In this mock-celeb world
Where any random moment
May stream a flicker of acclaim
Meteor-like across the world,
How difficult must be the afterwards
Of a long life for an ever wannabe
Who remains only a once-was?
What pain comes from unrealized
Dreams in that long life outside
The clamor and light?
What anger comes with the permanence
Of an error reported and remembered
Merely for its wrongness
Though each ripple of memory
Tortures the scars left behind?
What anguish comes with the echoes
Of destruction reverberating
Interrupting the otherwise unremarkable.
Repeating every hour, then day after day
Into yearly anniversaries,
Pinpointed in every decade forever,
‘Lest we forget’—
As if the witnesses and victims
Every could?
#tossawaythecouldhaveshouldhavesday
BETWEEN BORDERS
(At the Gate to Toyland)
I am meeting Johnny today
and together we shall play
until others call us away.
I shall bring a picnic lunch,
He will bring the games,
and we shall meet
between the border gates.
When the afternoon is spent
in games and laughter
and tall tales,
Johnny will return
to a land where I may not go.
I will take my picnic basket,
now empty, back to my home
where Johnny may, someday, come
when many long days have passed
and I am grown old
and Johnny no longer young.
But for now
we can meet each other here
on this small space of earth
that each and neither country claims.
And for this little while,
in this unruled place
between the border gates
Johnny and I shall play
till we are called away.
#internationalyadayadaday
AUTHOR NOTES
GLASS RAIN—the poetry of Margaret Roxby
“CARLOTA OF BELGIUM AND MEXICO” was found in the poet’s papers. It is included for July 22, National Hammock Day.
REFRACTIONS—the poetry of Robert Roxby
“SUMMER STROLL,” first appeared in the author’s collection, Reflections on a Lifetime.
THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS—the poetry of Kathleen Roxby
“BETWEEN BORDERS (At the Gate to Toyland),” is included this week for July 23, International Yada Yada Day. The circumstance of a “space” between borders that is special comes from the mind of the author when she was still a child and riding with her parents past the sign marking the edge of one of the United States and traveling some distance before encountering the sign marking the entrance to the neighboring state.
SUBMISSION GUIDELINES
Readers who write in response to one of the prompts listed each month in Splintered Glass, may see their work presented here on the last week of that month. Though poems are preferred, short prose work will also be considered for publication.
Guidelines for submission:
STREET RITES
Cries of hatred rend the air to shreds
As foolish young ones destroy their peers—
Gangs claiming a right to own this street,
Misunderstanding the lightning bolts of death.
Whose life will end before morning comes?
What dreams will disappear before night ends?
Is your child on the hit list this time?
Which family will be moaning low tomorrow,
While children hide away in sheer fright
And sirens wail and red lights flash this night?
Our streets will be awash in blood
And your city will never be quite the same.
#worlddayforinternationaljustice
BEHIND INVISIBLE WALLS
For those of us condemned to dream
Behind invisible walls
And every little wish and half-formed hope
Like will-o-wisps blow
Willy-nilly far away
With every errant breeze
AFTER THE TELE-FLICKER OF FAME
In this mock-celeb world
Where any random moment
May stream a flicker of acclaim
Meteor-like across the world,
How difficult must be the afterwards
Of a long life for an ever wannabe
Who remains only a once-was?
What pain comes from unrealized
Dreams in that long life outside
The clamor and light?
What anger comes with the permanence
Of an error reported and remembered
Merely for its wrongness
Though each ripple of memory
Tortures the scars left behind?
What anguish comes with the echoes
Of destruction reverberating
Interrupting the otherwise unremarkable.
Repeating every hour, then day after day
Into yearly anniversaries,
Pinpointed in every decade forever,
‘Lest we forget’—
As if the witnesses and victims
Every could?
#tossawaythecouldhaveshouldhavesday
AUTHOR NOTES
GLASS RAIN—the poetry by Margaret Roxby
“BEHIND INVISIBLE WALLS” was found in the poet’s papers. It is included for July 20, Toss Away The Could Haves And Should Haves Day.
REFRACTIONS— by Robert Roxby
In “STREET RITES,” the poet expresses his concerns about the dangers of street gang violence. The poem is included this week for July 17, World Day for International Justice.
THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS—the poetry of Kathleen Roxby
“AFTER THE TELE-FLICKER OF FAME,” was triggered on one of those occasions when newscasters revisit events once in the news. It is included this week for July 20, Toss Away The Could Haves And Should Haves Day.
SUBMISSION GUIDELINES
Readers who write in response to one of the prompts listed each month in Splintered Glass, may see their work presented here on the last week of that month. Though poems are preferred, short prose work will also be considered for publication.
Guidelines for submission:
HOMELESS
It is morning.
I’m still alive.
One more chance
To escape this.
I remember, vaguely,
Being accepted
By society—now,
Doors are closed.
Everyone turns away.
Whatever I do,
It’s rejected.
My skin reeks of fear,
I am wet
With the perspiration
Of despair.
Tell, if you know,
Am I already
Condemned?
I’m still me,
Here, inside—
Can’t you see?
Unless you help,
I shall remain
Without a home.
#cheerupthelonelyday
FAREWELL
Fragile word
That vanished
Like blown smoke
From the street scene
Are you lost now
Gone behind the wall?
All the frightened eyes
That turned to see you go
And did not move
One step to stop the going.