Contributor: Susan Sweetland Garay

- -
I am from the wet green forest,
where leaves decompose
under our feet
and moss drips
from the trees.

Where ferns grow
from the cracks
in cement walls
and it seems that
nature always wins.

In this place we
release what is
dark and thick
and smells like life

to prepare the ground around us,
so it is full of richness
from the selves that
we let fall away.

Then in the fall time
when the harvest comes
and the air turns cool,
we reap.

We dig
and eat
and dry
and enjoy
and try to make
it last for as long as possible.

We bring the colors
of the outside in.

We peel and plan
and watch the rain that
hasn’t stopped falling for days.

Water makes a million tiny rivers
unconcerned about what
they may wash away.

The land is powerless
against it.

Her power
is found in
her softness,
her flexibility,
her knowing that

we are not
the center
of anything.



- - -

Contributor: Susan Sweetland Garay

- -
I worry
that all you will
ever see of me
is one huge
mistake.

Like a red stain
on your nice white sofa.

And even if we turn the cushion over
you will still know it’s there
and won’t be able to forget.


- - -

Contributor: Susan Sweetland Garay

- -
I am climbing
forever climbing
up a gigantic ladder
made of pink hula-hoops.

The sky around me is beautiful blue
the sun is shining and there are
fluffy white clouds at regular intervals.

Eventually I reach the top.

Without hesitation
I jump.

The fall is delicious,
warm air on my face.

I wake up before I hit the ground.


- - -

Contributor: Susan Sweetland Garay

- -
I heard stories
of his harshness,
but never felt it -

how could I have,
I was just a little girl,
always able to charm him
into opening the jar
of candy

even when it
was only minutes
before dinner.


- - -
Susan Sweetland Garay lives in the Willamette Valley with her husband and daughter where she works in the vineyard industry. She has had poetry and photography published in a variety of journals, on line and in print, and she was nominated for a Pushcart Prize in 2014. Her first full length poetry collection, Approximate Tuesday, was published in 2013 and her second book Strange Beauty is forthcoming from Aldrich Press (2015).

Contributor: Susan Sweetland Garay

- -
One year after giving birth
to a living breathing person,
I walk through a light warm rain
barefoot on the porch
with a full rainbow overhead.

Though I don’t know
exactly what she understands,

I tell her about that day.

How it felt to meet her and see her
finally breathe the same air I was breathing.

There were wild storms
that night, and an amazing grey.

We all watch and listen to the rain
on the hills, long before it
arrives here.

And then there are sprinkles
and a neon, luminescent green.


- - -
Susan Sweetland Garay lives in the Willamette Valley with her husband and daughter where she works in the vineyard industry. She has had poetry and photography published in a variety of journals, on line and in print, and she was nominated for a Pushcart Prize in 2014. Her first full length poetry collection, Approximate Tuesday, was published in 2013 and her second book Strange Beauty is forthcoming from Aldrich Press (2015).

Contributor: Susan Sweetland Garay

- -
These days my chapel
on Sunday is a dark wood,
damp and growing,

or the ocean in constant motion
with its familiar sound
calming all who
come near it.

God’s creations
not man's
are where
we worship.


- - -
Born and raised in Portland Oregon, Susan Sweetland Garay currently lives in the Willamette Valley with her husband and daughter where she works in the vineyard industry. She has had poetry and photography published in a variety of journals, on line and in print, and her first full length poetry collection was published in 2013.

Contributor: Susan Sweetland Garay

- -
Though I have heard it
a thousand times
I am still surprised
by the miraculous sound
of her voice.

She babbles before
she falls asleep,
telling me stories
from her day and
kicking her legs joyfully
as though running some
terrific race.

She falls asleep
suddenly and with
a fist full of my hair.


- - -
Born and raised in Portland Oregon, Susan Sweetland Garay currently lives in the Willamette Valley with her husband and daughter where she works in the vineyard industry. She has had poetry and photography published in a variety of journals, on line and in print, and her first full length poetry collection was published in 2013.

Contributor: Susan Sweetland Garay

- -
The last time I was in this place
it was dry and desolate, but now
the hills are cool and damp
with new growth springing
up everywhere.

I sit here with pen and paper
surrounded by books,
trying to force words to fill
the page. But I know the
effort will be wasted.

My life force is elsewhere.

The part of me that creates –
is otherwise occupied,
and I wouldn’t try to
change its focus.

And anyway I suppose
prediction doesn’t come
easily to anyone so how
could I have known how
my selfish heart would
react with so much love
suddenly thrown at it?

Some burdens
cannot be shared.
But what is a burden really,
pain just makes the pleasure
more palpable.

My mess spills into everything
but so does my magic.


- - -
Born and raised in Portland Oregon, Susan Sweetland Garay currently lives in the Willamette Valley with her husband and daughter where she works in the vineyard industry. She has had poetry and photography published in a variety of journals, on line and in print, and her first full length poetry collection was published in 2013.

Contributor: Susan Sweetland Garay

- -
The leaves begin
so beautifully
green. Hanging from
branches lovingly
and intelligently placed
to do their work.

The colors change.
They hang still,
lovely in their aging.

Then the fall,
at first a delight,
piled and crunching
as we walk
secretly skipping steps
to hit one with a particularly
appetizing crunch.

But then the
rains come and
the leaves lose
their edges,
becoming only
a soggy mush
clinging to my boot.


- - -
Born and raised in Portland Oregon, Susan received a Bachelor’s degree in English Literature from Brigham Young University, spent some years in the Ohio Appalachians and currently lives in the Willamette Valley with her husband and cat where she works in the vineyard industry. Her love for books also inspired her to learn the art of book binding which continues to be an enjoyable past time. She self-published a book of poems and photographs, Gifts from the sky, in 2012.

Contributor: Susan Sweetland Garay

- -
The winged creatures
took over the skies
as we watched.
“watch your eyes!”
she yelled to me
as I walked confidently
out on the porch.

The magic of it was enough
to command me to action.

I began checking dreams
off my list
one by one.
Working hard and quickly
but sometimes missing
the joy with my constant
planning.

When a problem arises,
I remind myself,
it is best to dig at the root
instead of hacking away wildly
at the leaves.

I watch them flock together
with no clear leader.
How nice it must be
to not have a need for control.


- - -
Born and raised in Portland Oregon, Susan received a Bachelor’s degree in English Literature from Brigham Young University, spent some years in the Ohio Appalachians and currently lives in the Willamette Valley with her husband and cat where she works in the Vineyard industry. Her love for books also inspired her to learn the art of book binding which continues to be an enjoyable past time. She self-published a book of poems and photographs, Gifts from the sky, in 2012. She is also a co editor of a literary and art online publication “The Blue Hour”, bluehourmagazine.com