Musical Heart, Published at MasticadoresIndia

I am so pleased to announce that my poem, Musical Heart, is now available at MasticadoresIndia. Thank you to Terveen Gill, and the team at MasticadoresIndia for their continued support, and for publishing this piece.

Musical Heart

morning tranquility
broken and crumbled, my part

of ashes spread all over the flower garden
and within the nest of my heart

made out of sticks and stonesโ€ฆ

I would be honored if you would go here, and read the rest of my poem. Thank you!


Photo by ArtTower, Pixabay


Iโ€™m also excited to share that my official printed proof of Nature Speaks of Love and Sorrow arrived this week. Feeling grateful, and super excited about the release on September 1!

#poetry, #connection, #consciousness, #contemplation, #healing, #heart, #life, #loss, #love, #masticadoresindia, #nature, #pain, #poem, #publication, #silence, #time

Nature Speaks of Love and Sorrow: A Poetry Reading

Welcome to the third of four poetry readings this August from Nature Speaks of Love and Sorrow.

While creating these readings gave me quite a bit of anxiety at first, they have been a blast, and are something I would like to do a little more regularly in the future.ย 

Alright, without further ado, here is the poetry reading of Slow-Motion Moments.

We are 10 days away from the release of Nature Speaks of Love and Sorrow, and with each day that passes, my excitement grows. Thank you all for being here each day, and for celebrating this accomplishment with me. I am blessed to know each of you.

Have a wonderful week.


#poetry, #experiments-in-fiction, #healing, #heart, #hope, #human-connection, #life, #love, #nature, #nature-speaks-of-love-and-sorrow, #pain, #poem, #poetry-reading, #publication, #spoken-word

summertime blossom

look to the sky, my love
and let the sun

arise
a flower blossoming in the summertime

for it is in you, I always confide
a whisper, and a prayer

in the meantime

take me halfway home
to you

in my heart and mind


Photo by 3569616, Pixabay


#poetry, #confidence, #heart, #home, #life, #love, #mind, #nature, #poem, #summer, #summertime-blossom, #sunflower, #time

Nature Speaks of Love and Sorrow: A Review, by Jaya Avendel

I am honored to share another advanced review with you, of Nature Speaks of Love and Sorrow, by Jaya Avendel, of Nin Chronicles.

I met Jaya last summer sometime, and have been an avid reader ever since. Jaya uses language in ways that invite the reader to continuously ponder meaning, and the ways in which we construct the realities we hold about life. The poetry and prose are stunning.

I was honored when Jaya agreed to complete an advanced review of Nature Speaks of Love and Sorrow.

Here are a few excerpts from Jayaโ€™s stunning review.

The poetry of Jeff is undulating and emotional. It explores love and loss and remembrance. It explores the nature of memory and the sweetness of life. Every word is intentional and every line sinks deep into the heart as the imagery of each poem takes hold and bursts into being.

From the moment I started reading this book, I was reminded of a quote by Cicero.

โ€œIf you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need.โ€ ~ Cicero

If you have Nature Speaks of Love and Sorrow, you will have both a library and nature at your fingertips. You will find the flora and fauna of nature delicate and raw in this book, and the library of written emotions and experiences poignant and healing.

I recommend Nature Speaks of Love and Sorrow to any lover of nature and all lovers of poetry. It is a powerful and vivid collection you will enjoy poem by poem again and again.

I would be honored if you would go here, and read the rest of Jayaโ€™s review of Nature Speaks of Love and Sorrow. Thank you!ย 

I would like to thank Jaya from the bottom of my heart for completing this gorgeous review.


#poetry, #book, #healing, #heart, #jaya-avendel, #life, #loss, #love, #nature, #nature-speaks-of-love-and-sorrow, #poem, #publication, #review

moon arises

the moon arises, like my heart
beating with the tide

I rely
on the mist in my eyes

relating
the misery of humankind
and

the stories we disrupt in the night


Photo by raheel9630, Pixabay


#disruption, #emotion, #feelings, #healing, #heart, #hope, #life, #love, #nature, #pain, #poem, #recilience, #sea, #stories, #tide, #trauma

blood and dust

residing in the night
are you

always there, steadfast
through your heart of care

I write from my soul
to share

a thought

built out of love, trust
and a common ground forged

through blood and dust

a reminiscence, like the sultry
taste of your skin

delivered
over the many years spent apart

drifting

like the sea again
I find you, the sky within


Photo by merlinlightpainting, Pixabay


#poetry, #blood, #care, #dust, #heart, #hope, #introspection, #life, #love, #nature, #pain, #poem, #resilience, #soul, #trauma

Nature Speaks of Love and Sorrow: A Poetry Reading, and A Review by Gabriela Marie Milton

This week, I am excited and honored to share another poetry reading from Nature Speaks of Love and Sorrow, and an advanced review by Gabriela Marie Milton.

A Poetry Reading

The poem I chose for this weekโ€™s reading is called Limbs and Leaves. I hope you enjoy it.

A Review, by Gabriela Marie Milton

I met Gabriela Marie Milton, of Short Prose, early last year, and remember vividly the first time I visited Gabrielaโ€™s site. I fell in love with Gabrielaโ€™s writing, all of it.

Gabrielaโ€™s writing stimulates the intellect and engages the heart. I was honored when Gabriela accepted my invitation to review Nature Speaks of Love and Sorrow, and I am deeply grateful for the beautiful words Gabriela uses to describe my book.

Here are a few excerpts from Gabrielaโ€™s review of Nature Speaks of Love and Sorrow.

Nature Speaks of Love and Sorrow, by Jeff Flesch, is a superb collection whose pages are saturated with poetic intelligence. The author builds a magnificent correspondence between the natural realm and the spiritual one, without making use of language techniques most symbolists employ(ed), preferring the un-revealed/the unknown to the revealed/the known. In Jeffโ€™s poetry nature does not need any intermediary to speak to the soul and vice versa.

I find it interesting that despite the restorative capacity of nature, and its intimate link with the human soul, the ultimate healing does not come from nature. It comes from time. A change of perspective that adds new depths to Jeffโ€™s book.

Nature Speaks of Love and Sorrow is an astonishing collection. Jeffโ€™s poetry not only delights the soul. Equally it delights the intellect. It is a must have. No one will regret reading it.ย ย 

I want to thank Gabriela from the bottom of my heart for taking the time to review Nature Speaks of Love and Sorrow. The review is gorgeous, and I would be honored if you would go here, and read the rest of Gabrielaโ€™s review. Thank you!


A quick note: I am posting Monday through Friday this week, as I am visiting Justin this weekend, and will be a little less available Saturday and Sunday. I also have some more surprises to share with you about the release of Nature Speaks of Love and Sorrow over the next few days.


#poetry, #experiments-in-fiction, #gabriela-marie-milton, #hope-heart, #life, #limbs-and-leaves, #love, #nature, #nature-speaks-of-love-and-sorrow, #poem, #poetry-reading, #publication, #review

the tide

tired, and wanting to know
more

I cast my heart into the sea
and watch

as it stares back at me

winking, like the stars in the sky
making me realize

every ounce of the love we carry inside
belongs to the tide


Photo by Layers, Pixabay


#poetry, #connection, #heart, #introspection, #life, #love, #poem, #realization, #sea, #sky, #stars, #tide

Nature Speaks of Love and Sorrow, A Review by Terveen Gill

I am honored to share a surprise with you today, which is another early review of Nature Speaks of Love and Sorrow, by Terveen Gill, of It Ainโ€™t Right Until I Write.

I started following Terveen over a year ago, I think, and honestly, I cannot remember how I found Terveenโ€™s blog, but, Iโ€™m sure glad I did. Terveenโ€™s writing is intelligent, witty, dark, at times, and often downright funny. I love Terveenโ€™s style of writing, and the short stories she crafts are some of the best I read on a weekly basis.

I was honored when Terveen accepted my invitation to conduct an early review of Nature Speaks of Love and Sorrow, and am beyond humbled by the words Terveen uses to describe the book.

Here is an excerpt from Terveensโ€™ review.

But for me the most moving sentiments in this book are LOVE and HURT that often flow in cyclic patterns. Every poem has a life lesson to convey to the reader. The familiarity of lifeโ€™s ups and downs is the strong connection the poet makes with the reader, and it remains untarnished till the end.

Who hasnโ€™t loved?

Who hasnโ€™t been hurt?

Who hasnโ€™t found the courage to do it all over again?

Honesty and passion are trademarks of Jeffโ€™s writing. Every poem has a few lines that reach out and embrace the reader, leaving them humbled or in a state of contemplation, giving solace or demanding attention to unresolved thoughts and feelings.

I would like to thank Terveen from the bottom of my heart for crafting such a beautiful review of Nature Speaks of Love and Sorrow. I am beyond honored.

I would be grateful if you would go here and read the rest of Terveenโ€™s beautiful review. Thank you!


#poetry, #early-review, #experiments-in-fiction, #heart, #it-aint-right-until-i-write, #life, #love, #nature, #nature-speaks, #nature-speaks-of-love-and-sorrow, #publication, #terveen-gill

cosmos within, Published at MasticadoresIndia

I am so pleased to announce that my poem, cosmos within, is now available at MasticadoresIndia. Thank you to Terveen Gill, and the team at MasticadoresIndia for their continued support, and for publishing this piece.

cosmos within

I sit, knees and hands folded
end over end

awaiting the cosmos to appear
within

my heart, a flower blooming
in the vacuum of space and time

a riddle, when chasingโ€ฆ

I would be honored if you would go here and read the rest of my poem. Thank you!


Photo by manychoice, Pixabay


#poetry, #connection, #heart, #hope, #intrispection, #intuition, #life, #love, #masticadoresindia, #mind, #nature, #poem, #publication, #silence