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Click title to open micro
Cover collage by JanK
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a phoenix always rises
i remember all the aching,
suspended in a limbo of pain;
i thought that i would never
rise again that i would succumb
to this powerful and heavy negativity—
but one autumn day healing came
swift and suddenly,
and i started blooming in places i didn't
even know i could;
i refound my magic and reclaimed both
my voice and my magic because a phoenix
always rises from the ashes of chaos.
not everyone we lose is a loss
tried to heal you with my light,
but you wanted to break me with
my darkness so when you released me
from the gilded cage of lust;
it was like i was being embraced by
every goodness of the universe—
not everyone we lose is a loss,
and i cannot say i am sorry you are gone;
you were never meant to be a part
of my soul's song—
& now i can appreciate my magic.
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autumn was my savior
autumn has always been my favorite,
now i have more reasons to love her;
she freed me from every tie you
wrapped around my heart and helped
reconstruct the stained glass windows
of my heart—and now the vision is as it
always should have been, full of every
whisper of the mythology of my bones and
every petal and thorn and talon of my magic;
and i am happy to be freed of every tragedy
which spoke to me in the name of your lust
because being alone is better than being
destroyed by the tongue of someone else's want.
a distant memory
there is a kindness
in autumn,
she has always been patient with me;
i love her scents of cinnamon and leaves,
of apples and pumpkin;
i love her golds and her oranges and her reds
and every shade of purple and brown and every
emerald green and shade between—
it makes sense that she was the one to
whisper the magic back into my veins that i
had forgotten;
and i am grateful to remember me—
you are but a distant memory.
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tears of the phoenix
the death you gave me was cold and cruel,
but i woke one autumn day alive
than i had ever been as if october fire is
what my phoenix heart needed to be
free of every
tendril of your lust—
broke free of the cold, damp earth you
planted around me to rise with brighter
and more powerful wings,
your unkindness could not defeat me or my magic;
every tear i cried ended up saving and healing
me.
a phoenix only needs her fire
autumn was my hero,
not you;
she was the one that
reminded me of my magic
and eased away my pain—
you thought you could
stop me,
you may have shattered my
rose tinted glasses;
but it helped clear my vision
so i could see people and things
for who they truly were—
a phoenix only needs her fire to burn.
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linda m crate © 2022
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Click title to to open microchap
Cover collage by JanK
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spring is on her way
the skies are blue again,
and sunlight dances
through my window;
some snow still lingers but spring
is on her way—
every day i look for crocuses
on my way to work
because those hearty little flowers
tell me just how soon birdsong
will be nesting in my ears,
and so hope blooms
in the garden of my heart;
after the dark hard winter.
& so i believe
hope has been renewed in me
as if the dark of winter
has no power here,
and i am grateful;
the somber silence is cold and biting
like a thousand knives
no matter the beauty of the white
diamonds littering the ground—
& so i believe that
beginnings aren't so far out of
my reach,
and dreams come roaring back
into my mind and heart and soul again.
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spring broke winter's curse
i will not be sad
for the cold jewels
of winter
to fade away,
and for flowers to take their
place;
winter always feels as if it is
too long and it is always
so difficult to endure like a curse—
but spring has broken the dark spell
cast over us,
and so i believe in hope again.
all things forgotten by the snow
tongues of sunlight tease me
as the blue skies return,
but already i feel the joy rising
in me as the flowers of hope and dreaming
bloom again in me;
all things forgotten by the snow
will again be remembered:
flowers, leaves of trees, bird song,
baby animals, life, and laughter—
sometimes like the earth i dream
in flowers,
and to know they are coming is a relief and a release
from the season that is hardest on my heart.
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the crows & i are happy
i hear the happiness
of the crows
eager to dive into the
creek once more,
and i cannot blame them
for their eagerness;
i have been dreaming of creek
jewels and nesting birdsong
for months in this bleak and dark
gray winter—
now that winter is passing away
to make way for spring,
my heart is dancing and ready
for the vibrant colors
of spring.
even me
as i see the green returning
the grass,
as i see patches of sunlight
dancing in the cold breath of winter remaining;
spring plants hope in me
now we can see
flowers,
hear birdsong,
taste hope,
feel peace and renewal,
and touch the petals of spring—
& so i smile
remembering everything will bloom
even me.
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linda m crate © 2021
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Click title to open microchap
Cover: Moon Conjure
by Lauri Burke
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Every microchap
may be downloaded
for free
from this website.
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i always shine
the sun isn't always there
for me,
sometimes his rays are cold and distant
but the moon always guides me home;
reminds me that i am beautiful
even when i am not whole
because i always shine.
·
moon: slayer of insomnia
once the moon woke me up,
insisted i come downstairs;
so i crept silently
down—
out into the grass i climbed
dew covered gems glimmering in the
light
as distant owls hooted and coyotes cried and
crickets chirped loudly,
and i danced with the moon that evening
she stole my restless energy so that i could sleep;
insomnia fleeing.
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the moon & her child
she is always
watching
over me,
sometimes
as a dragon
other times
as a lamb;
she is my moody mother
and i am her loving child—
i know she loves me, too,
because she stirs the oceans of me
to the light.
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moon mother
the moon is my mother,
she guides me and tells
me of things
old and new;
helps me discover
myself—
she taught me that my darkness
isn't a weakness or ugliness,
but another part of my being;
and i shine whether i am day or night
so i need not be afraid.
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work of art
the moon gently glides across
waters of my heart,
reminding me;
that, i, too
am a work of art.
praise of the moon
the moon
draws
my gaze,
her praise is
never empty;
her embrace always
— meaningful
she always has the right
words to say when i have none.
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Linda M. Crate © 2020
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Click title to open/download microchap
Cover: Fractal wallpaper #5
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Every microchap
may be downloaded
for free
from this website.
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nature's heart
they say my eyes
hold mystery
it's the mixture of darkness
and light, softness and thorns;
but i remain firm in my resolve to be
kind as the creek and wood and birdsong
that nests in my ears every time
i venture into the heart
of nature.
heaven instead
i sang a song in the
wood,
and the trees danced with me
as the fairies fluttered into and out
of the light of this
utopia called wonderlust or
maybe it was heaven
instead.
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strange birds
ribbons
of light
danced upon
the creek
crowsong led
me there
tied together with
autumn leaves.
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healing waters
crows circle overhead
as the creek danced
over rocks
lulling me to a restful pause
upon the rocks
light fluting through the trees
giving peace where
i thought there was only wounds.
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hopeful light
a new
world danced through
the wood
healed my wounded wings
and so i sang and danced beneath
the skirts of the creek,
and laughter of sunlight stroked
my cheeks with understanding and empathy making
nightmares turn again to beautiful dreams
even under starry skies.
a new bird
the magical wood
sings to me
of grace and second chances
always welcomes me in
to her gates
with songs of newness and washes
away all my anger and pain
until only peace remains
restores my light and my magic
so i can shine with the best
wings.
Linda M. Crate© 2018
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Linda M. Crate's (she/her) works have been published in numerous magazines and anthologies both online and in print. She is the author of ten published chapbooks, four full-lengths, and three micro-chaps. She has a novella, also, called Mates (Alien Buddha Publishing, March 2022).