“When power leads man toward arrogance, poetry reminds him of his limitations. When power narrows the area of man’s concern, poetry reminds him of the richness and diversity of existence. When power corrupts, poetry cleanses.” — John F. Kennedy
Artwork by Hilary Cole
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Boris Schleinkofer, poetrywatch editor
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No breath drawn
by Tim Pilgrim
Darkness separates Dipper handles,
until now allowed no stars —
not even pristine planets dolloped out
as shiny buoys. Suddenly, light
intent on us — kin in our own way
in mid-gorge. Burning white in black sky
shooting toward our carnage.
We pause, still hungry, no breath drawn.
A few look up, some of them kindle
distress signals, small campfires
lit with flint in high Salish meadows,
await the bright molten accretion,
new to deceit, lies, greed.
They fish, pan-fry rainbowed despair,
lie back, wait to be embraced
as naive aftermath streaks home.
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Timothy Pilgrim, emeritus associate professor of journalism at Western Washington University, is the author of “Seduced by metaphor: Timothy Pilgrim collected published poems” (Cairn Shadow Press, 2021). His work can be found at timothypilgrim.org.
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Reasons for Living
by John M. Hoyte
The peony bud is about to burst open,
making the morning beautiful.
Though the virus insists on haunting us,
our sunsets are still glorious.
Our great granddaughter is writing stories
which we enjoy – at a distance.
Luci has picked rhubarb
and is baking a pie.
Rain is sweeping up from the south,
kissing the earth with a blessing.
The good earth is still the good earth.
Our last drive upcountry found five farmers plowing.
I browse through Monet’s paintings,
captivated by his sense of light.
I enter a thin space of mystery and wonder
listening to Ravel’s Mother Goose Suite.
I look at time as a strange new gift
forgetting the day of the week.
As we look at each other across the dining table,
we find gratitude a welcome guest.
When it is all over,
there is still love.
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John M. Hoyte grew up in China and was interned in a Japanese prison camp as a child during World War ll. He once led a British expedition with an elephant over the Alps in Hannibal’s footsteps. He lives in Bellingham and has written a memoir “Persistence of Light” in English.
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Subject matter is unlimited, but poetry featuring or specific to Whatcom County and issues addressed by Whatcom Watch (government, the environment and media) will likely get first preference. Please keep it to around 25 lines; otherwise, we might have to edit your work to fi t. Don’t make yourself unprintable. Send poems and your short, two- or three-sentence bios as a word document attachment to poetry@whatcomwatch.org. The deadline is the first day of the month. Please understand that acceptance and final appearance of pieces are subject to space constraints and editorial requirements. By submitting, authors give Whatcom Watch permission for one-time publication rights in the paper and electronic editions.
