Three poems from April Glaser of "Wildy Open"

 © Alison Mayor

The Wind

This life is not yours to keep,
She says.

Learn to love.
And in love, 
learn to give it all away. 

Stop clenching your fists
and hobbling forward,
like the wretched inheritance
our parents deny passing on to us -

but did. 

Instead, 
learn to open. 
And breathe

but not like strangled children
drowning in shallow waters -

like the wind,
tearing through the trees. 
Screaming. 

Listen. 

Learn to be everything you love -

higher than the sky
and deeper than the ocean-

then master the art 
of gifting it all away. 


* * *  

 © Alison Mayor

The Fighter

So we are like ships,
crashing into one another
then sinking back
into ourselves.

This fire fueled by prayer;

Great Mountain,
with your ridge back beauty
and immoveable strength,

take my hand. 

Walk with me into the village,
where they have thoroughly forgotten
the weight of your name. 
Teach me how to be a silent force;
so loud, so enormous,
all deaf hearts tune 
to the choir of your truth. 
Help me to soften
around the things I hate,
and have no control 
to possibly change. 
Or break me in two,
three, four hundred distant ways
until I am as imperfect as you -
with shadows I can call home
and learn to crawl up into. 

Show me the way of family
flowering over narrow passages, 
intoxicated by life, and everything
becomes more beautiful with time. 

So the stories we carry 
have never felt more precious,
as we look out across this unlit season
and wonder how you’ll possibly survive. 


* * *  

 © Alison Mayor

All Things Real


Sorrow is the door 
by which my inheritance
showers gifts of sustenance
into my outstretched heart. 

So I enter

and wind around the circular
square of buzzing sensation,
until I come face to face
with the tanned and toned
silhouette of solitude

grazing upon red sunflowers,
aroused by the seduction 
of springtime’s end. 

Dark clouds loom,
casting shadows atop
our instinctual bodies,
so I inch towards my aloneness
as this exquisite one takes bold
steps back towards me. 

Slowly we stop, and stare
into the deep set eyes
of intimacy
and the understanding 
of all things real. 

As the sky parts,
eager faces turn East. 
But I greet the sun
in a different way

by quieting my pace to meet up
with the pulse of the Earth
and revealing parts of myself
that I’ve been told to keep covered;

exposed skin, caught between the teeth
of warmth and wind. And the lingering shyness
of being witnessed in my wilderness.  

 * * *

April Glaser is extra-ordinarily sensitive to the environment - to the steady flow of energy and emotion bubbling below the surface of everything. Writing is the artistic expression she utilizes to channel life's immensity. She visualizes artistry and profound beauty in this mysterious way of being. It is her birthright. It is what makes her fully alive. This is what her poetry is made of. After all, she was born into the dark hands of night.  Visit [and subscribe to] April HERE

  © April Glaser 

M O L O T O V H E A R T by Randy Welch

M O L O T O V H E A R T

Companions Of This Farce 
Color Me Boldly 
For All Lovers I Know Are Lunatics 
How We've Come To Regard The Heart 
In Paradoxes Of Redemption & Pursuit 
I Have Worn The Madstone Smooth To The Crust 
& Recorded Molten Madrigals To The Sun 
Where The Lunacy Of Love 
Presumes An Ecstatic Moan 
I Have Forced Myself To Swallow 
The Juju Of Liquescent Moons 
And Sought To Spill Pale Light 
In Pools Of Cool Blue Irony 
All These Princely Cousins Of Narcissus 
Think Of Me Mouthless 
Make Of Me Thoughtless 
Forget That Where Revolution Begins 
It All Ends In The Language 
Of Gasoline & Matches . . . 

-randini-


*Randy Welch is a multifaceted artist in Denver, Colorado, USA. He can be reached HERE

Randy is the first to submit to my global request of inviting all forms of creativity to be displayed and promoted here and to the world. I invite all of you on this journey.

M O L O T O V H E A R T is a dynamic stream of consciousness and I am honored to bring fresh, enlightening and diverse trains of thought your way. 

• 
  

   

She Rose

she rose

again

like ashes imprinted
on each foot raised
on the pads of aboriginals
before her

she rose
like the sun does daily
like the moon when she is full
like the coming of the fresh pure breath
of summer

she rose
like the wind
whipping leaves
autumnal
dashing and dangling the smell of Earth into the air

October
she rose

again
like the water
rising
and the ice princess
lifted
she rose
like an altar
looming before her
as a chalice is lifted
hands shaking
solemn
holding to her lips
pursed

she rose that cup
poisons of ages
of murder
and she rose
above the fires
the stakes
the burning pit
the executioners block
she rose
like spirit
above it all
above those beneath her

she rose
like a bird

taking flight
she rose

and the clouds
embraced her

gently.


© Susan Marie

Twitter & Facebook Thunderclap for Amina Masood Janjua : Please Support Human Rights!

A twitter & FB thunderclap will start May 1, 2014 at 12 am. It is in support for Amina Masood Janjua and aggrieved families and for their release and that of others and continued support in the struggle for peace. 

You will see it come from my twitter account @SusanMarie_NY, everyone needs to become a part of this. https://www.thunderclap.it/my/overview?locale=en#pending_thunderclaps

See below:  

PRESS RELEASE: Amina Masood Janjua, leading human rights campaigner arrested amid police violence in Pakistan

28 April 2014

(London, UK) CAGE has received reports that leading human rights campaigner Amina Masood Janjua has been arrested, for the second time, by Pakistani security forces. In what appears to have been a heavy handed-police response to a peaceful protest, Mrs Janjua was recorded being forced into a vehicle by several journalists, who were then themselves the targets of police attacks.


The wife of Masood Janjua, who was disappeared in Pakistan in 2006, Amina rose to prominence after founding The Defence of Human Rights Trust where she has investigated her husband’s disappearance, as well as those of many others.


Amina has worked tirelessly for many years in partnership with many individuals and organisations, in the hope that she will gain justice not only for her family, but the 700 families that she assists.

Asim Qureshi, Research Director of CAGE, said:
 
"I remember Nawaz Sharif (President of Pakistan) going out of his way to support Amina during his election campaign. That she has now been arrested under Mr Nawaz’s watch is not only cause for concern, but a major breach of the trust he was given. All people of conscience should call on the Pakistan authorities to immediately release her."

[ENDS]

NOTES:

1.     CAGE (formerly known as CagePrisoners) is an independent advocacy organisation that works to empower communities affected by the War on Terror and to highlight abuses of prisoners’ rights.

2.     To learn more about Amina Masood Janjua and the cases that she has represented, please read the following:

http://www.cageprisoners.com/our-work/opinion-editorial/item/1341-account-of-amina-janjua-detention-in-pakistan

http://www.cageprisoners.com/our-work/opinion-editorial/item/5674-most-cherished-memories-packed  

http://www.cageprisoners.com/our-work/opinion-editorial/item/691-the-fight-becomes-tough-for-my-family 

http://www.cageprisoners.com/our-work/reports/item/104-devoid-of-the-rule-of-law-pakistans-war-on-terror

PRESS ENQUIRIES:
 

• Contact:            Mr Amandla Thomas-Johnson
• Phone:              +(44) 207 377 6700
• Email:              press@cageuk.org
• Web:                www.cageuk.org

• Twitter: @UK_CAGE
• FB:          CageUK

CAGE
27 Old Gloucester Street
London
WC1N 3XX
 

  

Wheels of Transformation at The Analytical Psychology Society of Western New York [The C.G.Jung Center]

Wheels of Transformation 

The Analytical Psychology Society of Western New York 

                           [The C.G.Jung Center]


Poets, Ann Goldsmith, Karen Lee Lewis, Gunilla Kester, Celeste Lawson, Susan Marie, Kathy Tussing, Jane Sadowsky and Geoffrey Gatza read from a new anthology, A Celebration of WNY Poets, edited by Patricia Tansey. 

Each poet shares how words, images, and metaphors of poetry contribute to a transforming of consciousness and experience, and lead to personal and collective discovery. 

• Patricia Tansey    click here
• Karen Lee Lewis  click here
• Geoffrey Gatza   click here
• Celeste Lawson   click here
• Jane Sadowsky    click here
• Kathy Tussing     click here
• Susan Marie        click here
• Gunilla Kester    click here
• Ann Goldsmith    click here
• Live Classical Guitar by Gunilla Kester & Christine Derby-Cuadrado 
• [The C&G Duo]       click here 

So, You Wanna Get High? [420: A Radio Interview]

420, 4:20, or 4/20 is a 'code' used when referring to the consumption of cannabis [pot, smoke, weed, marijuana] and/or to associate oneself with cannabis. All current forms of "420" refer to date and/or time when one smokes pot, or many gather to get high. 

In North America, this day has a political identity attached to it, namely, the legalization of marijuana. 4/20 is somewhat of a celebrated holiday to weed smoking subcultures. In America, it is currently illegal under Federal Law to use, sell or possess marijuana. Recently, a few states have legalized marijuana for medical use only. In Colorado and Washington, medical and non medical use of marijuana is legal. 

Regardless of the reason as to why one decides to get high, the Federal government still has the right to regulate and criminalize cannabis. 

Below is a radio interview with myself and Ruthann Amarteifio of Air Amarteifio out of Chicago. Ruthann raises extremely essential questions to me, one who is undecided about the ethical ramifications behind the general public, non medical legalization of marijuana.

In this interview, we present to you various scenarios that already exist in society, as well as possible outcomes of the legalization of marijuana for public use. This is indeed, a complex issue.

In the first 15 minutes, we speak of Palestine, Spirituality and The Human Condition. After 16:20, we focus solely on 420.

Click Here For Audio

Click HERE for Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act 

Click HERE for factual medical data on Cannabis Sativa

Click HERE for NORML [National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws] 


The Controlled Substances Act reschedules controlled substances by petitioning the Drug Enforcement Administration. The first petition was filed in 1972 but denied after 22 years of court challenges. 

A pill form of cannabis' active ingredient, THC, was rescheduled in 1985 for prescription under schedule II.  In 2002, advocates for use again petitioned, yet were denied by the DEA in 2011. Americans for Safe Access filed an appeal in 2012 with the D.C. Circuit.

As of August 2013, 20 states and Washington D.C. have legalized the use of medical marijuana.


Images © Fox 31, AP, Deviant Art, Huffington Post

On Speaking Out

"And therefore, all of those for whom authentic transformation has deeply unseated their souls must, I believe, wrestle with the profound moral obligation to shout from the heart—perhaps quietly and gently, with tears of reluctance; perhaps with fierce fire and angry wisdom; perhaps with slow and careful analysis; perhaps by unshakable public example—but authentically always and absolutely carries a demand and duty: you must speak out, to the best of your ability, and shake the spiritual tree, and shine your headlights into the eyes of the complacent. 

You must let that radical realization rumble through your veins and rattle those around you. Alas, if you fail to do so, you are betraying your own authenticity. You are hiding your true estate. You don’t want to upset others because you don’t want to upset your self. You are acting in bad faith, the taste of a bad infinity." 

- Ken Wilber

Valhalla

 ON AUDIO HERE 
On Social Justice Poetry 

 photo © Ronald Sorrento, Vietnam Vet, a peace sign made from m-79 high explosive grenade rounds

We are building roads to roads
that build roads to
nowhere

people are at the same time
sane and insane

are you listening
to the wind
as she whispers
when dawn drags her belly
pregnant and full
across the purpling skyline
as the sun
places her hand
ever so warmly
upon the nape of your neck

and the sea
bellows
stop
stop
stop
just stop and listen

no
do not even try
just be

good
follows
good follows
nature and trees
and all that is
Earth and dirt
and sand
and you and me

you
see
it is not easy
to
simply
be

left to right
to
center

as the Earth bellows
bombs
like airstrikes
on the innocent
and we keep voting
and protesting
and dying while alive
living in a
free state of
mind controlled
flight

where do I turn
when the world has gone mad
and everything is on a
merry
go round
and
rounds
of bullets fly
from lips, pursed
in hate
and anger
rising
like Valhalla

and the Valkyries scream like
eagles scrying

thunder

We are building roads to roads
that build roads to

nowhere

© Susan Marie

a thousand words

On audio HERE

 

i can write
one million poems
describing
the sweet breath
of breeze
like peaches in summertime
how they cool your brow and palette
on a day
that is sweltering,
simultaneous

or how the speech
of our forefathers
can never suffice
to explain the thoughts
that explode inside my brain
like atoms, splitting
supernovas in space
constellations ablaze
neurons sounding
and resounding
across synapses
like trapeze artists
on tripwires

and I can write
of the speech of animals
foreign to the human sense of sound
and how only they comprehend,
truly,
what they say
to one another

and I can even write of God and the heavens
the beauty of the skies at dawn and sunset
colors yet undiscovered
painted
for us all,
daily

i can write of it all
a thousand words
describing everything

yet not one word
or poem
can ever compare
to the softness of your gaze
like the canvas of the morning tide
or your silent roar
not unlike that of the mighty lion
or precisely how your spirit connects
to my very own

i can write of it all
mere words
i can write
one million poems

and not one can ever truly describe

you

but i can try


© Susan Marie