Blossom caressed
fat leafed
unabashed
exhibitionist spring
get out and let it couch you
to forget
and remember

And I will wait for you:
Until the roses blossom,
And the trees bloom,
The moon becomes full once again,
And the spring is upon us,
When the birds’ songs begin to play,
And the anthem of love fills the air!

Hussein Dekmak

Under the gentle hug of a cherry blossom spring
She found herself while lost at sea.
Rain soaks through her precious skin
As the wooden raft rocks over violent waves.

‘Breathe…’ she murmurs to herself.
The cotton touch of grass wraps around her fingers.

Her mind snaps back to the terrible terrain.
Lost. Bewildered. Endangered.
Unsafe as those who hang from tall places,
as scared as those who beg to rich faces.

‘Breathe…’ she murmurs to herself.
The sun and moon exhale.
Their whispers kiss her lips.
Her body enveloped in natures tender care
While chemicals fight with angered cries.

The wooden planks break.
The sea removes her breath.
Drowning in the face of it all
While her lungs are filled with water.

‘Breathe…’ she murmurs to herself.
‘What’s wrong with here and now?’
A leaf falls down and greats her body.
Like a warm day,
She glows.

I sit with my feet dangling into a circle
whose edge I rest on
as if it were a window sill.

From here the earth looks ancient.
It’s pull mothered by the curvature
of spacetime.
The spring blossoms curving
when they fall.

Our fate floating out there: intangible–
outside this circle where my toes abide
Our fate floating in us: tangible–
The place in which my torso resides

The debate seems fresh unlike the sagely soil. My limbs alive –life giving life– emerging like the pistil from a bellflower
unconcerned with philosophy.

tiny fragile bud
clean prune cultivate nurture—
precious child blossoms


© 2020 by Mark Toney. All rights reserved.

Little floret, little floret, when will you bloom?
Egging with watchful eyes, I waited in the gloom.
Gentle dreams hit my eyes, missed your secret dance
Engulfed in mystic fragrance, took me into trance.
Drowsy lazy timid mind, one day sure will blossom
Yes that day, spreading fragrance, makes the world awesome.

She was a lover
She let her heart guide where she would go
That poor, poor, misguided soul.
She died in a fire
That held nothing to the flames of passion
In her heart
But she didn't know that compassion
Held no guard
To the fire that burned her up
Margo wasn't essential
She had to go
I'm so sorry Margo
I told the protagonist her father died too
She'll let your brother know
A friendship turned into something more
When the brother held hands
Of a fatherless daughter
Both grieving the deaths of their mentors
Margo was a lover
And the father a fighter.
I'm sorry you had to die
For their relationship to blossom

she becomes a cherry blossom -
blushing, shy smiles,
bursting with life.
her petals soak up the sun,
leaves hungry for more -
whenever she's with him.

I never thank you for being the sole orange-blossom in my garden.
Laughter fills your pockets and spills into the air like bubbles, adhering to all who pass.
Only you know how to turn anger into flowing yellow carnations and chocolate swirls.
Vibrant amber sun-eyes glint on your face; you elevate me with your common sense and faith.
Every night, when I was little, you crocheted a quilt of stories in my head so I could sleep.
Your touch turns my tears into dragon-flies fluttering
Off my cheeks, reminding me that I am never alone.
Upon my shoulders, I wear your strength as a jacket against the cold.