An Imperfect Beauty: A Prose Poem by Liza Thomason

I do try to help new poets. I usually begin by encouraging them to read the biographies of many poets, read much poetry,  and by experimenting by writing every type of poetry. (See https://www.writersdigest.com/write-better-poetry/list-of-50-poetic-forms-for-poets for a list of types of poems). Here is a former student of mine who wrote a sweet prose poem, I hope you like it.  A prose poem is lyrical poetry written without line breaks (almost like flash fiction).

She found a needle in the hay stack, without looking for it. A plain leaf among a sea of verdance. At first glance, a victim of garden nemesis, but not this little one. Upon needless fixation that so often leads her on hours long tangents, she found a tiny adventure. An epiphany. This spectacular little leaf dared to just wave on the breeze with audacious freedom. There, brazenly presenting its little veins quite asymmetrical and sprawling like a cool summer creek bed she played in as a child. An imperfect beauty.

The Devil and the President by Damon Légion

The Devil is Biden his time,
He’s found the man he needs,
To destroy and create disaster,
By abuse of power and greed.

His new boy-toy has hubris,
Seen from the very first day,
When like an angry spoiled child,
Reversing progress previously made.

Listen to Lucifer’s plan,
He has so much to say,
Horrific threats and promises,
The price that we all will pay.

“I’ll crush you by invasion,
With drugs like fentanyl,
I’ll enslave young kids and women,
And joyfully traffic them all.

“I will open up the border,
And stop your border wall,
Blinding clueless leaders,
To the threat of a nation’s fall.

“You must welcome the invaders,
And the diseases that they bring,
The drugs and increased crime,
That make demons and cartels sing.

“I know how to spin a story,
To make a lie sound correct,
Many may try to stop me,
But they haven’t done so yet!

“Don’t worry, I can change your laws,
And even your Constitution,
Ignore your Supreme Court Judges,
And corrupt College institutions.

Don’t worry about China,
Or India’s pollution,
I’ll handle climate change,
With crippling, harsh solutions!

Lincoln: Non-Christian President–Exposing the Myth by Walter D. Kennedy

 Walter D. Kennedy author of best seller The South Was Right has written another fascinating book relating to the Civil War. Lincoln, though he is held up as a national hero, like most political icons, he did have some flaws. In this book, Kennedy reveals some surprising things about him that may bring some discomfort, even shock to those who worship him. Here is a quick Amazon summary of the book:

ALTHOUGH MANY CONSERVATIVE RELIGIOUS LEADERS enthusiastically pronounce Lincoln to be a devout Christian, the evidence to the contrary is immense. The transformation of Lincoln from a secular humanist Freethinker into a faithful Christian is one of the most successful con-games in American history.

From George Washington to the current President (2023), every United States President has a confirmed church affiliation, except Lincoln. The only United States Supreme Court Justice that does not have a confirmed church affiliation is Justice David Davis, appointed by Lincoln.

Lincoln’s lack of orthodox Christian views is fully exposed by his wife, law partner, personal secretary, bodyguard, and other close associates.

Lincoln waged war as a pagan leader. A Christian leader would not have waged war upon innocent men, women, and children of the South. Lincoln was the first U. S. President with a communist in his cabinet and the only U. S. President to be praised by Karl Marx, Adolph Hitler, and Chinese Communist military leaders.

Perhaps this short introduction to Kennedy’s book will spark an interest in you to read more about America’s most famous President. It can be ordered from Amazon HERE: 

Rickey Pittman
Bard of the South

That violent crime has risen to an impossible to ignore or live with is obvious. It is impossible to notice the great amount of interest in movies like Walking Tall (both versions), Steven Segall movies, and others making the point that we, normal citizens of America admire those who take a stand against criminals and the cartels.

One man who needs to be listened to is Captain Clay Higgins, now U.S. Representative, who won the hearts and admiration of many in Louisiana. because he demonstrates the toughness and determination to end crime we want to see in law enforcement. Here are two of his videos that caught my attention:

A Review of Voodoo Fire in Haiti: Another Heart of Darkness

Loederer, Richard A. Voodoo Fire in Haiti, Country Life Press, 1935.

Richard A. Loederer was an Austrian-born, talented painter, etcher, designer, illustrator, cartoonist, commercial artist, and writer, a busy man who as this book reveals, also had the heart of a determined explorer.  My first edition was a hardback in excellent shape. Haiti was then, as now, inhospitable to white visitors. He reveals that his desire to write this book was to “visit and explore this strange county [Haiti] and discover how much if any was true of the rumors of secret cults, black magic, and human sacrifices which were reported to exist in present-day Haiti. Written during the American Occupation of Haiti, 1915-34, this memoir traces his journey from New York to Haiti, recording his detailed observations on the people, the history of Haiti, the foods, plants, wildlife, customs, the markets, monuments, corrosion of business, the few foreigners that were left, the corrupt and incompetent government, and geography.

            His wanderings through the island take him historically from the landings of Columbus to the Massacre River, to a cross-country journey by boat and on foot through the jungle, along a jungle as dense as anyone could find anywhere in the world. His account of wrestling with the weather, the insects, the thick growth and his efforts to reach the next settlement through a wild and desolate region are an indication of how determined this artist was. He made works of art (all included in my book) of what he saw in Haiti. Read his jungle journeys and his thoughts on the white men who came to Haiti who stayed and became a part of the jungle. It reminded me of Conrad’s Heart of Darkness in many ways.

            Interesting also are his accounts of the Palace Demesne, the President’s palace, and Christophe’s La Ferrière. There are short biographies of the people who made Haiti: from the French Army, the plantation and business tyrants, to the black tyrants who took over Haiti.

            As the title suggests, much of this memoir deals with and describes the origin, ceremonies, and pervasiveness of voodoo in Haiti. I think the work demands a detailed study guide and glossary to fully grasp the power of this memoir.

Rickey Pittman

The Lady Bugs and the Trans Gym Queens Soccer Match by Sir Gullible of Ireland.

My name is Sir Gullible. I am a direct descendent of Sir Gulliver of Ireland. I’m sure you have heard of my ancestor’s adventures. Tales of his journeys inspired me so much that I decided that I must go to Amerikay on a quest of my own.

            I was in awe of what I found in New York City.  After walking several blocks past tent cities of homeless people and too many sleeping on the street,  I was only mugged once, and I was told by a policeman I complained to that I was one of the lucky ones. I maneuvered my way through discarded needles and feces and decided I had seen enough.  I had heard there were still plenty of NORMAL places in America, so after renting a car, I began my drive across Amerikay, starting with up-state New York, to see the real America.

            In one city, I bought a ticket for a university girls soccer team who had a table in front of the grocery. As a European, I had always  enjoyed futbol (soccer) more than the American sport called football. So, I bought a ticket for the game that would be played later that afternoon in a nearby sports park.  The contest was between two teams: The Lady Bugs and the Trans Gym Queens.  I was a bit puzzled by the team names.

            At the park, I sat in the stands with the Lady Bug crowd, fans, mothers, fathers and grandmothers. The Lady Bug team came out, dressed in traditional red and black soccer uniforms and were greeted with applause and cheers from the crowd. In front of the bleachers were a small group of cheerleaders with cute little bows in their hair. TheyI th led the spectators in familiar and encouraging cheers.  A mascot, who was at least six-feet tall, was decked out in a fine ladybug costume.  He carried a bullhorn and joined the cheerleaders in stirring up the crowd.

            However, the raucous audience on the other side, cheering for the Trans Gym Queens was much different. The audience waved Rainbow and LGBTQ flags and held up signs of support. I thought some of the wording on the signs was crude and politically charged. Hair was dyed in all kinds of wild colors and arms and flabby legs covered with esoteric tattoos. Nearby, I saw CNN and ESPN reporters filming. I wondered what they really thought about the audience.

            When the Trans Gym Queen team ran onto the field,  I gasped. The team members were tall—none under six feet. Most had bright bows clamped to their cropped or long flowing hair,  heavy makeup,  five o’clock shadows on their face, and the Adam’s Apples bobbing in their throat made me feel like I was watching Pelican eat fish. One reminded me of Piltdown Man. Some of the Queens had unshaved legs. In contrast to the typical soccer uniform of jersey, stocking, and shorts, the Trans Gym Queens were dressed in knee-length dresses and skirts, like you would have seen in women’s sports many years ago.

            When the match started, the Lady Bugs won the first toss, and quickly kicked the ball so that their forwards had a quick and clear path to the goal. Lady Bugs 1, Trans Gym Queens 0.

            However,  the momentum of the match quickly changed. When a Lady Bug shouted, “Get out of the way, freak!” the trans ref gave her a yellow card.  And as the Queens charged forward, they butted heads, and knocked Lady Bugs to the ground with impunity. Obviously unfair, the refs gave the Lady Bugs penalty after penalty, but even though the Lady Bug fans expressed their displayer, the game moved on. I could see where this was going. I knew the Ladybugs had no chance of winning. Though I had been a soccer coach in Ireland for both boy and girl teams, I could not read how the refs felt about this game or the Trans Gym Queens. However, I had some insight when the female coach of the Ladybugs complained rather loudly, she was ejected from the game, so I suspected the refs had a bias.

            The ejection of the coach seemed to completely demoralize the Ladybugs and they stood on the side in stunned silence. When the game resumed, they put up little resistance to the Trans Queens, who continued their aggressive, bullying behavior and scoring point after point.

            This made me feel rather sad for the Ladybugs. The size and strength of the transgender team was a serious and unfair advantage. I thought for a normal biologically correct team wo women to oppose a whole herd of biological males would be  like a lone swimmer fighting a tsunami. This one-sided game caused me to reflect on the transgender issue in America or the UK: I wondered why no one is making comparisons or learning from The Island of Dr. Moreau and the themes of human identity and the consequences of human interference with nature and reconstructing women’s sports so that girls had to compete against males.

            The Queens lined up and began to heckle the Ladybug fans. The Ladybug mascot threw down his bullhorn and marched out to the Queens and chewed them out. One made the mistake of throwing a punch at the mascot. The mascot decked his attacker. This angered the other trans-Queens, so they all screamed and rushed at the mascot who had dared to stand up to them. The mascot must have been trained in martial arts because instead of allowing the group of trans-Queens to circle him, he moved around so that he lined them up and only faced one at a time. And one by one, the Queens fell to the ground. To the rousing cheers of the audience, he danced around with his hands in the air like a victorious boxer.

            I learned something about Amerikay that day: Though America’s culture is changing, and those on the WOKE progressive side in America’s Culture War seemed determined to silence those who disagree and dominate and control them, and force others to accept deviant behavior. Today, it only took one Ladybug mascot to teach these trans bullies a lesson and to show they haven’t won yet.

            I wonder what other strange sights I would see in this troubled America as I continued my journey. Stay tuned!

Sir Gullible