By Jovana Dragojlovic

sunset

fisherman fishes

ankle-deep water.

Jovana Dragojlovic

By James Penha

Hanshan’s selflessness

to craft his best poetry

on fallen leaves


James Penha

By Govind Joshi

spring rain

a car rooftop carrying

yellow dropped flowers

Govind Joshi

By Stephen Jarrell Williams

bare feet

cooling in the backyard pond

goldfish tickling

Stephen Jarrell Williams

By Samo Kreutz

spring rain

her old letters

enriched

Samo Kreutz

 

By Lisa C. Reynolds

blue blossoms

her eyes

forget-me-nots

Lisa C. Reynolds

By Zdenka Mlinar

the smell of June

in the colorful

flower garden

on the painter's canvas

they are just poppies


Zdenka Mlinar

By Daipayan Nair

nostalgia

up to the length she

once combed

Daipayan Nair

By Susan Burch

eau de parfums heavy on the eau

Susan Burch

By Claire Thom

sound of crashing waves

my inner dialogue

silenced

Claire Thom

By Hassane Zemmouri

new year's gift a fever

Hassane Zemmouri

By Dejan Ivanovic

Expatriates

in a cold world the warmth

of our hearts

Dejan Ivanovic

By Lakshman Bulusu

 strokes of the brush

  I discover

   her last kiss


Lakshman Bulusu

2023 Touchstone Nominations

Congratulations to these Cold Moon Journal poets for their 2023 Touchstone Award nominations:

Brad Bennett
Susan Burch (2)
Keith Evetts
Mark Gilbert
Louise Hopewell
Govind Joshi
Ellen Kom
M. R. Pelletier

Good luck, all!

By Dan C. Iulian

leaves falling —

they're multiplying

our silences

Dan C. Iulian

By Adrian Bouter

my last poem tonight

even the new pen

falters

Adrian Bouter

By Timothy Daly

setting sun

photos of us

in a drawer

Timothy Daly

By Vandana Parashar

a just war just a war

Vandana Parashar

By Mirela Brailean

falling Sakura

one thought for each

haiku friend

Mirela Brailean

By Alvin B. Cruz

death poem

the ghost of

a ghost writer

Alvin B. Cruz

By Ron Scully

what the gull wants

…to sing

to still the sea


Ron Scully

*

what the crow wants

….dusk

not to be alone

Ron Scully

By Nicole Malyj Daone

I’ve nothing to grieve

Yet here I drown in longing

For a thing not lost

Nicole Malyj Daone

By J. D. Nelson

I’ve missed you, my friend!

dog & man reunited

after weeks apart

J. D. Nelson

By Evan Coram

the scent of rain

smears a window

watercoloring

Evan Coram

By Jerome Berglund

compromises

cutting the Dawn

with water

Jerome Berglund

By David Ngo

Sunset's afterglow,

Stars rush to claim empty seats,

One less than needed.

David Ngo

By Ellen Kom

                                    u   r
cloud rumble the   c          v    of his punch
                                     e

Ellen Kom

By Katja Fox

putting on her dress —

the whistle

of the cuckoo clock

Katja Fox

By Bipasha Majumder (De)

poppy field

my pleasure replaced

by pain

Bipasha Majumder (De)

 

By Angiola Inglese

petals in the wind…

one flower, another flower…

petals on the ground


Angiola Inglese

By Mike Fainzilber

desert night

only the stars

cannot hide

Mike Fainzilber

By Mike Gallagher

summer long

wishing the pangs of love

might end

Mike Gallagher

By Kelly Sargent

wearing mom’s sweater

her arms

around me again

Kelly Sargent

By M. R. Pelletier

Kansas summer—

   more shades of green

   than I know the names of

M. R. Pelletier

By Bonnie J Scherer

the dish runs away

with the curds and whey

while the cow jumps over the moon …

Bonnie J Scherer

By Mike Turner

Be patient in change

As a sleeping butterfly

Awakes in beauty


Mike Turner

*

Droplet of water

Thrown from face of ocean’s wave

Apart, yet of all

Mike Turner

By Sreenath

frozen Niagara

thawing in the spring . . .

finally

i yield

to her love

Sreenath

By Michael Minassian

Used book sale

poetry on the back table—

I linger too long.

Michael Minassian

By Louise Hopewell

zipping our rain jackets

to the chin

frog song


Louise Hopewell

By Maya Daneva

dusty flipflops

another summer month

passing me by

Maya Daneva

By Joanna Ashwell

tugboat

dream to dream

hour by hour

Joanna Ashwell

By Deborah Karl-Brandt

autumn wind

in her address book

names

Deborah Karl-Brandt

 

*

 

two of us

another sleepless night

spring moon

Deborah Karl-Brandt

By Laura Marino Trotta

winter kiss —

the snow falling slowly

between earth and sky


Laura Marino Trotta

By Françoise Maurice

Riverside

the constant stare

of the old fisherman

Françoise Maurice

By Anthony Lusardi

rolling meatballs

her sunken eyes

her dilated pupils

Anthony Lusardi

By Michelle V. Alkerton

initialism

disease progression

now four letters

Michelle V. Alkerton

 

*

 

food bank line

empty hands

holding her place

Michelle V. Alkerton

By Bryan Rickert

zoloft down the rabbit’s hole

Bryan Rickert

*

 

wild hops it’s complicated

Bryan Rickert

By John Pappas

surprising our grief the cuckoo clock

John Pappas

*

 

day’s end

pouring himself four fingers

of darkness

John Pappas

By Reid Hepworth

tracking footprints in the snow jury duty

Reid Hepworth

By Barrie Levine

the paper napkins

paper thin—

soup kitchen

Barrie Levine

By Vasile Moldovan

in the airport

butterflies and planes

ready to take off

Vasile Moldovan

By Priti Khullar

old friends

old gossip

I return younger

Priti Khullar

By Susan Lee Roberts

trailside daisies

my fingers itch

to pick them

Susan Lee Roberts

*

 

gnarled branches

battling to be seen—

family tree


Susan Lee Roberts

By Deby Cedars

Fruit from a fruit stand.

Green mango on the windowsill

Ripens perfectly.

Deby Cedars

By Stephen Toft

early blossom

the bus driver stops

to adjust his mirror

Stephen Toft

By JL Huffman

morning mist

Sandburg’s pale cat

paws the windshield

JL Huffman

By David Cox

thick blue sky–

a school bans

rainbows

David Cox

By Pris Campbell

I thunder

down the dirt road

he chases dust

from the wrong car

for one more kiss

Pris Campbell

By Steliana Cristina Voicu

jasmine moon –

the pond reflecting me

inside your arms

Steliana Cristina Voicu

By Ram Chandran

plucking the weeds

she thinks

of her estranged husband

Ram Chandran

By Chen-ou Liu

waiting alone

in this cheap motel room

all night long

the vacancy sign

blinks on, blinks off ...

Chen-ou Liu

By Lorraine Caputo

Spirits entangled

in the cobwebs of tortured

memories – my past

Lorraine Caputo

*

 

A thousand shards of

Art Deco lamp glass scattered

across the dusk sky

Lorraine Caputo

By Zhihua Wang

So much just happened

in a new poem, yet the world

remains the same.

Zhihua Wang

By Alfred Booth

as if a satellite

could replace a full moon . . .

machine-gun dreams

Alfred Booth

*

what does

a machine know of awe?

the Milky Way

Alfred Booth

By Krzysztof Kokot

a globe –

a fruit fly has just climbed

Mt Everest

Krzysztof Kokot

By Jennifer Gurney

Downhill to the sea

I descend on shifting sands

To reach the ocean

Jennifer Gurney

By Andrew Markowski

temple fog—

nothing but emptiness

in the zen garden

Andrew Markowski

*

 

on crowded sidewalks

just enough rain

for umbrellas to bloom

Andrew Markowski

By Joseph P. Wechselberger

speed dating

the changing colors

of her mood ring

Joseph P. Wechselberger

*

 

a lawn full of dandelions

going to seed

foreclosure

Joseph P. Wechselberger

By Allyson Whipple

bourbon’s last gasp

at the back of my throat—

what’s left unsaid

Allyson Whipple

By Robert Witmer

starlight vanishing

a cry of surprise

from the rooster

Robert Witmer

*

silence

playing chess

with the moonlight

Robert Witmer

By Wai Mei Wong

dusk—

behind the windows

silent movies we are in

Wai Mei Wong

By John J. Dunphy

hailstorm

alley-drinkers take refuge

in a dumpster

John J. Dunphy

*

desert highway

hitchhiker struck by

a tumbleweed

John J. Dunphy

By Silvia Bistocchi

Red poppies —

suddenly the dawn

beyond the soldiers

Silvia Bistocchi

By Mona Bedi

placebo effect his sugar coated demeanour

Mona Bedi

*

 

torrential rain

the similar greyness

of tombstones

Mona Bedi

By Helen Ogden

forgotten meadow

tattered ribbons hanging

from the old maypole

Helen Ogden

By Tuyet Van Do

mid-day rain

in carport corner

an empty nest

Tuyet Van Do