Open Poetry Reading October 2, 4-6

 

Open Poetry Reading

October 2, 2022 4-6 PM

at

The Retreat Center Bookstore Stage

Bring a mask, a lawn chair,
and a free standing umbrella for comfort

as well as your own poetry to read!
Everyone is welcome! Bring a friend!

Sponsored by The Joshua Tree Folk School

Come early and enjoy the
Joshua Tree Retreat Center Cafe/Restaurant

located at the large red dot on the map.

(Cafe open 7 AM to 3 PM)

Map:

Open Poetry Reading September 4, 2022 5-7 PM

 

Open Poetry Reading

September 4, 2022 5-7 PM

at

The Retreat Center Bookstore Stage

Bring a mask, a lawn chair,
and a free standing umbrella for comfort

as well as your own poetry to read!
Everyone is welcome! Bring a friend!

Sponsored by The Joshua Tree Folk School

Come early (open 7a.m. - 3 p.m.) and enjoy the
Joshua Tree Retreat Center Cafe/Restaurant

located at the large red dot on the map.

(Cafe re-opens September 1)

Map:

New Issue Released! Cholla Needles 69

You will find in this issue the many ways writers and artists use their imaginative characters to interact with community. The laundromat doubling as community center, mentors who bring out the gifts in children, service workers who impact the lives of everyone, families learning to survive, peer pressure and it’s impact on the community, a woman maturing, climbing with pain and living alone among us, and even a little discussed truth – the community that lives within each of us.

The wood art on the cover this month was created by Cheri and Kent Holmgren.

The creative writers in this issue are:
Cindy Weinstein
Kent Wilson
L. I. Henley
Gabriel Hart
Tobi Alfier
Peter Nash
Susan Rukeyser
Michael G. Vail
Marlene M. Tartaglione
and Jonathan Ferrini

Click here to purchase your copy ($5)

New Book! Selected Poems by Takuboku Ishikawa

every man I know
has a prisoner moaning
deep down in his heart

 - Takuboku Ishikawa -

    This book is a selection from Ishikawa's youthful poems, and a complete imagining into English of his final collection known in English as Grieving Playthings, Sad Toys, and more specifically Suffering Playthings. For over 100 years Ishikawa's work has been exciting for the modern reader because he was among the very first to bring the depths of his inner turmoil as a human being to life on the page.

      The beautiful cover art is by Zara Kand!

Click here to purchase your copy on-line ($6)

New Book! lifetime after lifetimes by ayaz daryl nielsen

beloved Judith
wife and dearest companion
lifetime after lifetimes

ayaz daryl nielsen and his wife Judith have been the editors of bear creek haiku since 1991, and have published 25-30 authors each month for all these years. They are very close to having 200 issues under their belt. 

ayaz's own haiku and senryu give personal glimpses into a life well-lived, like the gentle poem above about his wife from which the title of this collection is taken. with his sharp eye, ayaz also explores nature, his grandkids, the neighbors, pets, and the world around him and allows readers in to enjoy this world with him.

Click here to purchase your copy on-line ($6)

 

New Book! Trains of Thought by Sam Schraeger

 

I’m just gonna say what I gotta say, the way I want to say it and be done with it. But I will keep on going until I’m done so you’ll have to bear with me.

Someone once said, I know not where, that one moment in time can change your life forever. I would take it a step further and say in every life there are several moments in time that will change your life forever. Some are little things. Some are huge things and some are in-between things. Some are to be savored, like when you’re dealing with mental midgets and you come out on top.

Now, here is my fourth published book. I wrote this novella. The publisher had been telling me I should collect some of my earlier writings, and I saw this as a good opportunity to do so. While I thought to include some short stories and poems, he suggested adding some song lyrics to give my reader more bang for their buck. Okay, I thought, I can do that.

Thank you, my reader, for your kind attention. I hope you enjoy this. -Sam Schraeger

Click here to order your copy on-line ($10)

New Book! Vacancy / No Vacancy by John Sierpinski

The room we check into
is dark and dirty. They cut corners,
even replaced the heat lamp
in the bathroom

with a yellow light bulb.
Lynn says, Are you going to sit
on that filthy, old La-Z-Boy?
At this point, I don’t give a damn.

I’m exhausted,
drove another six hundred miles,
feeling like that OTR truck driver
falling asleep at the wheel.

- John Sierpinski -

Click here to order your copy on-line ($5)