A poem about how the 18ct golden moon is upside down forever — The moon was but a sliver of silver a night or two ago when a child questioned her mother about the crescent grin above It’s always smiling, the mother said, and yes, even in Australia — all the people on earth see a smile of sterling silver. Today, my eyes…

Poetry of awareness in pleasant moments — A thought whizzes through my thinker Then stops like a thing surprised I scratch my chin, blink in a recall — That thought had come/left once, unrevised Where did it go then, why now revisit I do not know, but this I concur: Deep inside, certainty implicit, *I’ve met the Thing before…

A sonnet about surrendering to your past by taking stock of your present blessings — Revolving slowly comes the carousel With caches of half-forgotten mem’ries Lands me on lorn sand beach, unease does quell ‘Till ebb and flow reveals polarities Now levitate the sepia photos In ever-spinning reels of love genteel Whirling, churning me in clouds, nebulous, And prompt me to climb on and next to feel…

A tanka on how nature shows us ways to cohabitate peacefully — gathered at noontime to serenade the ocean seagulls write short songs — *strive to teach the ducks to sing they prompt me to write one too © 2022 selmamartin.com Tanka, “short song” is meant to be filled with personal and emotional expression. The tanka expresses feelings and thoughts regardless of…

A poem about recognizing your two mirrors — Oh yes, I feel the roaring yelps You pour into pillows nightly I hear the screeching afterthoughts Of your old ruminating ways You asked for space; grace I gave you But insomnia and unrest Agonize you at every turn Resounding your barbaric yawps It’s not your reflection that scares But your…

Hint: You need to find a way to be subsumed first — I came out to write a nature poem Out here by the silent trees Cloaked in deep concentration To prove my mind’s prowess Oh, if only the bees would stop buzzing And the squirrels would hurry with their tasks Ah, if the birds would cease chirping Why can’t they all, with quiet, indulge…

A forward-looking poem of camaraderie and hope triumphing — You need not be in settings hallowed by grandeur You cannot prepare for it but in your soul But when it comes, the echo will be the medium To open wide your heart to let it flow We’ve been only half alive for half of this year already But the electricity…

An abhanga poem about the moon melting — IMPERMANENCE Worried fairies gather like stardust in the night insist I get it right I moan and gasp feelings of confusion confound — my jaw goes lax I see Moon drip like wax dissolving fast fairies rush to patch her big dolly gone balmy stardust wabi-sabi will she endure? we…