Ting Li: “I’ve translated poems written by myself in Chinese to English. I seek to explore the relationships between human beings and nature; to be precise, the interconnections between a soul and the creation. In this poem, I observe and reflect on spring, Bodhisattva, trees, flowers, and a shoe.”
Tony Gloeggler: “I started writing poetry because I was always pretty quiet and no one was really talking about things I was feeling and thinking. Trying to turn my thoughts into a poem helped me understand myself and how I fitted and didn’t fit in the world. That’s still what I’m doing whenever I write. I’ve written a lot of poems about people in my life and no one seems too happy about it. I’ve got a number of poems about my father and nearly all of them have focused on our differences, conflicts. But I’m thinking he might like this one. My mom too. If they ever saw it.”
Image: “Take Heart” by Bonnie Riedinger. “Fibers” was written by Ashley Caspermeyer for Rattle’s Ekphrastic Challenge, September 2022, and selected as the Editor’s Choice. (PDF / JPG)
Comment from the editor, Megan O’Reilly: “Both the craft and emotion of Bonnie Riedinger’s painting are delicately reflected in Ashley Caspermeyer’s ‘Fibers.’ As the painting ebbs and flows visually, the structure and music of the poem moves with it. The imagistic contrast of yellow and blue is beautifully suggested in lines like ‘ruining something beautiful’ and ‘petals/heavy.’ While each piece is strong on its own, together they create an elegant, resonant harmony.”
Joan Kwon Glass: “My mother was born in Korea and grew up there during the Korean War and in its aftermath. I lived in South Korea there in the 1980s and remember hiding under my bed with my sister during an AFKN broadcast that tunnels from North Korea had been discovered. News like this always brings me back to those days, and the longing for peace beyond armistice.” (web)
“If not there would / only Be the image of it / in my head A lampshade / is there A pattern, I can see it / the Animals, the / wait To be defined / the wait For the lamp / to be turned on and So the patterns / dance across the darkness Each ear each flick / a word For breath / that really breathes Otherwise / there is no breath.”
Karmelo C. Iribarren, born in San Sebastián, Spain, worked—and wrote his poems—as a bartender in San Sebastián’s Old Town for over twenty years. He has published thirteen collections of poetry, most recently El escenario. | John R. Sesgo: “A former bartender and bar owner, Karmelo C. Iribarren writes poems that are simple, sharp-eyed and true. His unassuming lines seem written off the cuff, but are, in reality, expertly crafted: the ‘carpentry’ of his poems (as he puts it) hinges mostly on internal slant rhymes, ‘which the reader hears but rarely notices.’ Alongside his poetry, Karmelo has also published an ever-growing collection of aphorisms, one of which sums up perfectly the tone and appeal of his work: ‘It’s all been said a thousand times, and better. But not like this.’”
Kathleen Dale: “I teach writing courses during the year at UW-Milwaukee, so have extended writing time only in summers. I’ve been doing this for a long time. I did it before MFA’s in creative writing were de rigueur. I do it because the writing always teaches me something about where I am and what’s next, and because it’s always a kick to see what new connections the language will make this time. During the school year I squirrel away drafts to work on during the too-short summer. And even during winters, they’re always there on the computer for a quick look, a quick revision, a quick reminder that this is what I do.”
