church buried with its dead.

II. Esoteric.
As stained as memory,
This old window yet reflects light
Like the sermons once held
In the holy hall.

Farewell Party (Leaving the Old Church)
The ravens on the roof
Stand guard like gargoyles -
These grim feathered ghouls
Perch atop the once proud passages
That they now pretend to own,
And sing a sad a cappella
In mockery of memory.

To End a Journey
I leave as the morning light
Lifts the late night's velvet veil
And the moon bids farewell
To the starry sky,
Wondering if warning signs
Will be like hieroglyphs
To a future age.

Into the Light
Walking at the crack of dawn on
This early morn,
Through fresh cut grass
And beside foggy fields,
My shoes soaked with dew -

I stop to take a drink
And pause to think:
This simple heaven�s
Greater�n
That urban hell.

Atalaya
Dark watch tower
Overlooking the lonely beach
Built without blueprint -
Summer home sculpted
From brick and mortar,
Its plans first and solely sketched
In the dreams of a genius and poet.

Ordered chaos - artistic anarchy;
The sculpture room seems to
Summon the spirit
Of the poet's late wife -
As if the ghost
Of the lady sculptor
Haunts the mossy halls
Just to finish her last work.

Manifest Destiny
How wild was the west?
How true rang the gold,
That men sought and killed
For it?

How mighty the steed,
And how much mightier
The man who rode it
And held the law on his hip?
How long the roads of those days?
How deep the secrets?
Would the spirits of
Doc Holliday and Wyatt Earp
Speak to us in the old saloon?

The above poems were excerpted from the author's upcoming online book "Dark Passage". View other online poetry at Johnston Arts - Online Publications. Join poetry discussions at the Johnston Karate Online Community.

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Complete your bookshelves with bookends

Author: Johann Erickson

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Book ends provide an opportunity to infuse your personality or interests into a room. Because they serve a dual purpose, book ends are a justifiable decorating expense. You can preserve your books while adding a new element or focal point to your living spaces.

About the Author

Johann Erickson is the owner of http://www.onlinediscountmart.com">Online Discount Mart Please include an active link to our site if you'd like to reprint this article.

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Children�s Author Creates New Family Classics

Author: Lisa M. Hendey

Children�s Author Creates New Family Classics
Author Interview with Mary Quattlebaum, Family Reunion
By Lisa M. Hendey

I love the joy of discovering new authors and sharing them with my children, both of whom love to read as much as I do. One of my new favorites, although she�s been writing for years, is Mary Quattlebaum, author of the beautifully illustrated Family Reunion (Erdman�s, February 2004, hardcover, 32 pages) and the wonderful Jackson Jones chapter book series. A classic storyteller, Quattlebaum takes a little �poetic license� in the beautifully illustrated Family Reunion. Through the eyes of one young girl, the story of a family�s reunion at the shore unfolds in fifteen uniquely styled poems. Watercolor illustrations by Andrea Shine combine with Quattlebaum�s artful verse to make this a book your family will treasure together.

Moving away from the picture book format and into chapter books, Mary Quattlebaum has also recently released the second installment in her popular Jackson Jones series, Jackson Jones and Mission Greentop (Delacorte Books for Young Readers, August 2004, paperback, 112 pages). This celebrated children�s author has the gift of storytelling, and she�s working to encourage children to find their own voice. In conjunction with Reunions Magazine, Quattlebaum invites children to reflect on time spent at family reunions through their written or drawn reflections.

I recently had the opportunity to interview Mary Quattlebaum and am pleased to share her thoughts on writing and her books.

Q: I'm pleased to be able to share the following Book Spotlight interview with Mary Quattlebaum, author of numerous books including Family Reunion and Jackson Jones and Mission Greentop. Mary, thanks for your time and for sharing your talent! Tell us a bit about yourself and your family.

A: Hi, Lisa. Thanks so much for having me. I grew up with three brothers, three sisters, and many pets (dogs, cats, hamsters, chickens, ducks, horses, cows) in the country (rural Virginia) and now live in our nation's capital (Washington, DC) with my husband, daughter, guinea pig and numerous fish. I've loved writing since I was a kid and was lucky to have parents who read aloud to us. I especially remember my father reading Black Beauty and nursery rhymes before bedtime and my mother bringing us to the public library every two weeks. We'd carry all our books in a big wicker laundry basket!

Q: Family Reunion tells the story of Jodie, a ten year old taking a trip to a meet extended family at a special reunion. The book's artwork, by Andrea Shine, is incredible. Please share with our readers how this book came about.

A: Writing the poems in Family Reunion gave me a chance to re-live the joyful gatherings of my childhood and to explore what made them deeply memorable--playing with cousins, hearing grandparents' stories, eating fun food like watermelon. My daughter, nieces and nephews all enjoy today's family reunions for the very same reasons. Family Reunion is also a lot a fun to talk about when I visit schools. Kids love to share and write about their own experiences--whether they gather at the beach, Disney World, or their grandparents' home and whether they eat hamburgers, mangoes or spicy adobo. Kids also like finding the collage treasures (leaves, letters, bits of pretty paper) illustrator Andrea Shine has hidden in her beautiful watercolors. (Check www.maryquattlebaum.com for information on Reunions, a national magazine, interested in publishing kids' stories, drawings and photos about their family reunions.)

Q: Family Reunion is unique in that it features a story, told through a variety of forms of poetry. What was your goal behind using poetry, as opposed to prose, to share your message?


A: Through poetry, I hoped to capture and quickly convey a reunion's emotional high points for a child: the initial shyness of "Getting There," the fun of connecting with cousins in "Cloud Visions" and "Lightning Bugs," the pleasure of cooking and eating together in "A Feast and Talk-Fest," the sadness of leaving in "Going Back" and "Letter to Nana." Also, as a kid, I had loved (and still do!) the incredible "language package" that is poetry, the way everything--metaphor, rhythm, image, sound--is heightened, the way each word, each mark of punctuation is important. Family Reunion includes different poetic forms (sonnet, haiku, ballad, free verse, etc.) to expand young readers' awareness of poetry--and encourage their own writing.

Q: How do themes of faith and family impact upon your writing?

A: I'm often unaware of larger themes when I write a book. When I get an idea, I'm so curious about the characters that my early drafts revolve around trying to stay true to their voices and to figure out what they want to do next. The themes must sort of creep in, I guess, while I'm writing.

Q: My boys and I loved your latest children's novel Jackson Jones and Mission Greentop, for its great story and its positive themes. Do you have plans for future additions to the Jackson Jones series? Why do you think kids are so drawn to Jackson?

A: I'm so glad your boys liked Jackson! I've heard from other young readers that they liked this character for his humor and the way he'd "keep trying" even when things got rough. Some kids have also said that they enjoyed the community garden setting. As to another Jackson Jones book, I'm delighted to report that a third book will be published in the next year or so.

Q: I'd be remiss if I didn't ask you about your wonderful classic, The Shine Man. Tell us about this story and its moral.

A: The Shine Man was inspired by my father's stories about growing up during the Depression, a time when many Americans lacked food, warm clothing and adequate shelter. Larry, a shoeshine man, moves from town to town, trying to find work. One snowy evening he makes a little Christmas ornament--a spoolie angel--from scraps and suddenly encounters a poorly dressed, mischievous boy who teases him for the toy. When Larry finally gives it to him, the child gives him a Christmas miracle. So the book is about the power of giving--even when there isn't much to give. For me, it's been so touching to see how children interpret the ending. After one reading, a little boy sat back and said with satisfaction, "Well, now Larry is an angel."

Q: Mary, I know that you do a lot of work with encouraging children to express themselves through writing. What can parents do to motivate their children to write and to share their ideas, hopes and dreams in story or poetry form?

A: Probably one of the best motivators for kids is the example of their own parents! Families might set aside time after holidays or vacations to organize photos and write a paragraph or so about the event. It's fascinating to see how differently each family member will remember the same event! And it's so much fun to re-read those pieces as the years pass and to see how handwriting, perceptions, etc., have changed.

For more information on books by Mary Quattlebaum visit http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/external-search?search-type=ss&tag=catholicmomcom&keyword=Quattlebaum%20Mary&mode=books

Lisa M. Hendey, wife, mother and webmaster of http://www.CatholicMom.com and http://www.ChristianColoring.com is an avid reader and writes from Fresno, California.

About the Author

Lisa M. Hendey, wife, mother and webmaster of http://www.CatholicMom.com and http://www.ChristianColoring.com is an avid reader and writes from Fresno, California.

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Bringing Creativity to Poetry

Author: Jake Rose

There are many factors that create poetry. There are many factors that create all types of writing. With a poem, not only do you have to focus on meaning and style of writing, you also have to deal with size and form. Some people choose to use already made and famous forms, such as a sonnet, while others prefer free styling it. Either way, there are plenty of creative ways to make the poem stand out even more.

This is all about adding something more visual to the poem, not about actually altering the writing. Though it may seem unimportant to some, bringing the poem out of just being a piece of writing and more into a visual art can really capture the feeling and expression in the poem and make the reader�s experience more enjoyable.

The simplest way is to add artwork. This is the simplest way because it doesn�t involve actually dealing with the poem, but rather just adding some images near it. Depending on if the poem is on a website or a page of a book can determine just exactly what type of images you want to add.

The most complex would be scenery that brings the imagery of the poem to life. This can be very helpful for longer poems, those of more epic proportions, and help strengthen a particular scene or moment in the piece. For a smaller, shorter poem, this can be overpowering and not necessary.

Smaller images, a sketch of a character or object, can be effective too. It can put emphasis on certain meanings and focus in the poem. The key here is to not go overboard. You don�t need an illustration for everything mentioned, but one per page or so can just compliment the piece enough.

There is also borders, headers, or similar types of images. These don�t at first glance really have to do with the poem, meaning that sometimes the items or designs in them are not even mentioned in the poem, but they can be visually stimulating and help express a certain feeling the poem is getting across. Lighter designs, like using objects like flowers, butterflies, stars, etc, can bring a happy or romantic poem to life, while darker designs, like using weapons, bones, scary eyes, etc, can bring a sad or scary poem to life.

Another thing to consider is adding color to the poem. It doesn�t necessarily have to be in the whole piece. Like all the other visuals, this is to compliment the poem, not to overpower it. The key is to use colors that benefit the poem, such as using blue for a water poem or a sad poem, red for a scary poem or a romantic poem, green for a nature poem, and so on. There are a few ways to add color effectively to a poem.

One is to emphasis repetitious lines, phrases, or words. Not only does it make it clearer that these are repeated, it also puts more dramatic effect to them.

There�s also using color to make patterns. Even subtle hints in color can create beautiful designs, weather it makes the poem looked striped or something well-known, or a completely different and unique design. Putting a few blue letters to create a swirl might just be the thing to make a water poem pop out of the page. Or maybe it is some browns and tan diamonds to emphasize the ruggedness of a mountain poem, or green spots to compliment a tree poem.

The third way to add creativity to a poem is to play with its form. This doesn�t necessarily have to effect its style so to say. This could be as simple as indenting a few lines and making the outline curvy. It could also be making the poem look like an object: a poem about butterflies shaped as a butterfly, a poem about water shaped as a drop of water, etc. This can be very unique for short and medium sized poems.

Even putting the poem into an abstract form, with sentence breaks and not following the rules of grammar and typical poetry, can provide something different. It doesn�t half to look like a real object, or look like a common poetry style. It can be your own unique and quirky form.

Poetry doesn�t need visual aids to make it powerful. Visual aids can however make the poem more than just a poem. It blends literature with art and not only shows the author�s other talents and creativity, but can make people think differently about how they view your writing. It�s not a bad thing to think outside of the box. It�s not a bad thing to think outside of the poem once in awhile.

Jake Rose is an artist and an author on http://www.Writing.Com/ which is a site for Fiction Writing.

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