NOVEMBER'S DEDICATION:  November's Edition is dedicated to women everywhere, but in particular to two wonderful women from Texas:  Texas Poet, our sponsor this month, and Lois Lay Castiglioni, Poet Laureate 2001, an ongoing sponsor of Sol Magazine.  Thank you both for your generous gifts of book gift certificates to Sol Magazine's poets.

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CONTENTS:

• WELCOME
• LETTERS
• ASK US
• ANSWER THIS
• FRIENDSHIP KNOWS NO BOUNDS
• KEEP THE CHILDREN SAFE
• I'VE GOT A RIGHT
• NOT PROPERTY
• HIDDEN CONTEST ONE:  Old Socks, New Hat, or Winter Coat
• HIDDEN CONTEST TWO:  Red, Read, Reed
• BEST POEM OF NOVEMBER

ASK US

Have an interesting poetry-related question you'd like us to post on our webpage?  Send it in.  If we like it, we will post your question, and maybe someone will send in an answer.
 

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ANSWER THIS

In December, if you send us the best answer to this poetry-related question we'll post it on our website.  Please give us your source of information.

This question posed by Sol's Staff:  Who, where, and when was "Guillaume Apollinaire," and what was his contribution to poetry?
 

FIRST PLACE - Winner of an electronic $10.00 book gift certificate

Sometimes we are no more than company

In a room touched by thought
graced upon the walls
for quiet reading

our lives pass in heartbeats
unheard but seen,
I share silence with you,

not a word spent,
no wasted breath
beyond simple exhalation.

Gary Wade, South Burlington, VT

Differences

A true friend loves despite differences.
A true friend is never a snob.
A true friend will visit your places of worship,
Eat your traditional foods,
And celebrate your holidays,
Because they are important to you, and you are a friend.

A life of homogeneity
Is a life of monotony.
A life where you see only one side of the story
Is a life lived in ignorance.
A life where you associate only with those like you
Is a breeding ground for fear and hatred.
Such a life is not worth living.

Our way is rarely the only way.
Our way is rarely even the best way.
The best way is the way of making room for all
In our hearts.

Katherine Swarts, Houston, TX

Water Ways

i am soft wood and
He is fierce wind
blowing gruffly and
drubbing me about our
small apartment
You are cool water
cleansing me of this degradation
offering inspiration that
i (too) can
overcome

SJ Baldock, Lancaster, TX

Old Soul Mate

Take my hand, you my kin
Let's walk into the ancient hills
Until dawn dares show again
On mountain hills and plains.

Let me lead you then,
To paths faery trodden
Where the grass is greener
And skies sheen and bluer!

Let me say, murmuring in your ear
Words of love, emotion-felt array.
I wish I could share all my world with you
Dear old soul
Forever in my heart stuck
Like blue thistles on a velvety rug!

Catherine Escarras, Marseille, France

Limit

There’s a limit to everything on earth,
Every man must die once he’s given birth,
But no limit to the emotion that exists in every heart,
Friendship knows no bounds; two friends’ll never part.

No smoking, no drugs, no abuses can come between,
Love blossoms in the heart, through the optical window seen,
All the faithlessness and anger is but a mirage,
Dead after just one glance at the first decade’s collage.

Time witnessed two acquaintances fast changing into friends,
The purity of this emotion has never found its end,
Life will be destroyed, witnessing many sights and sounds,
But friendship will forever blossom, since it really knows no bounds.

Shah Bano Ijaz, Lahore, Pakistan

Boundless?

I always wondered
as miles defined our touch
a distance never tread
yet dreamed night after night:
I reach out and you are there
a moment or two
then suddenly gone.
The compression
of sight and sound
into flickering utterance
a baud-bound bond
forged in out hearts
the shared moments of possibility
font by font.
We'll call it friendship
for the lack of something more
words at our fingertips
searching for lips
to whisper, perhaps to kiss
something like love.

James M. Thompson, Baytown, TX

Bicycle Messenger

He passes by all kinds of people everyday,
His goal is to deliver the package on time,
San Francisco is his place of work,
He works all alone and that is what he enjoys,
Individualistic is the description of his job,
The wind whipping his face,
The smell of activity in the air,
Coolness of the morning breeze,
Ah, just another day for this gent,
All the stories he can pass on,
Too short on time but he will try anyway,
He enjoys meeting and greeting new people,
To him this is living and he carries on,
For tomorrow is a new day,
To him he will set out on a new adventure,
I wish him well.
Carpe diem.

Keith Burkholder, West Seneca, NY

Survival

The goldenrod was yellow beneath maples dressed for fall
Instead of apple gathering I was staring at a hospital wall
Chemotherapy for malignant cells left me tired and thin
But I never lost sight of victory because of you my friend
Needles didn’t hurt as much as your veiled pain
Feeling your sorrow made me determined to be healthy again
Years later, I tell women breast cancer isn’t the end
I promise to visit them and bring my dearest friend
As we grow old together, we’ll sit rocking and remember
How we fought and won the battle in that long-ago September

Lois Lay Castiglioni, Galveston, TX

Dearest Friend

My dearest friend
From so far
Hear my cry
Feel my fear
Sooth my pain
Push it away
By my side
Together
The world in our hands
Soothing the pain
In the deepest ways
Look no further
Look no closer
In the darkest of corners
Here I am
Only to await
My dearest friend.

Shilo Marie Davenport, Athens, WI

Sands of Time

If I could stop sand flowing
From the upper bell of the hourglass
I would share time with you
My friend

Kay Lay Earnest, Smyrna, GA

All Fire Men Now

Ascending silver moon with silver star
Portending wind change, and Grace's rude chime
Awakes us, me from dreams of Kandahar
Our son terror jars our clock time.

Descending pillars fall, as we, to dust.
Our tuning fork is struck by air and hence
Images after old Vesuvius
Of angel forms and powdered monuments.

Yet rising from gray smoke our fire men stand,
Heroes who unfurl flags against fires' spread
By every course and vein through our heartland.
Old Glory guards the living and the dead,

Warning us still our careful watch to keep
And tend the fires until our final sleep.

Wilson F. Engel, III, San Diego, CA

The Love Within

How can I love others when I tend to treat myself,
Like I don't love myself.
I will look within to find my best friend.
I've made a self-discovery that I'm much happier, when
I'm loving me.
The love that I have to give, I will first give to my self.
And I'll love myself, decisions made right or wrong.
Because with the Love Within, I can be a better friend.
With the Love Within, I can be a better woman.
With the Love Within, I'm someone you can always depend.
So I will keep Loving Within.

Shelia M. Goss, Mesquite, TX

What Is A Friend?

A friend is one whose there for you,
Through thick and thin and troubles too.
A friend is one who really cares,
And keeps you always in their prayers.

When someone dies, and it makes you cry,
A dear, true friend, you can rely.
When you're unhappy and feeling sad,
A friend is there to make you glad.

A friend will give a helping hand,
And is always there to understand.
To be right there through thick and thin,
Is what you call a dear, true friend.

Evelyn Hall, Dayton, OH

Friends

Water rushed to its fall.
It was a rocky and frail one.
Friends were met and friendships built.
At the end I gain more than what I started with
A Friend

Odalis Neris, Bronx, NY

Lasting Imprint

Many miles now separate us.
Many days have passed,
Since I last heard your laugh
Saw the tenderness in your gaze
Or felt the warmth of your smile.

But I can feel these things
In my mind,
Each time I think of you.
For you have left
The imprint
Of true friendship
Upon my heart.

Lynne Remick, Nesconset, NY

FIRST PLACE - Winner of a $25.00 Book Gift Certificate.

Please!

Mute the sound or
Turn off the t.v.
Mask your face so
They will never see
Fear
On every channel
Tears

SJ Baldock, Lancaster, TX

 FIRST PLACE - Winner of a $15.00 BGC from Barnes & Noble

I Will...Not

I will not stand by, motionless,
while others take away rights
that do not belong to them.

I will not be silent, speechless,
while others take away freedoms
that are not theirs to take away.

I will remember that today,
the oppressed may be faceless.
If I do nothing, one day,
the oppressed may be me.

Lynne Remick, Nesconset, NY

 FIRST PLACE - Winner of a $50.00 BGC from Barnes & Noble

I Am...Not

Beneath this burqa, I am
A mind that thinks, a body that feels,
A human being.

Beneath this burqa, I am
A light that shines, a voice that speaks
A force of one.

Beneath this burqa,
My thoughts are hushed, my desires forsaken,
My light doused, my voice silenced--
My punishment for being nothing more than a woman.

Lynne Remick, Nesconset, NY

EDITOR'S NOTE:  This month, in addition to sending the winner a $50.00 book gift certificate, Sol Magazine will send send $50.00 to Soapstone, the winner's choice of which non-profit women's organization to receive the check.  This generous "double" prize was made possible by a Texas Poet, an anonymous poet from the state that seems to produce folks with hearts as big as itself.

Soapstone is a unique writing residency and retreat program for women.  It was created to serve the needs of women writers working in various genre of literary writing. Located in the Coast Range in Oregon, the retreat stands on twenty-two acres of land. Free residencies allow women the opportunity to participate in conscious stewardship of the land as they write.  The Founding President of this program is Ursula K. Le Guin.

Visit www.soapstone.org for more information.  Email:  mail@soapstone.org
Do let them know how you heard about their program.

 FIRST PLACE - Winner of an electronic $10.00 book gift certificate from Barnes & Noble

 
My Socks and I

My mind, just like my wide Hobbit feet, cannot stand confinement;
I'd rather traipse about in old socks than constricting shoes;
like me, they're comfy,  have stood the test of time,
with only an occasional frayed end or loss of elasticity,
a rare heel worn through.

My old sock drawer is a treasure trove of memories,
a scrying pond of futures both possible and unlikely.
It is an artist's canvas, unveiled,  with woolen reds and blues,
cartoon images, slightly faded, of Tweaty Bird,
 and magenta, lilac and knobby white cotton.

My poems often emerge while tugging on an old sock,  as if each unbound
thread leads me safely from the Minotaur's cave,  into the brilliant light of day.
They sacrifice much, these socks, to support their wearer, who whimpers and consoles,
feels their pain--and not a little guilt--at being so used, so like the Velveteen Rabbit,
who learned that being worn-out proves you're real.

Terrie Relf, San Diego, CA

 FIRST PLACE - Winner of a book of poetry.
 

A Rebirth

Blood

To drip of color, blood red of pride
a wave in the breeze, its striped movement
a fire, core deep, magma heat
felt in our coldest, darkest hour.

Light

A dim light of words read of a need
building intensity, from whispers to shouts
line by line, sentence by sentence, a verse
at sunrise -- a gloaming knowledge.

Jazz

A morning of sound, heartbeat of rhythm
in the sway of grasses, the wind on a reed
saxophone moaning of sunshine on brass
staccato breath, a jazz and a nation again.

James M. Thompson, Baytown, TX

 
Sakowitz, Thursday, 1993

In front of Sakowitz
we march in tune
to an icy chant:
Fur is dead!
Fur is dead!
Fur is dead!
as we peer into
faces of Post Oak grannies
who shake fear from
blue hair & canvas shoes.
If only the boys from Lil' Red
can see us now.
They'd throw meat patties
& chicken bones at our feet.
We know we don't
belong in uptown storefronts
or at home with sheetrock
& tablesaws. We know our
lives mean nothing
not even a grace note
holding down or the uncoiling
of a steel cable.
Yet we grasp signs & yell
slogans into Thanksgiving air
hoping more than a cry
can be heard above
backfires & the cool
rattling of our bones.

Radames Ortiz, Houston, TX

Sol Magazine will mail no book prizes to poets outside the United States of America.  Book gift certificates from Barnes & Noble will be substituted.  No exceptions.
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Have a comment?  Want to be added to our list?  Want to be taken off our list?

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Or at:
Sol Magazine
P.O. Box 580037, Houston, TX  77258-0037
Phone number:  (281) 316-2255 weekdays 8-5 Central Time.

Sol Magazine's Website:  http://www.sol-magazine.com

Corporate book donors:  Barnes & Noble, Bookstop.  New sponsors and angels always welcomed.  Thanks for your support.
 

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