Ther Vine Keeper

"The Vine Keeper . . . messages in poetry & prose" by William S. Peters, Sr. is an Epic offering of Bill's writing. It is 439 pages of a truly transformative work. The Book Size is 8 by 10 Perfect for just $29.95 . . . makes a great Gift of Love and Spirit for the Seeker.
For more of Bill's Books and CDs visit www.iamjustbill.com or www.innerchildpress.com

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Thursday, July 26, 2012

i refuse . . . how about you . . .


i refuse . . . how about you

i have listened to
most of your reasons

i have watched you embrace
and live your excuses
as you employed your brilliance,
telling charming, entertaining
fables, stories and lies
deceiving your self
while never acknowledging
your power to be greater

i have watched you
unknowingly
disrespect
your Mother
your Father
our Ancestors
and all those souls
who met their graves early
to pave a path for you
through the wilderness
with the sacrifice of their lives

i have watched you
deliberately
minimize your self
cowering in shadows
trying to hide from the light

a light
that you never
fully opened your eyes
to see . . .
that the light
your sought to evade
was that of your own

i have listened
to your exclamatory tales
and word weavings
you so graciously shared with others
your self
as you thought you were
validating your delusions
to no avail

shame on you

please stay away from my children

through your example
many about you
live an unempowered life
and they celebrate their common misery
with you
and others
at dinner tables
the corners of the neighborhoods
in our schools and universities
family reunions
and in our churches and mosques
and other such gatherings
of social impotence
where clowns
storytellers
fools
and other such entertainers
help us forget
our challenges
to become authentic
as we glorify
our self exacerbated
disdain

me . . .

i shall no longer
cloud my eyes
nor my judgment
with useless
bitching and moaning
while busying myself
casting dispersions
upon the hand i was dealt,

for it serves
no good reason
nor does it assist me
in the finding of the more powerful me
i have sought throughout my life

in my examinations
and assessments
of where i am,
i shall remain ever thankful
and filled
with an self evolving
gratitude

for i am here
and i have the ability to choose
the path my mind shall take
the high road
or the low

i choose to rise
to rise above the soiled plains
of my imaginings
and my fears
and doubts
and those who would share
such ugliness with me

i will remain ever vigilant
in the seeking of that prize
that i may behold
in the reflective glass
the image of my reality
my greater self

i wish to behold
that which is expressive
of the grandness
and magnificence of this creation
this Cosmological Chaotic
Source of all things

i am the macrocosmic
as well as the microcosmic
i am the above and the below
and this is the gift of realization
that i can choose to be consciously aware
of me
for me
to me
for all

blaming . . .
blaming never accomplished
any thing good

in the end
we all must embrace this truth
that it is truly
“All about me”
and the question simply is
“what am ‘i’ going to do” . . .
me ?

i / we have watched
far too long
and i for one
refuse to cosign
to being the lesser
of who i am
can be
i refuse to be a loser

how about you ?


© 26 July 2012 : William S. Peters, Sr.





Sunday, July 22, 2012

for me . . .


this was inspired / sparked by a "Right Write" of Jamie Bond's  . . .
thank you.

for me . . .

i was not the best of Husbands
nor was i the best of Fathers
but i was both

i was not the best of friends
with my mate,
for many times
i could have listened
and did not.
i could have gave more
and for some reason
i would not
could not
for something inside me
perhaps told me
i should not

Me was in the way.

the memories i conjure
i am sure
are quite self serving
and may not be deserving
but just the same
i would rather have you here
to hear you call my name
and i would answer
truly i would

i still call yours
in my sleep
my dreams
and i await your reply

i want to hear your voice again
caress my ears
and embrace these fears
i have been living with
without you

i can not deny this
for in my imaginings
you were the bliss
i never quite fully appreciated
my God, how i long to kiss
you again

it is the little things
i hold to
i can still smell you
in my presence

i guess that is a present
from God

i close my eyes
and i am taken back
to those little idiosyncrasies
of your behaviours
like that of your soft museful smile
and your endearing touch
which i miss soooooooooo much

why, even the way you walk
and the way you spoke to me
talked to me
stroked me
with your heart
your emotions
your thoughts
your spirit
your footsteps
i still hear it
hear them
in the hallways
of my memories
coming my way

so even if i am not deserving
of these enriched embraces
of times past
of you
i shall selfishly
hold on to them
and let no one
take them from me

for some times
many days
it is all i have
that gets me through
and i thank you
for sharing
that journey with me
that small piece of your life
that gift you gave to me
of your love
and your heart
your self

and though the occasion has past
as has the opportunity
to share my new
better self with you
i want you to know
that i am still working
on me
in the memory of you
and the memory
of who i used to be

i shall strive
to stay alive
to live
as a better Husband
a better Father
a better Friend
a better Man
for me
for the world


© 22 July 2012 : William S. Peters, Sr.




Wednesday, July 18, 2012

are mine to find


are mine to find

i have chased butterflies
and impregnated dreams
in the fields of my Lorde

i have see days
when the longings of my heart
and the thirst of my curiosity
could not be abated
nor sated

i have tasted the bitter fruit
the unripened
and the sweet as well
and each bite
had a divine story to tell

i have experienced
elated thoughts
that i never believed
would be
could be
grounded again

i  have uncovered
and exposed
smiles upon the faces
of children
and adults alike

i have shook hands
shared ideas
and broken bread
with those whom i thought to be
strangers
who thus revealed unto me
that we were kin folk

i have found a certain solace
in the quiet eyes
and gentile ways
of the elderly
who blessed me in barter
with the gift of their wisdom
in exchange for my time
and my ear

i have walked
the wonder of the field
and the wood
and was introduced
to a realm of existence
a wonder about me
i / we often ignore

i have seen
pink skies
blue skies
red skies
grey skies
yellow skies
white and purple too
all with these wonderful
pair of eyes
that share it’s joys
with my heart

i have stood naked
and unabashed
in torrential rains
and the soft alike
and felt a deep cleansing take place
in my soul
as my entire essence
was purged of the stains
and soiled feelings
i did not readily wish
to let got

there have been many a mountain
in my life
many i passed by
some i climbed
of which many i did not crest
nor put forth my best effort
yet just the same
i am still the richer
for the experience
of trying
and vying
to see if i can

i have laid upon my back
daydreaming
musing
watching the clouds of those skies
as they watched over me
and we played together
a game of “Shape Shifting”
becoming something other
than what we were

i have stood on many a beach
and looked out upon the vastness
of a seemingly endless ocean
with my toes dug in the wet sands . . .
and the soft beached waves
caressed my feet
whispering tales
of far off lands
far off beaches
far off sands
that are a part of my horizons
and my here

i have spent days
putting aside duty
to indulge
in the wonder
of letting go
while daydreaming
for no particular reason
or agenda
i was free

i have spent much time in my life
studying . . .
me
attempting to see
what else i could be
or what was wrong
to see what kept me
from singing my life song
clearly
that which i dearly
cherish

there have been some answers
and many perhaps i did not hear
but life continued with its agenda
it’s venue of progression
and i could not stay in the past
no matter how much i tried
for “Now” always reminded me
of what was important . . .
being ”Here”

i have been extremely blessed
in my life

when i tire
i rest
when i hunger
i eat
or i fast
when i thirst
i drink
if i can

i can smile
or not
but most importantly
i can choose
so i do
choose to be happy
here
where all these magnificent possibilities
and life options
are mine to find


© 18 July 2012 : William S. Peters, Sr.




Saturday, July 14, 2012

Thespian


Thespian

we all have donned the pretty costumes ?
complete
with mask as well
to play the part
that circumstance
and emotion
has given us to play

but it was not us

some were masterful
in the delivery of their lines
some stumbled
many went on to study
to become better thespians
expressing the inhumane side
while their true lies
did abide
and their truest of truths
did reside
and hide
within

if there is a sin
it is that we were
unawares
of the fares
we exacted
the anguish impacted
upon our audience
those who cared
to come and watch
the show . . . our show

we were masterful
in our crafts
as our words altered paths
of those we loved
and those whom
we did not even know
for our performances
were so convincing

we had them all wincing
at some point and time
and that was a validation
of sorts
wasn’t it

yes it confirmed
and reaffirmed
that we could go into character
and take our character
along with us for the ride
while decimating
the hopes and esteems
of others
our very own
Sisters
and Brothers

you see, i too
have been on this stage
plaguing my own wonder
with harsh expectorations
and exhortations
thinking it was liberating me
from my angst

yet all it served to do
was distance you
from my love
as i was pushed away from yours
as well
do tell !

why in my rants
i have even toured
with the Troupe
opening my act in
many cities
where pities dwelled
offering encore performances
of my own private hell

the curtain calls
made me think
i was important
and cherished
if but in my own mind

i was not even kind
to my self
yet . . .
thank the Providence
i did find my self
that one day

you see,
i stumbled upon something
fumbled the words
i so often have spoken before
and they just did not feel right

i don’t know exactly what transpired
but i do know
that i was tired
of just being a thespian
on this stage of life

given scripts
allowing my lips
to speak such poisons
about you
society
humanity
my self
on cue
like i was the Director’s puppet

but i must ask now
who is the writer
who holds my mind
to manipulate
with his mightier than the sword
expressions

perhaps i will be like him some day
become the one
who writes these screenplays
and learn to not write
masterfully
but to Direct
and Produce
something valid
and of use
that ushers forth a goodness
for the Thespians of the morrow
to act out
shout out
speak about
not only on the stages of our lives
but in our lives
and speak a light
into the lives of others

no doubt

Thespian

© 14 July 2012 : William S. Peters, Sr.




Thursday, July 12, 2012

the widow


the widow

a widows web is weaved
with lamentations and memories
and sprinkled trinkets
that glisten
and transform into
fleeting warm smiles

we try to hold on
but the delicacy of times past
that which did not appear
at those moments
as authentic
has now transmuted to treasures
we fight to conjure into our lives
on a daily basis

dare i not forget

the children serve as reminders
with their anguish cloaked
with reason
and distraction
of the day

yes we are lost
in a new wilderness
seeking a way
to resolutions we abhor

we send seemingly meaningless wishes
into the ether
hoping that lore was true
that there is a heaven
and again
i shall be with you

but now i am but a widow
weaving a web
to hold to these memories
in my heart
in my head
when i was alive
and not just

the Widow


© 12 July 2012 : William S. Peters, Sr.

Sing



Sing



i have wrestled with angels

and demons too

have heard God’s words

and commands refused

i’ve championed light

and warmed the pews

the twain path walked

as i did choose



took bridle and bit

performed the tasks

with silent screams

from behind the mask

hiding in shadows

and the spirit’s flask

fears and questions

i dared not ask



some lost, some lonely

but none will tell

an eruption brewing

that can’t be quelled

we left the mountains

with heaven’s fell

while men with steeples

ring the bells



teachings given

from myth and lore

we’ve asked the questions

why, what for

seeking a meaning

a key to the door

of the power we hide

within our core



illusions of time

securely embraced

but one sweet respite

i long to taste

before dark comes

and claims this space

i pray that i

may see thy face



so . . .

i hold to love

a daily test

i reach for the fruit

a lifelong quest

a new vexed Sun

that rose in the west

by light i travel

from more to less



but . . .



i shant be quiet’d

enslave not my tongue

for can’t you hear

the bell has been rung

the Angels are speaking

psalms to be sung

if not for our Self

but that of our young





Sing





© 12 July 2012 : William S. Peters, Sr.









Sing

i have wrestled with angels
and demons too
have heard God’s words
and commands refused
i’ve championed light
and warmed the pews
the twain path walked
as i did choose

took bridle and bit
performed the tasks
with silent screams
from behind the mask
hiding in shadows
and the spirit’s flask
fears and questions
i dared not ask

some lost, some lonely
but none will tell
an eruption brewing
that can’t be quelled
we left the mountains
with heaven’s fell
while men with steeples
ring the bells

teachings given
from myth and lore
we’ve asked the questions
why, what for
seeking a meaning
a key to the door
of the power we hide
within our core

illusions of time
securely embraced
but one sweet respite
i long to taste
before dark comes
and claims this space
i pray that i
may see thy face

so . . .
i hold to love
a daily test
i reach for the fruit
a lifelong quest
a new vexed Sun
that rose in the west
by light i travel
from more to less

but . . .

i shant be quiet’d
enslave not my tongue
for can’t you hear
the bell has been rung
the Angels are speaking
psalms to be sung
if not for our Self
but that of our young


Sing


© 12 July 2012 : William S. Peters, Sr.

Wednesday, July 11, 2012

the Vine-Keeper


the Vine-keeper

here sit i
in the Holiest of Holies
the Vine-keeper
embracing the passage of time
as she marches forth to harvest

i have nurtured the soils
of this garden
with a labor of love
and quiet expectation

my hands which knead forth promise
are covered with the fragrance of the earth
whose thirst is filled
by the sweat of my brow

i have exacted my duty
and continue so
through
that of the morrow
with an unrivaled love
that i may press the fruits
of my labor
to make a new wine
worthy of anointing
the lips of my Lorde,
for i am the Vine-keeper
and this is my charge

There is the sound of footprints
gracefully dancing upon my ear
“who goes there” i cry
and a voice volumous
and splendorous replies
“it is i, thy servant”

i understood not this speaking
for it was the voice of my Lorde
and i fall upon the ground
my face turned to the earth
as an reverent type fear
comes upon my entire essence
and consumes me
like a ravenous plague of plenty
for the Source of my being
my Progenitor Father
approaches

He bids me to rise
but i can not
of my own accord
nor may i look upon His presence
so i avert my eyes
as i realize
that i have been summoned
and sanctified
and all about me
i defied
for it, the world
has lost all import

i ask
Father, what would you have me do
how may i serve thee
name the task
for i am yours to command
please demand of me
that i may see
thy will

i pray i understand

and He spake unto me
with a certain sanctity of enmity
that stills the rush of life
all about me
and within me

He said to me
“Servant”
i have come
to eat of the labour
of thy love for me
give of me thine heart
which is mine
oh Vine Keeper

i humbled myself
for the flatterous embrace
of his words
ushered forth a pride
that i could not hide

i beamed brightly
for the light of his
which resides inside me
in my spirit
cause my heart to beat
with a fervor
and He and i
could hear it

i could feel an anticipatory longing
that manifested to my consciousness
as a holy song
as played from the strings of
a Holy Harp
like that of the Angels
who gather round the Throne
playing a music the day long

and the voice of my Lorde spoke
and said unto me
“I have come to eat of the labor of thy love for me”
“I have come for your fruit”
Feed me thy best
but know ye this . . .

Plumbs i have had
Pomegranates too
Apples have i had
but now i come to you
to satisfy the sum
of my longings

i come hither
to not taste of the bitter
but that of my wantings
and whimsical hauntings
to be filled
as i taste of the fruit
of thy tilled and nurtured garden

the spoils of thy soils,
i have come for the fruit
of thy Vine
that sweetest of grape
that has ravaged and raped
my senses
with a promise elated
yet not sated
won’t you feed me,
feed your Lorde
thy faithful servant

Upon his request
i found my self speechless
and speak . . . i could not

i could not mutter
nor utter
a word to be heard

all of me
was twisted
caught in this cataclysmic
state of orgasmic ecstasy
for the best of me
had just been revealed unto me

i was seeing
feeling
the death of me
the old me
as a verity of my life
came unto me
and graced me
with a surety
unrivaled by any means

this is what i had always
vied for
cried for
and this day
i shall die for
and i deny it no more
for
i am but a servant
in the vineyard
a Vine Keeper
in the Garden of my Lorde


© 11 July 2012 : William S. Peters, Sr.




Tuesday, July 10, 2012

will i go to heaven if i pray ?


will i go to heaven if i pray ?

with a Genghis like
frothing of the mouth like madness
the spirit of that bitch named “Colonialism”
felt it her ordained right
to resurrect the world
in the image of it’s own darkness

this disease affected the minds of men
who parroted this megalomania
in the name of civilization
or keeping up with the Jones

sowing seeds of fear amongst the common people
the will of loving men became darkened
by the shadows of subversive lies
offered like candy to our nimble simple minds
for we did not wish to bother
to discern for our selves
did we ?

the formula is tried and true
and works with a consistency
that can not be refuted
by those who dwell in the realm of dreams
uS!

so it seems
that the un-pious vyers
the lie criers
will continue to have their way

from feudal to daedal systems
they all dress the same
just in different colors
but we do recognize you
yes we do

we have renamed you “Oppressor”
“News” and other semi disconnected
reflections of our apathies
let us muse on this

whatever machine we wish to call it
name it
Democracy to Sovereignty
from Fascism to Socialist
the Monopoly Men
have not lost their swerve
as they create new curves
in the road
just to keep you disoriented
but never quite lost

Call them Power mongers if you will
and the War Mongering of their lieutenants
are but a guise
to delude the eyes
of the people
from catching a peek
of the real game
and it objectives
it’s agendas
found in Foreign Policy
exacted from our homes
of acquiescence
and indifference

i mean, really
what do i care
that millions are dying
someplace else

i mean if i try hard enough
i may shed a tear of compassion . . .
for my self
for in the end
the debt will be mine
and the toll extolled
will be the selling of my soul
that is already heavily mortgaged
to the devils
of my own imaginations
and consignment

but . . .

will i go to heaven if i pray ?

REAL HARD ?


© 10 July 2012 : William S. Peters, Sr.

divine expression


divine expression

a dark spirit came upon me . . . man
one not common
in the realm
of my understanding

it affected
and thus infected me,
causing me to vie
and rise up against my brother
and let his blood
upon the soil
of our blessings

a shall call her name . .
“en-vy”
for she is in me
and has found a home
in this, my private eternity

when will i be loosed

i was stripped of my honor
and cast to an unknown wilderness
and destined to know of a woman
who was not of my rib

we made a sort of
discordant conjugal music
chorused with tongues
that babbled
in non symphonious to9nes
ushering forth and eschewed view
of my distant fading memories
of my smiles and
of Eden
a place where Abel was able
to outshine me
in the eyes of that Entity
which Lorded over us
with enmity

was this seed of tortuous expression
the fault of my Mother ?
or is some other generational curse
exacting such a suffering
in my crooked walk

was it the lack of forthrightness
of my “Earthly Seed Bearer”,
Adam
who is the progenitor
of my woes . . .
who knows

my feet, my toes,
oh how they do miss
the damp verdant laden soils
of that garden,
that which my ardent heart
still yet dreams of

i vies for a “Celestial Forgiveness”
that will allow me to return,
if but for a “Stilled” visit
in Time’s special illusion

a delusion will do . . . for now

i year to once again
taste the sweet fruit
of the labor of my hands
as the sweat of my brow
nurtures the expectations
of a bountiful harvest

but . . . what was i given
to take with me
in my banishment ?

Prayers and Faith ?

who is it that shall
sequester my earnest requests
for reprieve
from this cloak of disdain
and despair
i must wear ?

and in a certain knowing
i still am sowing
seeds on hope
as i cope
with this doom filled
looming
dichotomous reality
betwixt a “Good”
and an “Evil”
that manifests
as a test
for all souls
who toil against their reason

none of it makes for
a reasonable defense
that offers a satiable recompense

so i simply speak
in the same voice
of First Father
“Let their be Light”
and i brightly shine
for that seed still resides
within me

i am the Garden
i am the Gardener
which i seek

and all that is thine
is mine
for “I AM” of THEE

i am an unquantified incalculable expression
of the Divine


© 9 July 2012 : William S. Peters, Sr.




est tempus


est tempus

in the quiet of night
you came to my rest
a place of quiet solace
when silence
transmuted me to purpose

you whispered in my ear
est tempus
it is time
mea filius vos requiruntur
my son you are required
hic in nunc
here in the now

my consciousnes rose to greet
and feel the kiss of your words
syllable by syllable
upon my longings
for i knew of this coming
of your radiance,
the magnificence
of you heavenly confluence
with my soul

i was erect with temptation
for a certain congruence
of our union
had to be

i wanted to re-enter
your womb
where my spawning took place
a dawning of something
beyond the ultimate
as held in the eyes of men

a quixotic rhythmn took hold
laid seige
to my hopes
and waste them upon the abyss
where there is naught but death
and nothingness
for this time was definitively
pre-eminent

my own tongue was loosed
and the delusion of my speech
that at one time i thought
to have made sense
was clarified
and made anew and straight

a new tongue became known
unto me
so i babble no more
for the world of illusion

the gutteral utterances ushered forth
appeared as an ectopic light
resonating with utopic wonder
revealing Thothian like angles
opening unworn pathways
that i may cross the Fourth safely

and i arose
displaying an actualized splendour
i always had known was mine

i watched at the gate of observation
as my vessel arose
to perfom the duty at hand
and transport my essence
to that portal
for the final fare had been exacted

and i knew
with a certainty that could never be challenged
by the empiracy
and that is simply as simply can get

est tempus

“i lay down my life that i may pick it up again, for i have the power to do so”


© 10 July 2012 : William S. Peters, Sr.





Sunday, July 8, 2012

Table of Contents : Hot Summer Nights




Table of Contents : Hot Summer Nights
Christena Antonia Valaire Williams                                    1
Anna Chavell Stewart                                                       3
Quise "The Notebook" Williams                                        4
Aria Nicole                                                                       7
Kimberly Burnham                                                            8
Tina Culp Barton                                                              9
Michael                                                                          10
Carlus Wilmot                                                                 11
Alan W. Jankowski                                                         12
*lioness*aka*ms*fran*                                                   14
Dave Sanderson                                                             16
Lori A. Williams                                                             17
Christopher Reilley                                                         18
Veronica Haunani Fitzhugh                                              20
Samuel Benjamin                                                            21
Ken Williams ~The Scarred Poet                                    22
Douglas Moore Jr.                                                          24
Sugasaphire                                                                    26
N. Owen Holme                                                             28
Neil Carpathios                                                              30
Chris Sanderson                                                             31
Tammy Ingison                                                               33
Patricia Hemingway                                                        34
Marianne Taylor                                                             36
Paul Hostovsky                                                              37
Nancy Hubble                                                                38
Dag & Maya                                                          40
Allie Marini Batts                                                            42
Erik La Prade                                                                 43
Petra Robertson                                                             44
David Spicer                                                                  45
Flavia Cosma                                                                 46
Jaime Glasser                                                                 47
Andrena Zawinski                                                          49
Edward Folger                                                               50
Cris Staubach                                                                 51
L.M. Harrod                                                                  52
William A Henkin                                                           53
Jordan Sanderson                                                           54
Wm. Cutter Black                                                          55
Kim Baker 'The Big-Haired Poet'                                   56
Marina Kris                                                                    58
Kay Robertson                                                               60
Nils Peterson                                                                  61
James ‘Peach’ McClory                                                 62
Michael A. Holm                                                            67
iDrew                                                                             68
Alberto O. Cappas                                                         69
Larry Buffington                                                              70
Larry Tozek                                                                    72
madeleine beckman                                                        73
Johnny Blue Eyez                                                            74
Allison Grayhurst                                                            75
Starr Poetress ~ JRC                                                      76
Raziel Moore                                                                  77
Daniel W.K. Lee                                                            79
Marissa S. McNamara                                                   80
Richard Ilnicki                                                                81
K. S. Crawford                                                              86
Karla Huston                                                                  89
Luna Soolay                                                                   90
Yevgeniy Levitskiy                                                          92
Laura Loomis                                                                 93
Malcolm Miller                                                               95
Alvin G Thomas                                                              96
Alan Gilbert                                                                    97
Paul Sands                                                                     98
Michael Karl (Ritchie)                                                     99
Navypoet                                                                     101
Carl Palmer                                                                  103
Alexis Mitchell                                                              104
Tammymarie Jones                                                       106
Ishmael Street                                                               107
c. beth loofe                                                                 108
Laura L. Snyder                                                           109
Joan L. Cannon                                                            110
Don Kingfisher Campbell                                              111
Michelle Hartman                                                         113
Stephen Mead                                                              115
Maria A. Costantini                                                      116
Diana M. Raab                                                             117
Carole Hall                                                                   119
liz dolan                                                                        120
Colin James                                                                  121
Karen Elizabeth Huff                                                     122
Jillena Rose                                                                  123
Benecia Blue                                                                126
Mark States                                                                 128
BƤnoo Zan                                                                   130
Susan Adams                                                               133           
Martina Newberry                                                        136
Ellen Kashk                                                                  137
Allene Rasmussen Nichols                                            139           
John Tustin                                                                   141
Carolyn Jones                                                               142
Alfreda ‘Freddi’ Ghee                                                  143
Janet Butler                                                                  145           
Lori Levy                                                                     146
Rosalind Cherry                                                            147
Aparna Pathak                                                             149
Maresa Whitehead                                                       151
Justin Tony                                                                   152
Elizabeth E. Castillo                                                      154
Murray Alfredson                                                         155
Susan Beem                                                                 156
Renard Yearby                                                             157
Mary L. Barnard                                                          159
Terry Severhill                                                              161
Cynthia J. Patton                                                          162
George H Northrup                                                      163
Stephanie M. Giguere                                                   164
Kellz Grammar                                                             165
Terrell Stanley                                                              167
Robert Gibbons                                                            168
Fawn E. Caldwell                                                         169
Bryan Williams                                                             170
Carlene Beverly                                                            172
Todd Smith aka thelyfepoet                                          173
Janet P. Caldwell                                                          177
Steve Dalachinsky                                                        181
Sublime Poetess                                                           182
Santos Taino Santiago                                                  185
Heartspoken Niecy aka Janice Johnson                         187
SeaBe aka Charles P. Banks                                        189
Damian Knox                                                               191
Yvette Burks aka Beautifuldizasster                               193
Gustavo Adolfo Aybar                                                  196
Christina Filagi                                                              197
Martin Cohen                                                               199
Dana L. Stringer                                                           200
Tim Tomlinson                                                              201
William S. Peters, Sr. aka ‘just bill’                               202           

Collaborations
Aline the Conscience Poet and todd smith                     210           
Cathryn Cofell & Karla Huston                             212           
Starr Poetress & Flowetic Justice                          213
Jeffery Sanders & Wynne Henry                           216
Santos TaĆ­no Santiago & Cheryl Faison                219
Renard Yearby & Kellz Grammar                         222
Janet Caldwell & ‘just bill’                                    224

Prose
William S. Peters, Sr. aka ‘just bill’                               228
Adrian S. Potter                                                           230           
Robert W. Fox                                                             231
Kelly Roach                                                                 233
Kellz Grammar                                                             234
Joski THE POET                                                         238
Quietstorm of spokenword                                           240
Alan Jankowski                                                            242
Jamie Bond                                                                  248