mountin top
next to my sack lunch
a little snail

rb

reaching for the sandwich
snail slime

ja

a snail ruined
my PB & J,
so I killed him

gd

lunch break
my sandwich, biting into
a shell

sw

crunchy peanut butter,
my favorite

tl

a sweeter taste
I smile for the surprise
Thanks Mom!

ob

a heart note in my lunch
love mom

kt

a note from mom
in my lunch, written
before the accident

bs

pb & J always
reminds me of mom

nb

for dinner
citting the crust
for the crows

ac

tummy ache,
feet up on a rock

rb

          Randy Brooks

SNAILS

home
on his back
slowly crawling

KT

into the dark
fog hides
the car flipped over

KT

have I had
enough to drink?

OB

towards Mt. Fuji
the end of his journey

BS

yellow caution lights,
I question more than,
my driving.

TL

full car,
my brakes are put to the test

GO

temple shrine
traffic jam

AC

tracking towards the mountain
yet always at home
tiny snail

NB

honking
through spring fog
a pair of geese

RB

seeking refuge
under rainy leaf

JA

thunderstorm
snug in the car
baby snores

SW

          Kari Thorton

snails
a favorite
snack

-Nathan

walnut shells trail
to the chipmunk hole

-Aubrey

spider web
caught in the cat's whiskers
ankle rub

-Dr. Brooks

that hits the spot-
cat's vibrating purr

-Jade

a gray beast
hunting in the weeds
for a butterfly

-Susie

pilgrims,
fighting for survival

-Grant

small boat
tossed on huge waves
the challenge.

-Tyler

nearing the shore
inch by inch

-Olivia

a gray peak
appearing from the calm
shark bait

-Kari

miles of ocean
can't keep me from you

-Becky

across the sea
I will make it
to you

-Nathan
 

          Nathan Bettenhausen

the ink
on her arm smears from
tears
BS

tears run down cheek
ink lines down my face
NB

blue sky
blossoms
peeking open
AC

home again
the darkness of her eyes
RB

with a bottle of wine
peering in his now
empty closet
JA

candlelit meal
setting a place
for one
SW

fast food
a widow
no longer cooks
CO

she orders
his favorite meal
TL

“same as him”
doesn’t work
anymore
OB

empty seat
at a table for two
KT

she blows out the candle
and goes to bed
…alone
BS

          Becky Smith

foggy morning
a snail creeps across
my algebra assignment
ac

a Beatles song
"here comes the sun"
rb

wishful thinking
sunshine doodles
on paper
ja

daydreams in the grass
wind turns a page
sw

I think of her,
I am an open book,
blank.
go

potential pages,
waiting to be written
tl

new start
I turn the page
to write
ob

blank mind and
a blank soul
kt

1st day of spring
the sun dries
my ink
bs

blank pages filled
writing of you
nb

poem left
unfinished
morning dew
ac

          Aubrie Cox

her rose tattoo
like our love
had been fake

-ob

water washes
over the paint

-kt

a hidden rose tattoo
too ashamed
to tell her mom

-bs

in the shower
dew on my rose tattoo

-nb

kitchen table
the crystal vase
chipped

-ac

rose petals black
under melting snow

-rb

afternoon quarrel
china shattered
like their hearts

-ja

my lawyer fights
for the wedding china

-sw

he took half
of every thing.
Including my hea

-gd

foregoing feelings
greedy love

-tl

forget the china
forget him
a new life

-ob

          Olivia Birkey

tattoo parlor
mingling with skulls and dragons
“R.I.P.”

s.w.
Tristen lives forever
on my bicep

g.d.

As I pump
the iron
I remember and smile

o.b.

the look
on mom’s face

k.t.

He suffered for years
I remember through permanent ink
“cancer”

b.s.

tattoo reminds me
grandpa’s cancer

n.b.

garden overgrown
the sandbox
he built for us

a.c.

scratching my back
against oak bark

r.b.

backyard memories
the tree he planted
for me

j.a.

out back, in black
I carve our initials

s.w.

          Susie Wirthlin

birthday
dinner with friends
dessert in face

Garret

Susie Q W.
her birthday wish
still smoking

Randy

birthday cake--
her name
spelled wrong

Aubrie

another year
another candle
another house fire

Grant?

Your birthday candles
one short,
young again!

Tyler?

Presents for you
in the form of haiku
... where's the cake?

Becky

gift wrap on floor
a fake smile
for a crappy gift

Kari?

no longer wed
yet tattoos never
fade

ja

every day
cover-up

sw

plastic surgery
can't alter
my feelings

gd

as I buy,
expensive clothes.

tl

material things
help fend off
her memory

ob

money can't filll the hole
you left...

kt

I get dressed
in all black and see the tattoo
and cry...again

bs

writing on my shoulder
I will continue to cry
at the sight

nb

writing my memoirs
all
the blank pages

ac

so much to say
to this midnight moon

rb

so many questions
only one answer—
he left.

ja

          Jade Anderson