Grand Canyon by Veronica Hosking (LANDMARKS Series)

Grand Canyon
by Veronica Hosking

No brick wall impedes
long trip down into canyon
I keep my distance

PHOTO: The Grand Canyon (Arizona) by Sonaal Bangera on Unsplash.

NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR: The Grand Canyon is practically in my backyard. Every time we visit, I keep my distance from the edge. It is a spectacular view, but not recommended for anyone like myself with acrophobia.

PHOTO: The author at the Grand Canyon (2019).

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Veronica Hosking is a wife, mother, and poet. She lives in the desert southwest with her husband and two daughters. Her family and day job, cleaning the house, serve as inspiration for most of her poetry. She was the poetry editor for MaMaZina magazine from 2006-2011. “Spikier Spongier” appeared in Stone Crowns magazine (November 2013). “Desperate Poet” was posted on the Narrator International website and reprinted in Poetry Nook (February 2014).  Silver Birch Press has published several of her poems upon first accepting “Rain Drops” in  the Half New Year poetry collection (July 2014). She keeps a poetry blog at vhosking.wordpress.com.

Fairy Chimneys by John Lowe (LANDMARKS Series)

Fairy Chimneys
Cappadocia, Turkey
by John Lowe

By rights they should not be,
basalt buds on stems of stone.

Why are acrobatic boulders “fairy”?
— Theirs is the domain of wonder,
with mustard seed and whales.

Holes of solidity bored up into air
make javelins to puncture normality
and tip us from our everyday divan.

PHOTO: Triple fairy chimney (Cappadocia, Turkey) by Niels Elgaard Larsen (2009), used by permission.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Cappadocia is a historical region in Turkey that includes a variety of natural wonders, including fairy chimneys, also known as hoodoos. A hoodoo is a tall, thin spire of rock that protrudes from the bottom of an arid drainage basin or badland. Hoodoos typically consist of relatively soft rock topped by harder, less easily eroded stone that protects each column from the elements. They generally form within sedimentary rock and volcanic rock formations and are mainly found in the desert in dry, hot areas. Hoodoos range in size from the height of an average human to higher than a 10-story building.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: John Lowe has published poetry in various Australian magazines and anthologies, and jointly with his wife Virginia Lowe in the poetry collection Lines Between.  He will release a book later in the year (Houndstooth, Ginninderra Press), Covid allowing.

Miniature Castles, poetry by Martina Robles Gallegos (MY PRIZED POSSESSION Poetry and Prose Series)

Miniature Castles
by Martina Robles Gallegos

At the age of nine years old,
I was shocked by shiny rocks;
My fence hid a precious gift
that brought joy to my life.
It was a crystal-looking jewel
lodged between two heavy rocks.
I thought this find to be a blessing,
and my imagination took flight.
I found a secret place for my treasure;
I’d never reveal my secret to anyone.
My gift looked like miniature castles;
its kingdom became my playground.
I washed it till it shined like a star
and assigned it a great King.
The kingdom became my fortress
and my childhood refuge.
I roamed that immense castle
playing with bunnies, puppies, kittens,
and chasing fireflies and butterflies.
I especially enjoyed chasing Monarchs.
I looked for colorful parrots among
the green canopies.
Sharing my miniature castle with others
was like giving away a limb;
when mom has visitors, though,
I had no choice but to share
until they got too greedy
and wanted to take it away.
I was determined to keep the only
toy I ever owned, a gift from nowhere.
Just as I was getting ready to leave the country,
I went to get my miniature castles,
but to my horror, they weren’t in their secret place.
Just as they’d mysteriously appeared in the fence,
now they’d disappeared from their hiding place.
I was heartbroken!
I looked everywhere for it,
in the house, fence, and even rooftop.
I’d lost my miniature castles forever!
Well, not really. Years later, in another country,
a similar chunk of quartz, again, mysteriously
showed up in my living room!
It’s not as shiny as the first one,
but I have my miniature castles again.
My gift takes me back to my nine years of joy;
I guess miniature castles truly are magical.

PHOTO: The author’s “refound” piece of quartz.

NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR: Since I mysteriously lost my most prized possession then mysteriously found another one like it many years later, I decided to write about it and immortalize it before it disappears again.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Martina R. Gallegos came from Mexico and attended Pasadena High School, Oxnard College, and CSUN. She got a Master’s from Grand Canyon University after a massive stroke. She published her first book in 2016  Grab the Bull by the Horns (Outskirts Press). Her work has appeared in Hometown Pasadena, Basta!, Altadena Poetry Review: Anthology 2015, Spectrum, The Girl God, and SIlver Birch Press.