Sol Magazine
February 2000 Edition

============
Sol Magazine © 2000
============


Twice a month, Sol Magazine sponsors poetry contests, and from the results produces an electronic poetry magazine, published on the last day of each month.  The winners are posted to our website at:

http://pages.prodigy.com/sol_magazine

Our topics are on a variety of subjects about nature and the nature of humanity.  Our purpose: to foster the reading and writing of short poetry, and the education of poets.

WELCOME: John Brooks, Helen David, Maryann Hazen, Chris Johnson, Elinor B. Kapsar, Jennifer Mason-Korecki, Nicole Nostramo, Adelaide Socki, Craig Soderquist, and Jeannette L. Strother.
============
HAPPY NEWS:  Sol Magazine's Assistant Editor, Paula Marie White, announces her engagement to Donald Michael Bentley, Jr.
============
SAD NEWS:  Houston Chapter of the Poetry Society of Texas was saddened recently by the death of longtime member and supporter, Susanne R. Bowers.


LETTER TO THE EDITOR
I want to thank you for all your work on the Poet Laureate contest.  I was honored to be among the eight finalists - the work of the other poets is inspiring.  The example poems in contest issues are at a standard to which I can only aspire.  I savor these contests and they keep my old mind churning.  After much badgering, my sister, Helen David, entered this month's contests!  She sat down and worked through the three topics!  Wish I had that kind of focus!  Best wishes and many thanks to you all!  Pat A Tabella

BGC FROM B&N = Book gift certificate from Barnes & Noble

TOPIC ONE:  LOVERS AND CHOCOLATE

THIRD PLACE -
Sunrise/Sunset
 

After sunset
we are the lovers of the century.
Tasting costly truffles
in each other's mouth
I am Valentino, you - Garbo
and the corks are popping
until, too soon, the sunrise comes.
 

Chocolate hangover:  this morning
I am brushing love from my teeth.
 

Paul Boor, Galveston, Texas
JUDGE'S COMMENTS:  Cleverly done.  The elegant images of the first two paragraphs emphasize the twist of the final two lines, which in turn  flavors the whole.
============
Sweet Sorrows
 

He brought her hand-dipped strawberries.
She tasted them sweet and tart together, like life.
"I love your mouth," he said,
And a single word filled her, claimed her...Lovers.
As she opened her soul to him, all her sorrows melted,
Flowing away - like chocolate.
 

John Brooks, Colleyville, TX
============
Delicacies
 

Satin-soft
Chocolate caresses
Drizzle from fingertips,
Viscous, glistening,
Coating lovers
In sweet
Surprises.
 

Martha Kirby Capo, Houston, TX
============
HONORABLE MENTION
The Flu
 

My lover had the sniffles
Nose a cherry red
Racked with chills
And throbbing head.
I served her hot chocolate
She thought it was the best
Till she went to the kitchen
And saw I'd made a mess
 

Don Castiglioni, Austin, TX
JUDGE'S COMMENTS:  Clear images.  Good structure.  The end words (sniffles, red, chills, head, chocolate, best, kitchen, mess) cut a path through a realistically humorous revelation.
============
Wisdom
 

Chocolate colored Persian
Sunning on the wall
Watches lovers prowl below
As if they are smitten
Wise feline ignores their ardent pleas
Lest she be stuck with kittens
 

Lois Lay Castiglioni, Galveston, TX
============
FIRST PLACE -

One Odd Cupcake
 

Cracked, virginal, spilling its costly content
To be ground, roasted, cooked,
Simmered, swirled, or blended;
This lying, dark miracle called chocolate stirs the juices,
Enfolds the chemistry convincing brains
That they are adored.
Creates the feeling,
Conveys unspoken messages of lovers.
I, for one, love my liberty.
Give me vanilla any day!
 

Claiborne S. Walsh, Montrose, AL

JUDGE'S COMMENTS:  Using beautifully written "sinsational" language,
this "odd cake" speaker portrays a hard constitution for resisting endorphins.
============
SECOND PLACE -
Flavor of the Day
 

There be chocolate days and crispy
vanilla evensongs, sad times of
fruit-sour yogurt-voicing, often
bitter-almond ends.  Ways lovers
blend sweet, salt-nutty flavortimes
together testing intimacy's tasty pain,
pepperminty loneliness of freedom apart,
then rejoining, scorch-taste of touching
and momentary tart ecstasy, realizing
munchy togetherness again.
 

Warner D. Conarton, Zephyrhills, FL

JUDGE'S COMMENTS:  Echoing vowel and consonant sounds employ skillful alliteration.
============
Valentine Lost
 

With bittersweet acceptance
She stands alone in tears
Still holding the rose
A hollow chocolate rendition
Representing an empty heart
Her sweetheart betrayed her
He said he's chosen another
This one last gift
Ironically says it all-
Lovers no longer
 

Shelley Crabtree, Enid, Ok
============
FOURTH PLACE
Sweet Submission
 

Silky smooth chocolate
Mesmerizes tastebuds with craving
Like hungry glances between knowing lovers.
Warm, melting sweetness
Drenches, seductively drowns
All common and exotic senses.
 

Helen M. David, Stamford, CT
JUDGE'S COMMENTS:  Good example of alliteration.  The short 4th line serves to slow the movement of the poem into a luscious close.
============
Preferences
 

Don't give me pretty flowers
or sexy negligees
I don't need aging wines
or brand new attaches
there's only one thing
that my lover should bring-
sweet and gooey,
scrumptious and chewy
Chocolate!
My February fling.
 

Diane M. Davis, Chelmsford, MA
============
Flash Back
 

My lover naps in a favorite chair
An older guy losing his hair
But my heart sees the younger man
Who came courting fifty years ago
With Stover Chocolates in his hand
 

Kay Lay Earnest, Smyrna, GA
============
If You Please
 

Socki was a Chocolate Point;
A credit to her breed.
A tryst in a romantic lover's joint,
Left her three kittens to feed.
A visit to the veterinarian,
And she was post menstrualarian.
A long and happy life at ease;
A contented Siamese.
 

Milton Earnest, Smyrna, GA
============
HONORABLE MENTION
Silent Bed
 

Empty space ahead
Stares into lonely eyes.
It dances with the looming
Empty space beside.
Once lovers filled the air
With their vibrate passion cries.
Now only chocolate truffles
Fill the empty space inside.
 

Katherine Elmore, Houston TX
JUDGE'S COMMENTS:  Clearly written, the poet's choice of words (lonely eyes, air, empty and space) enforces the loneliness of the poets thoughts.
============
Soul-Satisfying Crunch
 

Little memories tiptoe dancing
on child-centered feet
Pink satin ribbons heralding
Christmas, Easter, Valentine
Morning delights
Santas, bunnies, Hershey kisses
Soul-satisfying tooth crunching
Thick slabbed chocolate figurines
Make Lovers of us all.
 

June Knight Godwin, Houston TX
============
HONORABLE MENTION
For the Sweet
 

I dreamed a lover came to me
with diamonds, rubies, pearls and wine,
with flowers, furs and gems so he
would then be mine.
 

He showered me with real estate,
a fancy car, a silver set,
he didn't know the perfect bait
was chocolate.
 

Maryann Hazen, Ellenville, NY
JUDGE'S COMMENTS:  Good rhythm and rhyme.  Easily recognizable symbols emphasize the clarity of the poem.
============
Bon Apres Apetit'
 

After the finished platters
of lamb, shiitake mushrooms,
steamed asparagus, eggplant,
and a carafe of merlot,
the passionate lovers' evening
truly begins when sharing
with their willing tongues
the rich individual jewels
of creamy fine cherry chocolates.
 

Glynn Monroe Irby, Clute, TX
============
His Cowgirl
 

They were two lovers feeling a need,
She was a lonely cowgirl; he was her beau.
Words did not come easy but they knew.
He handed her a box of chocolates,
A Pangburn cowgirl there on the lid.
No words spoken but she knew,
He was her farm boy; she was his girl.
 

Julia Jarmusz, Fort Worth, TX
============
Happiness
 

A heart for a box
Filled with chocolate delights
Mouth-watering confections
For lovers to bite
Sealed in with a kiss
To my heart, my bliss.
 

Elinor Burger Kapsar, Hazelwood, MO
============
An Altered History
 

Had Romeo been inclined
To proffer a Godiva box
In exchange for Juliet's hand,
Perhaps he'd have met approval
In Lady Capulet's eyes.
The doomed lovers tragedy
Changed for all eternity.
For what woman can resist
The overwhelming draw
Of chocolate?
 

Kathy Kehrli, Factoryville, PA
============
Fragrant Kisses
 

All lovers
Don't they
Give chocolate
Do say
To their sweethearts?
They May
On St. Valentine's Day.
 

Jennifer Camille Manganello, Boca Raton, FL
============
Interlude
 

Lovers, engulfed in the warmth of the day
Together, basking in the glow of love.
Chocolate-covered dreams,
Sweet seduction.
 

Nicole Nostramo, Elmwood Park, NJ
============
Clandestine Kisses
 

In the shadow of night
My lips brush against you
Savoring our moment,
Slowly, I taste your sweetness
Soon, day will awaken
And all lovers must part
With a yearning desire
Still burning, still craving
I swallow you whole---
A Hershey's chocolate kiss
 

Lynne Remick, Nesconset, NY
============
HONORABLE MENTION
Fond Remembrance
 

We were lovers, way back when.
At times, she was beyond my ken:
she coughed and wheezed and wiped her nose,
allergic to this and that and those.
I gave her chocolate. She ate it with chives -
and soon passed away of terminal hives!
 

John E. Rice, Houston, TX
JUDGE'S COMMENTS:  Humorously delightful rhythm & rhyme.  The clever twist at the end adds an element of surprise.
============
Hot Fudge Sunday
 

Whipped cream topping
flowing down hot chocolate,
rivulets of chunky nuts
cover vanilla mounds.
Valentines date --
lovers promise;
diamond ring
replaces cherries.
 

Brenda Roberts, Sherman, TX
============
Non-Caloric Kisses
 

Dieting claims appetites, yearnings still remain
Envision slimmer figures,
Not caloried sugar cane.
Think not of sweet temptations,
Dribbling syrupy things,
Caramels or longings for dark inviting creams.
Relinquish Hershey's kisses,
Chocolates you once craved,
Take a lover's calorie free kiss
If you wanna misbehave.
 

Corrine Schlessel, Woodbridge, CT
============
No kidding
 

Taste this
Smell it first, if it looks like
Smells like, feels like, then it probably is
Chocolate
Quick keep going let it melt
On your teeth, down your chin
Quick as lovers get it
Now quick before
Someone sees
 

Adelaide Socki, Houston, TX
============
February Dream
 

Valentine
Sweetheart
Scrumptious, divine
Will this special someone ever be mine
 

We hardly know each other, though we talk at length you see
So, I offer up your chocolate
Truly hoping we will be
Lovers drawn together by your sweet, dark mystery
 

Craig Soderquist, San Antonio, TX
============
For a Man Who has Everything
 

What to do in fleeting seasons
to show my Lover all the reasons?
Day's adorned with chocolate kisses
cupid's arrow that never misses.
 

A letter penned, adored with love
numerating blessings from above.
I'll be the heroine day to day
timeless words written to stay.
 

Marsha Steed, Citrus Heights, CA
============
HONORABLE MENTION
Sensational
 

Lovers whose lips quiver ecstatically
taste romance's exciting flavor,
like creamy chocolate fantastically
stirs sensations to seep and to savor.
 

To steal tempting kisses clandestinely
brings rewards special because hidden,
like candy acquired confidentially
tastes better because it's forbidden.
 

Beverly Steward, Santa Barbara, CA
JUDGE'S COMMENTS:  Skillful use of rhythm and rhyme.  Effective use of simile in the last stanza compares the excitement of stolen kisses to forbidden chocolate.
============
Cupid's Confection
 

Honeyed sweet fruit,
fully plump ripeness,
waits impatiently
for plucking, lifting, dipping
into warm, sweet dark liquid.
Covered with a lover's
champagne lips,
I burst with dolce vida
engulfing and filling your senses.
A strawberry for your chocolate fondue.
 

Jeannette L. Strother, Mansfield, TX
============
Confecting Affection
 

Strolling to the bus stop
Sharing chocolate and candy sweet kisses
Young lovers twirl under little swirling squalls.
Snowflakes melt on faces flushed with rosy pink.
Hand in hand, the cooing pair
Board the bus to Providence.
 

Patricia A Tabella, Providence, RI
============
HONORABLE MENTION
In Mother's Attic
 

A heart-shaped box, old and faded
The gold satin bow, badly frayed
Kept more than fifty years
Memories of her wartime fears
Chocolates by two lovers shared
Soldier's letters, how he cared
A yellowed telegram, of no return
Words in her heart would ever burn
 

Bill Truax, Cedar Hill, TX
JUDGE'S COMMENTS:  The clipped phrasing enhances the tone of sadness and pain felt throughout the poem.


 
GLOSSARY - Sing Inside the Lines 
by Betty Ann Whitney, Assistant Editor http://pages.prodigy.com/dandelionsoup

INTERNAL RHYME:  Rhyme is a general term for all varieties of sound repetition.  A recurrence of identical or similar elements in a word, a sound, a beat, offers a musical joy and rhythm to poetry.  Internal rhyme exists anywhere within lines, rather than at the end of lines, creating a rhythmical pattern and structure.  Often used to add tone, it sometimes divides long lines into shorter units, adding strength to a poem, and can produce intricate patterns of sound without calling attention to itself.
 

Example:

Earthbound
 

The lovely green its branches gave
Cooled the brow of blazing sun
The little twigs a sparrow sought
The yellow leaf, the red...
That die it must to stand for people
As far as the eye can see
That mountains of timber
Hung heavy with glass, rise--lock
In the land...
Scurry us inside.
 

Betty Ann Whitney, Wesley Chapel, FL

In general, internal rhyme relies on the repetition of a sound within a single line, but may also flow from line to line, enhancing beat and meter.  The poem above begins with the word "lovely," an L sound echoed in the next line in "blazing." "Green...branches," and "brow" use similar sounds.  Further down, we return to L sounds in "yellow," "leaf," and "people."   Sounds are repeated throughout, adding to the complex tonal structure of the poem.

ALPHA POET - WINNER OF A BOOK FROM OUR GRAB-BAG
Affirmation
 

I don't need
February's mid-month marker to
remind me that I love you - or
that I should tell you
only then. When I watch
the old cardinal couple romance each other
with bits of string and twisted twigs, I think:
if they had hands, they'd hold each other's
hearts - just so -
as you and I still do.
 

John E. Rice, Houston, Texas

EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  This touching poem shows the heart of what makes romance that wonderful rush.  It's a reminder that when you open the box of chocolate, smell the bouquet of spring flowers, or read the sentimental card, what you find inside is really love made present through a token - a token as simple as holding hands.  John E. Rice, our Poet Laureate 2000, proves in each new poem that flowery language does not describe the human condition as well as clear, elegant use of language, combining pictures with emotion, sharing his heart.

ANOTHER LETTER
A reply to a young reader
from Mary Margaret Carlisle, Managing Editor
Dear Reader:  In your note you said, "Because of my strong nature, many teachers have been blind when it came down to understanding my works.  They tended to shy away from complimenting my style."

Teachers show us new ways of expressing ourselves, pointing out weaknesses in approach, style, form and writing skills so we may better communicate our feelings and thoughts in an easily understandable fashion.  The best of teachers show us how our work has improved.  When they are no longer our teachers we may finally expect that they may praise our work, but until then they are our prods, with the tool of critique in one hand and a red pen in the other.  They may not always understand our message, but they certainly do understand the structure on which we place our message, and wish to help us improve that architecture.

Never feel that writing is not the medium for you because you receive no praise from a teacher.  The more you write, and the more you share your work in public, the more affirmation you will get from those around you.  Keep writing.  Keep learning.  Don't look for praise, look instead for improvement; it leaves you in control rather than having direction come from outside.  Write in joy...and be glad you have this gift of words.  Return the favor by developing your talent to its greatest extent.

ON THE WEB - "Poem-a-Day" 
by Craig Tigerman, Assistant Editor
http://sol-magazine-projects.org/prodigy/craig_tigerman

Poem-a-Day - http://www.daytips.com

Many poets read poetry for enrichment, personal enjoyment, inspiration and example.  What easier way to read poetry daily than to have it delivered free to your electronic doorstep?  The Daytips website enables you to subscribe to a variety of categories, including Poem-a-Day.  "From Walt Whitman to Carolyn Forche, we send a poem by exceptional poets to your e-mail...Monday through Friday."
 

Daytips guarantees, "We value your privacy: your email address will never be sold, leased, or used for soliciting."  Mickie Kennedy does a wonderful job providing this service to the on line poetry community.  Check it out!
 

 

TOPIC TWO:  PLEIADES - ROMANTIC FOOD

JUDGE:  CRAIG TIGERMAN - Creator of the Pleiades form

FIRST PLACE

Proposition
 

Phoenician, Greek, and Roman dudes
Plucked their fruits and seized their days,
Propped upon their velvet beds like
Pashas, watching odalisques writhe romantic
Pas de deux. What say we two now
Percolate a rendezvous? Come on:
Peel me a grape, big boy!
 

Martha Kirby Capo, Houston TX

JUDGE'S COMMENTS:  Excellent diction and phrasing, internal rhyme and alliteration, all the while weaving a fascinating and sensuous strain - an award winner for sure!  Allows the reader to laugh, yet become sensually involved.
============
Adam's Apple
 

Apple pie with melted cheese
Appealed to
Adam
Almost
As much as
A romantic kiss with
A squeeze
 

Don Castiglioni, Austin, TX
============
Pucker Up
 

Purple
Passion fruit
Prompts romantic
Paul to
Proffer
Polly a
Perfect kiss
 

Lois Lay Castiglioni, Galveston, TX
============
Success
 

Succulent
Sweet
Strawberries on the
Stem
Sustain many a
Seduction-
Satisfying!
 

SuzAnne C. Cole, Houston, TX
============
SECOND PLACE

Lapidarying
 

Lovers
licking together same sweet
lavender-grape sucker
lends
language most romantic to
lollipop glosso-
lalia
 

Warner D. Conarton, Zephyrhills, FL

Lapidarian:  One who works at cutting, polishing, or engraving gems.
Glossolalia:  Fabricated non-meaningful speech.  From the Greek, "to speak with tongues."
JUDGE'S COMMENTS:  No wasted words here!  Great multi-meaning title.  Choice of the liquid letter "L" lets each line roll languorously off the lips.  Interesting concept of lollipop glossolalia.
============
Ravenous
 

Round and sweet
Rolls to eat
Romantic breakfast
Roasted coffee served
Raspberry jam on toast
Red bacon sizzling
Ready when the eggs are done
 

Shelley Crabtree, Enid, OK
============
FOURTH PLACE
Tete-a-Tete
 

Teacup rises,
trembles ever so slightly as
traces of unexpected feelings rise
turning eyelids low in soft surprise.
Through misty sweet vapors
telling glances exchange
the promise of unexpected romance.
 

Helen David, Stamford, CT
JUDGE'S COMMENTS:  Lovely development from the ever-so-slight tremble, through traces and turning eyelids, to telling glances.  Wonderfully romantic!
============
Seduction
 

Sweet
Scrumptious strawberries
stolen from my lover's hand,
soon to be forgotten in a
second of romantic bliss.
Succulent lips
so gentle, his kiss.
 

Diane M. Davis, Chelmsford, MA
============
Choices
 

Chocolate, a romantic metaphor for life.
Complex and bittersweet,
carefully contained in a heart-shaped box that
can be quickly opened by ripping off the
cover of red shiny cellophane, and searching the
centers for raspberry filling, becoming
connected in its complex and captivating corridors.
 

Jill Davis, Beaverton, OR
JUDGE'S COMMENTS:  Thoughtful metaphor indeed.
============
Frustration
 

For times when he's away
Forlorn, I turn to
Fried cheese sticks,
Fancy appetizer
From romantic France
Fragment of our
First date
 

Emily Earnest, Smyrna, GA
============
HONORABLE MENTION
Bounty
 

Best Valentine gift
By far is coffee with
Buttered blueberry muffins
Beside coddled eggs and
Begonias nodding on a tray
Brought to me for a romantic
Breakfast in bed
 

Kay Lay Earnest, Smyrna, GA
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  A beautiful portrait, straight from the heart.  Fetch begonias while the eggs coddle...!
============
Parfait
 

Peachy wedge of juicy flesh,
perfectly layered ice cream dream.
Partially exposed rosy
portions ­ lips with a
passionate blush of romance
plump from heat of sun’s embrace,
persuading tongue to taste.
 

Maryann Hazen, Ellenville, NY
JUDGE'S COMMENTS:  So sensuous - open a window!  I also appreciated the
double meaning in the title - "Parfait" in French means "perfect."
============
Opiates
 

On raised beds
Of Basamati rice,
Okra and radishes,
Olive oil, oregano, and
Oysters Rockefeller,
Ovens of romance
Open wide.
 

Glynn Monroe Irby, Clute, TX
============
Chummy
 

Covered cherries
Chocolate brown
Craving romance
Choosing you
Coating sweet
Choice is yours
Come and share.
 

Julia Jarmusz, Ft. Worth, TX
============
Tantalizing
 

Tabled upon the bed
Three bowls sit waiting
Topping made of cream, luscious plump strawberries
Tacky, coated with ambrosial melted chocolate
Touching lovers lips
This gift so divine
Talk not necessary, romance essential.
 

Elinor Burger Kapsar, Hazelwood, MO
Writer's Ink Group
============
Delight
 

Dangling sweet fruit
Double dunked flesh
Dripping fudgy sauce
Down my greedy chin
Devouring each morsel
Delicious candied romance
Dipped chocolate strawberries
 

Kathy Kehrli, Factoryville, PA
============
Turnabout
 

Tomatoes were once considered poisonous
To eat
Them was
Taboo, but now
They're called a love apple.
That's why I grew
This batch for you!
 

James W. Lay, Calhoun, Georgia
============
Tasty
 

Twirled with intriguing
Tastes of heaven
To our delight
Two of us here
Tumble our thoughts
Tonight over chocolate
Treats of romantic love.
 

Jennifer Camille Manganello, Boca Raton, FL
============
Sensual
 

Steeped in champagne, or rolled in
Sugary excess.
Soft, romantic, and red.
Sun ripened
Strawberries are
Sweet and sexy
Slipping between our fingers and lips.
 

Jennifer Mason-Korecki, Houston TX
============
Future
 

Flavor of
Figs
Flickering flame.
Fortunate romance
Forever
Faithful
Fairest lover.
 

Lena S. Norman, Saginaw, Texas
============
Contentment
 

Cool
Crisp
Celery sticks.
Crab meat
Crepes
Champagne
Combine for romantic
Comfort.
 

Lena S. Norman, Saginaw, Texas
============
Strawlicious
 

Somewhere close by
See what I have in store
Simple & luscious
Scrumptious indeed
Sends me to heaven
Strawberries and cream.
Sweet divinity.
 

Nicole Nostramo, Elmwood Park, NJ
============
THIRD PLACE
Seduction
 

Soaked in champagne or
slathered in cream, romantically red
strawberries long for lovers' lips.  We take our
shortcake to bed.  We chew and
swallow, close our eyes and utter
sighs at this delicious decadence.
Somehow, we never feel the crumbs.
 

John E. Rice, Houston, Tx
JUDGE'S COMMENT:  Open that window again!  Delicious decadence.  The two liquid consonants (L and R) enhance the seductive alliterative flow of the slithering slathered S words.  Delightfully sensual!
============
Taragona
 

The scent of
those blossoms which preceded
them in life
taints all
tangerines.  A single bite, I close my eyes - just a
taste conjures up romantic Spanish gardens, fountains where you
trailed your fingers and smiled at me in the perfumed night.
 

John E. Rice, Houston, TX
============
Beloved
 

Brilliance of diamonds;
Believing in love, tasteless
Banana splits or
Bologna sandwiches --
Beginning of tomorrows.
Brief touches and "I do" make
Breadwinners of suitors.
 

Brenda Roberts, Sherman, TX
============
Floretta
 

Fine woman
Fixes fresh eyes on
French menu.  Orders creme
Fraiche and strawberries.
Flutters eyelids in romantic orgy of
Fruit, cream, and
Future promises.
 

Jude Roy, Madisonville, KY
============
Requesting
 

Romantic lights flickering
Revealing eyes aglow
Roses red and yellow
Rare french red Bordeaux.
Revealing sights and senses
Raisin cookies rolled in chocolate lace
Romantic and inviting is this special place.
 

Corrine Schlessel, Woodbridge, CT
============
HONORABLE MENTION
Reviving
 

Reinventing intimate liaison
Renewing passions play
Raspberry juice trickles
Running down his chin
Ruining a white shirt
Responding with a kiss
Romance wins again.
 

Marsha Steed, Citrus Heights, CA
JUDGE'S COMMENTS:  In Plath's poem it was blackberry juice, and with different result; this Pleiades turns it around into a disarmingly tender domestic romantic moment.
============
Wanton
 

Watch me devour crab
With succulent lips enjoyed
Whispered between bites
Willowy words of want
Wearing but a smile
Welcoming you with my eyes
Wooing with wanton wish.
 

Marsha Steed, Citrus Heights, CA
JUDGE'S COMMENTS:  Woo woo and oo la la!
============
Sumptuous
 

Succulent
savory love food
steeped in honeyed
sweet juices.
Secures romantic
surrender.
Strawberries.
 

Jeannette L. Strother, Mansfield, TX
============
HONORABLE MENTION
Gallant
 
 

Green Vienna forest
Glades outside chalet
Gazing over ponds
Grated coconut
Glazed red cherries
German chocolate cake
Grant the taste of romance
 

Bill Truax, Cedar Hill, TX
JUDGE'S COMMENTS: A Bavarian Bravo to this recipe for romance!
============
Omigosh! I'm In Love!
 

Ovals,
Over and over and over of
Orthogonal defying, grey, romance inducing
Oysters!  With hot sauce on crackers!
Oodles of them in New
Orleans!
Opening, I pathetically drool.
 

Claiborne S. Walsh, Montrose, AL
 

TOPIC THREE: MIKU - NATURE
JUDGE:  KEVIN TAYLOR (Creator of the Miku)

FROM THE JUDGE:  It has been a great pleasure to read these.  I have not had an easy time judging them, at times wished I did not have to do so.  These miku are the cream of the cream.  If I have said little about each poem it is because each have said much more than their few words would suggest.  And if I can offer a word of encouragement it is this, that I wished that I had written some of these.  I have no higher praise.  Truly - Kevin Taylor

===========
Seagull hunkers
down
north wind
 

Paul Boor, Galveston, TX
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  We not only see this, but also feel that north wind.  Proves that it does not take a volume of words to create a place in someone else's mind.
===========
THIRD PLACE - $5 BGC FROM B&N
 

Sulcus
solstice
winter day
 

Paul Boor, Galveston, TX
JUDGE'S COMMENTS:  This miku works with sound even if "sulcus" is unknown. I had to look it up and having done so found that the sense and sound complimented one another in this description of solitude in winter.  (Sulcus - A groove, furrow, or fissure.)
===========
ancient trees
ghosts
graveyard abandoned
 

Martha Kirby Capo, Houston TX
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  A place so lonely, even the ghosts have abandoned this graveyard.  Nicely done.
===========
riverdancer leaps
suspended gleaming
impulse
 

Martha Kirby Capo, Houston TX
===========
perpetual
plowman
earthworm
 

Don Castiglioni, Austin, TX
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  This transformation of earthworm into plowman is memorable.
===========
HONORABLE MENTION
 

nothing before
nothing behind
fog
 

Don Castiglioni, Austin, TX
JUDGE'S COMMENTS:  A fine job of communicating the thick nothingness of fog. This miku can be read in several ways; as the line breaks are made or else as "nothing / before nothing / behind fog" which is equally valid.
===========
HONORABLE MENTION
 

slugs
silvering
palm fronds
 

Lois Castiglioni, Galveston, TX
JUDGE'S COMMENTS:  From (sl)ugliness, great beauty. Succinct, visual.
===========
storm curtains
part
rainbow revealed
 

SuzAnne C. Cole, Houston, TX
===========
moon
sails
star cargo
 

SuzAnne C. Cole, Houston, TX
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  Truly lovely image.
===========
Earliest skyglow
whispers
daytime
 

Warner D. Conarton, Zephyrhills, FL
===========
Butterflies
stirring
sunshine candy
 

Warner D. Conarton, Zephyrhills, FL
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  Candy for the eyes and ears, too.  Reads well out-loud.
===========
Sunset paints
Azure skies
Darkness deletes
 

Shelley Crabtree, Enid, Ok
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  "Darkness deletes" is a fresh new image.
===========
Humidity rises
Rain falls
Nature drinks
 

Shelley Crabtree, Enid, Ok
===========
quiet
breeze shorn
lily petal
 

Nico Crisafulli, Seattle, WA
===========
slippered surface
blue-specked
depth
 

Nico Crisafulli, Seattle, WA
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  This could be water, a flower, the sky...very universal image.
===========
wings spread
feathers splinter
blue
 

Helen David, Stamford, CT
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  Wonderful picture!  Unexpected word choice makes all the difference.
===========
brilliant blue
butterknife layers
wispy high
 

Helen David, Stamford, CT
===========
fractals
diamond reflections
water
 

Diane M. Davis, Chelmsford, MA
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  The poetry of physics - or is it the physics of poetry?  Either way, lovely work.
===========
shadows
kaleidoscope leaves
autumn
 

Diane M. Davis, Chelmsford, MA
===========
lake
reflection
nature's mirror
 

Emily Earnest, Smyrna, GA
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  This young writer holds a looking glass of the timelessness of lake and sky.
===========
holly berries
bluejay announces
dinner
 

Kay Lay Earnest, Smyrna, GA
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  That call cannot be mistaken for anything else!  Nicely written.
===========
branch grows
icicles
nature's chandelier
 

Kay Lay Earnest, Smyrna, GA
===========
sunrise
lavender-pink
early
 

Milton Earnest, Smyrna, GA
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  Portrait perfect.
===========
geese
veeing
honking
 

Milton Earnest, Smyrna, GA
===========
rain
whips wind
blue ice
 

Maryann Hazen, Ellenville, NY
===========
perfect ice
reflection
sun clouds
 

Maryann Hazen, Ellenville, NY
===========
HONORABLE MENTION
 

black tree
white snow
silence
 

Maryann Hazen, Ellenville, NY
JUDGE'S COMMENTS:  Eternal and ominous. This is another reflection in complimentary opposites in nature.
===========
trees whip
horseapples
fall
 

Glynn Monroe Irby, Clute, TX
===========
HONORABLE MENTION
 

yellow wood
rough bark
buckeye shade
 

Glynn Monroe Irby, Clute, TX
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  Vivid specific image, exactingly true to a particular place.
===========
Waterfalls
Salmon swimming
Climbing streams
 

Julia Jarmusz, Ft. Worth, TX
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  Made me wish to be there.
===========
whisper winds
rainbow leaves
placid ponds
 

Chris Johnson, Framingham, MA
===========
empty streets
cathedral silence
peaceful
 

Chris Johnson, Framingham, MA
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  Simply moving.  Succinct portrait of Everyman's town.
===========
Flakes
Lacey snow
Chilblains
 

Elinor Burger Kapsar, Hazelwood, MO
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  Makes me cold!
===========
Spring
Onboard
Cool
 

Elinor Burger Kapsar, Hazelwood, MO
===========
HONORABLE MENTION
golden bells
spring hello
daffodils
 

Kathy Kehrli, Factoryville, PA
JUDGE'S COMMENTS:  This miku packs all sorts of senses into its suggestive minimalism. Leaves one looking forward to spring again.
===========
FIRST PLACE - $5 BGC FROM B&N

open mouth
tickled tongue
snowflake
 

Kathy Kehrli, Factoryville, PA

JUDGE'S COMMENTS:  The duty of any poem is done when it re-creates the essence of the moment. The subject is nature and in its broadest form must include human experience. This miku evokes the pleasure of discovery of a small part of that nature by a child. It is crisply written yet is not brusque.
===========
bee
laden
hollyhocks
 

James W. Lay, Calhoun, GA
===========
whippoorwills
whistle
low at dusk
 

James W. Lay, Calhoun, GA
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  Each word carefully chosen to set the mood.  Well done!
===========
prairie
clear sky
emptiness
 

Lena S. Norman, Saginaw, TX
===========
bird sings
vibrant japonica
happiness
 

Lena S. Norman, Saginaw, TX
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  This poem sings as the bird it describes - sweet, sharp, strong writing.  Beautiful word choice.
===========
grey clouds
empty nest
sorrow
 

Lena S. Norman, Saginaw, TX
===========
rainbows
glowing color
beauty
 

Nicole Nostramo, Elmwood Park, NJ
===========
winter
snowflakes glitter
dreaming
 

Nicole Nostramo, Elmwood Park, NJ
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  Pretty picture, painted precisely.
===========
EDITOR'S CHOICE
 

red green
grey white
feeding frenzy
 

John E. Rice, Houston, TX
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  John E. Rice is our Poet Laureate 2000, and held the title last year, too.  This writing shows why.  Absolutely flabbergasting picture of sharks or piranha at work!  Vivid, exact, succinct.  Real.
===========
birth death
tidal pool
universe
 

John E. Rice, Houston, TX
===========
birds -- bees
bushes alive
newborn cries
 

Brenda Roberts, Sherman, TX
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  A tender reminder of the busy freshness of spring.
===========
EDITOR'S CHOICE
 

Baked sand
Foamy edge
Burning sun
 

Frost
Crystal stars
Tundra
 

Azure ripples
reflected sky
inviting water
 

Corrine G. Schlessel, Woodbridge, CT
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  Four to six words can build a world.  In these three Miku by Corrine Schlessel, clear precise words describe our world from desert to ocean, and paint the Alaskan/Canadian wilderness, too.  Wonderful writing.
===========
penguin
icebergs
endangered
 

Beverly Steward, Santa Barbara, CA
===========
porcupine
quills
protection
 

Beverly Steward, Santa Barbara, CA
===========
Distant
Hollow
Moon creeps
 

Craig Soderquist, Universal City, TX
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  The reader can easily see this place, imagine the scene.  Made me picture a cat made of light, creeping along the ground, illuminating secret place.
===========
drifting drops
pool
for ants
 

Marsha Rose Steed, Citrus Heights, CA
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  Nicely descriptive of a miniature world.
===========
eclipse
glowing
miracle now
 

Marsha Rose Steed, Citrus Heights, CA
===========
sunset
reflections
flickering fires
 

Jeannette L. Strother, Mansfield, TX
===========
heavy laden
concord
arbors
 

Jeannette L. Strother, Mansfield, TX
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  Full of juice!
===========
SECOND PLACE - $5 BGC from B&N

pink clouds
glide east
crows west
 

Patricia A Tabella, Providence, RI

JUDGE'S COMMENTS:  This miku approaches nature from a contemplative point of view. It describes two opposites that, combined, form a completeness reminiscent of Eastern philosophies.
===========
ice glazed
serpentine twined
bittersweet vines
 

Patricia A Tabella, Providence, RI
===========
Pecans
Squirrels chatter
No pie
 

Bill Truax, Cedar Hill, TX
===========
Rain
Gentle drops
Greening
 

Bill Truax, Cedar Hill, TX
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  Love the vision of the greening from the rain.
===========
strutting turkeys
misty apparitions
ghostly forests
 

Claiborne S. Walsh, Montrose, AL
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  Clear writing - misty picture.


SPOTLIGHT: "Relevant Lyricism,"
an interview with Nico Crisafulli 
by Paula Marie White, Assistant Editor
http://www.geocities.com/Paris/Cafe/1773

It was our great pleasure, recently, to speak with Nico Crisafulli, award winning poet, and regular contributor to Sol Magazine.  During the interview, Nico spoke about emotional influences, mentioning how well-composed songs, or seeing something beautiful fill him with emotion.  He said, "Inspiration usually comes from little things, but my mind builds them into a profound montage of colorful words and images."
 

The lyricism of the world inspires Nico.  He immerses himself in Dostoyevsky and Nabokov, as well as being "ecstatic about Jorge Borges and just crazy about [Italo] Calvino." Why does he so enjoy these writers, as well as Kurt Vonnegut and Henry Miller? "They have a very distinctive flavor in their work and a talent for verbal acrobatics."
 

Turning to the issue of writers and their purpose, Nico said, "The most important question writers should ask themselves would be, 'Can someone else relate to this piece?'  I feel writing, especially verse, should be universal, and one should avoid writing about personal issues for public consumption unless there are lessons to be learned or wisdom to be gleaned.  Poets and writers have a responsibility to be relevant. Therefore when one writes, bear in mind the presence of the reader."
 

Nico also pointed out, "Poets do something to lay down the unspoken rules and frameworks by which we live. Poems serve an extremely important purpose. They ground unexpressed consciousness and put into words the thoughts and emotions we can't hang onto. One must believe in one's work, give it relevance and universality, and let it fly."
 

Elemental Exhibition (earth)

Earth adores its rocky berth
The land of buried treasures
Soil binds the ziggurat, pillars of stone
Subterranean vaults still enchant
And sand dries on the dune's cornice.
Kobold's heartbeats heard underfoot
Treaded cracking muddy solid this
Salty ground older than dirt
Pressing up mountains by sagging trenches down
There is dust at the center of the earth.
======

Elemental Exhibition (fire)

Pray the flame, efficacious flame, nothing more than shape
Stays away. Little lovely Salamander spirit, so passionate
Delicate, yet with sinister implications, disappears
In the light of the sun, Heated tongue flicks
Could cook a roast that flame
That pretty little flame, blisters skin.
======

Elemental Exhibition (air)

Breathe deeply now, a cool inhale
Zephyrs from the spacious expanse.
The sky was never so breezy
Or quite so light, as today.
Sylph covers this blue ball in carnival sheen
This broadcast limpid beauty that
Permeates and pervades.
======

Elemental Exhibition (water)

Never one to be outdone,
And dripping with multiple
Personalities, water is a romantic,
Covering sculptures in sweaty condensation,
A savage, pummeling all with icy balls,
A heckler, often rattling
At window panes with rainy impunity
Or occasionally an innocent in drifts of virginity white
Whatever its mood, and in its schizophrenia
Undene is never one be outdone.
=======
Note: The four elemental spirits popularized by Paracelsus, a 16th century Swiss alchemist: Salamander-fire, Undene-water, Sylphe-air, Kobold-earth.
=======
Nico Crisafulli makes his home in Seattle, Washington, USA; he is 29 years old, and presently working on his Master's degree in English at the University of Washington and hopes to complete his doctorate in Paris within the next few years.  Nico has been involved with Trace Online's Noon Quilt Poetry Project, briefly headed Born Magazine's editorial staff.  He enjoys playing piano, writes almost continually, and hopes to be more widely published someday.  It is Nico's dream to one day visit the Moon, to look down upon this convoluted Earth and say, "Yep, I knew it when it was easy."
============
Paula Marie White
http://www.geocities.com/Paris/Cafe/1773

 

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS
CLEAR LAKE CITY, TEXAS, AREA (CLC, SEABROOK, KEMAH, TAYLOR LAKE VILLAGE, WEBSTER, ALVIN, SANTA FE, FRIENDSWOOD) RESIDENTS:
The Arts Alliance Center of Clear Lake (TAACCL) is sponsoring its annual Poetry and Prose Contest once again.

Deadline:   March 22, 2000
Student category K-5, 6-8 (entries may be printed)
Students 9-12 and OPEN categories must be typewritten
OPEN division: over 12.
Poetry--no more than 60 lines
Prose--up to 2,000 words
Print or type name/address (and school if applicable) on each submission
Awards: Student Division K-5 & 6-9 & 10-12--1st place poetry $25, 1st place - prose $25--winners at each of three levels.
Awards: Open Division 1st place poetry $100, 1st place prose $100
 

Mail or deliver submissions to: SOTA Editor, 18081 Upper Bay Road, Nassau Bay, TX 77058. (Any questions?  Write SOTA editor.)

============

Fall 2000 Anthology:  http://hometown.aol.com/rvrfshr/index.html
Silhouettes Submissions: http://hometown.aol.com/rvrfshr/index.html
Questions?  Check out the link.

============
UTTER
============
Utter, a Literary Journal, states that submissions of new poetry, fiction, essays and any form of the written word are welcome and are accepted year-round.  Send a SASE with your work to:

Utter c/o Women and Their Work
1710 Lavaca Street
Austin, TX  78701


JOB SEARCH 1

We wish to add an additional Assistant Editor to our staff.  We prefer a Sol Magazine poet, but will consider all qualified candidates.  It requires a home computer, access to the Internet, and availability on occasional weekends and evenings.  This is a volunteer position:  No pay, great satisfaction.  If you are interested, contact the Managing Editor of Sol Magazine.

JOB SEARCH 2

We wish to add additional judges to our staff.  We prefer Sol Magazine poets, but will consider all qualified candidates.  This requires a home computer, and availability on occasional weekends and evenings.  This is a volunteer position:  No pay, great satisfaction.  If you are interested, contact the Managing Editor of Sol Magazine.



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.
============
Have a comment?  Want to be added to our list?  Want to be taken off our list?

Write to us at:  Sol.Magazine@prodigy.net

Or at:
Sol Magazine
P.O. Box 580037, Houston, TX  77258-0037
Phone number:  (281)316-2255 - weekdays 8-5.
============
So you want to be judge, guest editor, interviewee?  Tell us.  We may have just the spot for you.  Judges are asked to write a guest editorial on a topic we set before being asked to judge a contest.
============
All poetry remains the property of the poet, except Sol Magazine reserves the right to publish all poems (once) at a future date, and/or to post them to a web page.  NONE may be reproduced without permission of Sol Magazine.  Electronic forwarding is permitted as long as no portion of this magazine is changed and all credits are given.
=============
See our contest website or last contest for current guidelines.  We do not accept entries that make use of graphic language, touch on partisan politics, or support particular religious views.  Yes, we allow poems about God and mythological gods or goddesses.  No, we do not allow mention of figures out of any holy book.  Please do not expect us to publish something that might upset a younger reader.  We'd prefer that everyone be comfortable here.
=============
19th Century words, such as "Tis," "Til," "Thine," and "Thou," belong in another venue.  Poems using these words will probably not appear in Sol Magazine except in articles or essays.
=============
We correct grammar and spelling errors and sometimes change punctuation without asking for permission or forgiveness.
============
Sponsors in 2000: Martha Kirby Capo, Don Castiglioni, Lois Lay Castiglioni, James Lay.
============
Angels in 2000:  Leo F. Waltz.
============
Book donors in 2000:  Sharon Goodwin, Carlyn Reding.
Corporate book donors:  Flying Cow Productions, Barnes & Noble.
New sponsors and angels always welcomed.  Thanks for your support.

Sol Magazine, P.O. Box 580037, Houston, TX  77258-0037
Phone number:  281-316-2255       Call weekdays 8-5.
Send comments, questions, advice to:
Sol.Magazine@prodigy.net
Sol Magazine © 2000
Home:http://pages.prodigy.com/sol_magazine