Your Spaniel

By Talia Cullum

I want to dutifully dote on you
I want to wait at the door for you
I want to watch as you run a bath and
Sit beside the tub as you bathe.

I want to listen to you complain about work
And the people you hate
My ears perked, my head cocked
As my neck grows tired

I want to rest my chin on the wall of the tub,
Secretly, silently hoping
You might run your fingers through my hair,
And pat my head.

When it’s time for bed
I will sleep at your feet until
You invite me to your side.

I will hold my breath.
As not to disturb your rest
I will watch silently
The rise and fall of your chest.

Though I will stay alert as you slumber
And guard your bed unencumbered
I beg, let me be your spaniel,
I beg to be used as you use your dog

Traveler’s Song

By Lu Markovitch

Upon the scene descended eyes do scan—
How green ye waves which glance o’er yonder shores!
What figment of despair dare grasp a man
Near remnants of Romans, Vikings, and Moors?

There blue-bathed mounts their glassy garments don
And sun extends to kiss receding night;
There bazaar-ghosts of myrrh and thyme trail on
Past twining tongues, odd jewels of Babel’s blight.

In moments when one yields to stronger fates
Or fails to spy the changeling’s pallid eyes,
Of fortune’s fool some foreign kindness makes
A dulcet bond which may o’er life reprise.

Yet still no earth the traveler will roam
Can shake ye, thorned and tender thoughts of home.

Aurora Borealis

By Sadie

I want to be the northern lights,
dancing across the night sky,
a splash of color in the dark,
greens and pinks swirling like dreams,
alive and electric,
calling out to anyone who looks up.

If you take a moment to search,
to really see,
you’ll find me,
radiant and free,
a little piece of magic
in a world that often forgets to pause.

But so many keep their heads down,
caught up in the day,
rushing past the wonder,
missing the beauty that flickers above,
that gentle reminder
there’s more out there,
more than the everyday.

I want to be noticed,
to break through the darkness,
to wrap around hearts like a warm hug,
to spark a sense of wonder,
to light up the hidden places,
to inspire a moment of awe,
a little connection that makes life feel special.

I want to be the reason to look up,
to feel the night chill turn warm,
to remind people that magic exists
when we just take a moment to see it.

So let me shine,
let me dance in the sky,
a fleeting burst of brilliance,
a nudge to show that beauty’s all around,
waiting to be found,
if only you take the time to look up.