The road pauses here, a breath held too long, where the past drifts in like the smell of grease, clings to the walls, the cracked vinyl seats, ice melting in cheap whiskey, untouched.
The door wails like a lost chord in the night, a bluesman’s lament bending in the wind. Men with faraway eyes sit without speaking, watching the clock melt minute by minute.
Memory flickers in the fluorescent hum, faces blurred, half-formed, unfinished dreams. A hand idly traces the bar’s old scars, as if feeling for the line between what was and what could have been.
Outside, the wind rises, turns in on itself, a thought abandoned before it was spoken, a traveler passing through the dark, caught between staying and vanishing.
Dave Stankowicz is a retired educator who lives on an island off the coast of Portland, Maine with his wife Debbie Jordan and their dog Cody. Liberated from the responsibilities of teaching he has found the space and time to pursue so much that interests him. Dave is the former host of the WMPG radio show Palm Wine Radio, and currently hosts Next To Silence - an hour long show that explores different themes, genres, artists and record labels. Next to Silence can be streamed live on Peaks Island Radio at https://peaksislandradio.com on Mondays and Fridays @ 7:00 PM EDT, and Tuesdays @noon. You can also stream archived shows at his site (category: next to silence)
He continues his lifelong efforts to master space and time.
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Perfect. Do you know the Cafe Review? I subscribe. The poetry is not nearly up to yours, and I’ve never seen images and poetry that go together as yours do. But it’s locally published, artists are international.
Fantastic, Dave. Your images and poetry together!
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Thank you Susan.
I’ve decided to submit a couple to a poetry journal.
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Perfect. Do you know the Cafe Review? I subscribe. The poetry is not nearly up to yours, and I’ve never seen images and poetry that go together as yours do. But it’s locally published, artists are international.
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Thanks for the recommendation.If my submissions don’t pan out I’ll give Cafe Review a shot!
I hope that you and Randy are healthy again. Sorry you missed theconcert.
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Great poem!
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Thanks!
Welcome back!
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