Poem of the month

Each month the two FSP editors select a poem, from those read throughout that month, as the poem of the month. A laminated copy of the poem is awarded to the poet at the next FSP City meeting. This is peer recognition of a poem of high quality.

Poem of the Month – December 2023 – Valerie Volk

The Poem of the Month for December 2023, selected by 2023 Anthology Editors, Maria Vouis and Rob Ferris, is Lot 22 by Valerie Volk. The commended poems for December are In Worrying Times by Elaine Barker, strings by phil saunders and Akin (excerpt) by Robbie Lennard.

Lot 22
Valerie Volk

Impersonal, the auctioneer’s drone.
Small square wooden case. Unusual.
An apathetic crowd. My pang of guilt,
in spite of family pressure, voice of reason.
Time to downsize, get rid of stuff.

But this. I should have kept it.
Made by a father’s loving hand.
I hear his accent, still …
A case for you, for school.… Click for more

Poem of the Month – November 2023 – Geoff Johnson

The Poem of the Month for November 2023, selected by 2023 Anthology Editors, Maria Vouis and Rob Ferris, is All Saints by Geoff Johnson. The commended poems for November are Love in Triplets by Erica Jolly, After the Poem by Gail Walker and Spur-winged Plovers by Murray Alfredson.

All Saints
Geoff Johnson

Somehow the teachings have settled
maybe scattered
’cross the pavements of their minds
something of the living impulse
stirred in their hearts.

A sound not suppressed
feathered in the wind
rattling
with ghosts in the night.

They’ve buried their hurts
not knowing where to find them
unearthing what they claim
as their own.… Click for more

Edward’s Crossing Writers – Poem of the Month

In November, Nigel Ford and Rob Ferris attended the annual meeting of the Edward’s Crossing Writers group, a regional FSP group based in Murray Bridge (originally called “Edward’s Crossing” in the 19 century). The meeting included an Open Mic from which the 2023 Anthology Editors, Rob Ferris and Maria Vouis, selected a Poem of the Month, Men Of Yemen by Max Merckenschlager and three commended poems: Flinders Ranges – 2009 by Elizabeth Bell; Unravelled by Di Walton and Music of the Earth by Lynette Zander. Congratulations!

Men Of Yemen
Max Merckenschlager

Ali the sportsmaster and school disciplinarian
took my hand in his
and lead me unselfconsciously
to where I’d sought directions.… Click for more

Poem of the Month – October 2023 – Stef Rozitis

The Poem of the Month for October 2023, selected by 2023 Anthology Editors, Maria Vouis and Rob Ferris, is Transtextuality by Stef Rozitis. The commended poems for October are Nature on the Table by Heather Nimmo, The Russet Room by Elaine Barker and Singing Lesson by Nigel Ford.

Transtextuality
Stef Rozitis

Politics is the whole point
fluid refusing to be grasped
avoiding sojourn in your killing jar.
I will not be pinned as a specimen
of this queer identity or that

instead,
I will be read only
as Lancelot, a shadow in the mirror of Shallot
I will be known through texts, excessive sex performances
a storm of answers.… Click for more

Poem of the Month – August 2023 – Martha Landman

The Poem of the Month for August 2023, selected by 2023 Anthology Editors, Maria Vouis and Rob Ferris, is Loose-limb Man by Martha Landman The commended poems for August are Haiku & Senryu by Nigel Ford, Cliché Clambake by Veronica Cookson and White Thrift by Geoff Atkin.

Loose-limb Man
Martha Landman

Mother wouldn’t approve.
Not yet old wine, she’d say.
She was taught the virtues of shepherd men
guiding their flock, heavy feet,
calloused hands.
She followed a man of the land,
made good the harshness of his tongue,
watered the trees he planted.
Her virtue woven through sufferance,
a basket holding blame.… Click for more

Poem of the Month – July 2023 – Steve Evans

The Poem of the Month for July 2023, selected by 2023 Anthology Editors, Maria Vouis and Rob Ferris, is Storm by Steve Evans. The commended poems for July are Cast by Fred Willett, Clouds by Michele Slatter  and Mass by Rory Harris.

Storm
Steve Evans

The house is a shattering of wind
and fleeing birds,
its windows shaking in their frames
played like drums in hail-shot rain
as if on the brink of collapse.

How fragile we are in here,
all night paper-thin and fearful,
startled by thundered light
that fractures our brief bravado at a whim
with camera flashes of stunned faces.… Click for more

+ More