One Poem Only
Episodes
i'm going to spoil the ending for you by Katie Cecilia
16 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
i'm going to spoil the ending for you — it works out.the storm you’re in? it passesthe weight you’re carrying gets lighter.the december chill yo...
The Muse by Anna Akhmatova
15 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The Muse Anna Akhmatova 1889 – 1966 When in the night I await her coming,My life seems stopped. I ask myself: WhatAre tributes, freedom, or youth co...
Bricklayer by Katrina Kaye
14 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Bricklayer Katrina Kaye This poem was first published in Catching Calliope Vol 2, 2014.I want to be a bricklayer;something concreteas opposed to just ...
Sunday Recap & Round and Round by Maggie Devers
13 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Here’s your recap of this week’s poems plus one new poem to carry us into the week ahead.Jul 7 - worlds without blueprints by Paper Trail Poetry @...
O, Cynthia by Cyn Grace Sylvie
12 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
O, Cynthia Cyn Grace Sylvie This poem was first published in The Dewdrop.Feminine variationThe mound bending Delos IsleWhere she was born with herBrig...
I'm small, meek, pale and weak by Holly Fries
11 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
I'm small, meek, pale and weakI’ll break if you’re not cautious.Watch your chosen words,I’m tender, I’m innocent as well naive,I break like gl...
To take death by Maggie Devers
10 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
To take death Maggie Devers Chin hairs, on my grandma when she died.My mother sick with regret. We are all exposed in deathAnd she took it onThe chinH...
The Eagle with Blue Feathers by Kimmery Moss
09 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The Eagle with Blue Feathers Kimmery Moss He falls asleep connected to meHis little lips on my chestHours later he wakes again for more But I am no lo...
Fringford Brook by Violet Jacob
08 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Fringford Brook Violet Jacob 1863 – 1946 The willows stand by Fringford brook, From Fringford up to Hethe, Sun on their cloudy silver ...
worlds without blueprints by Paper Trail Poetry
07 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
worlds without blueprints Paper Trail Poetry Letter blocks, green, blue, and red,Are the only reading materialsFor a solitary teddy bearLodged between...
Sunday Recap & Found Art by Maggie Devers
06 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Here’s your recap of this week’s poems plus one new poem to carry us into the week ahead.Jun 30 - Someone, open me up by Lindsey @writing.by.linds...
Look it in the Mouth by Katie Gilmour
05 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Look it in the Mouth Katie Gilmour all I really want is for you to make me something only you can make let it be a chore let it take hours let your ba...
The American by Connie Helena
04 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The American Connie Helena in repose I chose a bit of small white coral hidden in my pocket so as not to get caughtcollecting at the beach has gone ou...
She’s got a handle on it by Maggie Devers
03 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
She’s got a handle on it Maggie Devers She won’t let me clean the dirt from under her nails She holds onto it as a matter of distinction,An indica...
No one needs to invent time travel by Christiana Doucette
02 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
First published in The Thieving Magpie No one needs to invent time travelIt’s already here. We’re already traveling.The slam of a door layers then...
Sonnet: To the Poppy by Anna Seward
01 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Sonnet: To the Poppy Anna Seward 1742 – 1809 While summer roses all their glory yield To crown the votary of love and joy, Misfortune’s v...
Someone, open me up by Lindsey
30 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Someone, open me up.Fillet me, from my shoulder blades, kneed out the knots I’ve collected throughout the years.Flip me over and crack open my ribca...
Sunday Recap & Whir by Maggie Devers
29 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Here’s your recap of this week’s poems plus one new poem to carry us into the week ahead.Jun 23 - Hunger, as Salvation by Ariel K. Moniz: @kiss.of...
fatal dance - a love story between fire and wood by Velvet Poetess
28 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
fatal dance - a love story between fire and wood Velvet Poetess there is this certain hungera hunger that cannot be satisfied byanother but youI reach...
Gender Affirming Care by Nikki Grierson
27 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Gender Affirming Care Nikki Grierson When I was a girl Little flurries of hair Began to sprout Here and there At first I didn’t notice But then some...
Inheritance by Maggie Devers
26 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Inheritance Maggie Devers She tells me she likes the new sideWhere they eat pomegranates all dayAnd her lifeSounds like an ancient poemChanted down th...
playing god by Michaela Godding
25 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
playing god Michaela Godding (The average person forgets ninety percent of their dreams. I have started keeping tallies on a notepad next to my bed to...
Shadows by Harriet Monroe
24 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Shadows Harriet Monroe 1860 – 1936 What is most near? Ah, sweet dead year- Thy fallen leaf And gathered sheaf,The presence tha...
Hunger, as Salvation by Ariel K. Moniz
23 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Hunger, as Salvation Ariel K. Moniz This moment, sun speckled and innocent—I speak of prophecies, i plant seedsof affection in your perfect, peachy ...
Sunday Recap & Cold Blood by Maggie Devers
22 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Here’s your recap of this week’s poems plus one new poem to carry us into the week ahead.Jun 16 - Midlife Calculus by Britt Kaufmann: @brittwriter...
After I Lost Him by Barbara Ehrentreu
21 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
After I Lost Him Barbara Ehrentreu The sun still shinedThough its rays didn't warm meEncased in my shell of griefMy body felt neither heart not coldOn...
Him by Christy Granger
20 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Him Christy Granger This wasn’t supposed to happenYou were not supposed to happenWhat a special ability you haveI do not trust easilyI do not trust ...
She has a new god by Maggie Devers
19 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
She has a new god Maggie Devers Her god is ecstatic dancingSurrender to the music, feel the beat in your marrow, your feet planted, the earth holds yo...
Pollen Count by Danielle Marie Cahill
18 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Pollen Count Danielle Marie Cahill This poem first appeared in The Quarter(ly).My computer tells me the weatherThere is a high pollen count todayAs if...
Swans by Sara Teasdale
17 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Swans Sara Teasdale 1884 – 1933 Night is over the park, and a few brave stars Look on the lights that link it with chains of gold,The lake bears u...
Midlife Calculus by Britt Kaufmann
16 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Midlife Calculus Britt Kaufmann Edited by Dava Sobel View the poem in Scientific AmericanMore from Britt Kaufmann ↓ @brittwriter on InstagramHer web...
Sunday Recap & This can’t be the end of the world by Maggie Devers
15 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Here’s your recap of this week’s poems plus one new poem to carry us into the week ahead.Jun 9 - Last Fog at Sunrise by Travers Charron: @the_inkw...
the body idea by Bree North
14 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
the body idea Bree North I know i am not my bodyBut if i wereI would remember just long enoughFor memory to mean imprintsI would be curious as corneas...
I look for the Holy Fuck in everything I see. by Jo Guzman
13 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
I look for the Holy Fuck in everything I see. Jo Guzman —after Courtney LoveI look for the Holy Fuck in everything I see.I wanna whisper Wow, Wow, W...
History in Art by Maggie Devers
12 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
History in Art Maggie Devers My husband tells me I have a twentieth century assAnd that’s a type of poem.Rubens put touches of red on his angels' re...
“Tell me…” a poem by Margaux Paul
11 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
"TELL ME, WHAT IS IT YOU PLAN TO DO WITH YOUR ONE WILD AND PRECIOUS LIFE?"-Mary Oliver I plan on washing my sheets, cooking pasta, and cleaning broken...
A Jelly-Fish by Marianne Moore
10 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
A Jelly-Fish Marianne Moore 1887 – 1972 Visible, invisible,A fluctuating charm,An amber-colored amethystInhabits it; your armApproaches, andIt opens...
Last Fog at Sunrise by Travers Charron
09 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Last Fog at Sunrise Travers Charron If life stretched on forever,would we still kneel in the wild mintjust to listen to the wind?It’s the fire burni...
Sunday Recap & Spin the Weekend by Maggie Devers
08 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Here’s your recap of this week’s poems plus one new poem to carry us into the week ahead.Jun 2 - cream soda by Stephanie Valente, Portals on Subst...
Goodnight, Yesterday by Nichole Johnson
07 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Goodnight, Yesterday Nichole Johnson I thoughtMy heart might die loudly–Thunder cracking,LighteningGrinding stone to sand.But–It is quiet.It withe...
I open a book by Joanne Witzkowski
06 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
I open a book.One brittle flower falls,Shudders into dust.No flicker of flameCould be as beautifuland as burningand as briefAs the memoriesthat perfum...
Because that is all it is. by Maggie Devers
05 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Because that is all it is. Maggie Devers I want to know your process So I can make it with youThe way you sketch until your nails are packed with grap...
Honey by Debbie Radford
04 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Honey Debbie Radford Honey pools in the dip of my waist.It flows like warm sunlight down my thighs.Every curve a golden river, every step a supple pou...
Lines Written At Thorp Green by Anne Brontë
03 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Lines Written At Thorp Green Anne Brontë 1820 – 1849 That summer sun, whose genial glow Now cheers my drooping spirit so Must cold and dis...
cream soda by Stephanie Valente
02 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
cream soda Stephanie Valente Glamor is a spell. I want to feel glamorous.Imagine this: being born from Aphrodite’s oceanpearls. Foamy, iridescent, s...
Sunday Recap & Commence by Maggie Devers
01 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Here’s your recap of this week’s poems plus one new poem to carry us into the week ahead.May 26 - St. Pancras Station, August 1915 by Vera Britta...
The Wish, By a Young Lady by Laetitia Pilkington
31 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The Wish, By a Young Lady Laetitia Pilkington 1709 – 1750 I ask not wit, nor beauty do I crave,Nor wealth, nor pompous titles wish to have;But since...
Long, Too Long America by Walt Whitman
30 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Long, Too Long America Walt Whitman 1819 – 1892 Long, too long America,Traveling roads all even and peaceful you learn'd from joys and prosperity on...
Did you know? by Maggie Devers
29 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Did you know? Maggie Devers The divine feminine loves to find trouble and communeTo cannonball into the pool just to make wavesAnd feel the splash bac...
The garden path and all that jazz by Anisha SenGupta Yanger
28 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The garden path and all that jazz Anisha SenGupta Yanger Often enough,the ziplock splitsthe bones crash,and I can feel the days presence all too well,...
The Coliseum by Edgar Allan Poe
27 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The Coliseum Edgar Allan Poe 1809 – 1849 Type of the antique Rome! Rich reliquary Of lofty contemplation left to Time By buried centurie...
St. Pancras Station, August 1915 by Vera Brittain
26 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
St. Pancras Station, August 1915 Vera Brittain 1893 – 1970 One long, sweet kiss pressed close upon my lips, One moment's rest on your swift-beat...
Sunday Recap & She was in her prime by Maggie Devers
25 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Here’s your recap of this week’s poems plus one new poem to carry us into the week ahead.May 19 - Fides, Spes by Willa CatherMay 20 - Love by Eliz...
Spring Storm by William Carlos Williams
24 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Spring Storm William Carlos Williams 1883 – 1963 The sky has given over its bitterness. Out of the dark change all day long rain falls and falls as ...
The Visionary by Emily Brontë
23 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The Visionary Emily Brontë 1818 – 1848 Silent is the house: all are laid asleep:One alone looks out o’er the snow-wreaths deep,Watching every clo...
During this year's lunar eclipse by Maggie Devers
22 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
During this year's lunar eclipse Maggie Devers I misplaced my shot glassAnd over-poured my negronisOr what's it called with port instead of vermouth?I...
Storm Chaser by Melanie Hess
21 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Storm Chaser Melanie Hess last week the riverbed cracked,its veins like autumn leaves,plows and combines idle in fieldsdinosaurs on the verge of extin...
Love by Elizabeth Barrett Browning
20 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Love Elizabeth Barrett Browning 1806 – 1861 We cannot live, except thus mutuallyWe alternate, aware or unaware,The reflex act of life: and when we b...
Fides, Spes by Willa Cather
19 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Fides, Spes Willa Cather 1873 – 1947 Joy is come to the little Everywhere;Pink to the peach and pink to the apple, White to the pe...
Sunday Recap & Proportions by Maggie Devers
18 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Here’s your recap of this week’s poems plus one new poem to carry us into the week ahead.May 12 - We never know how high we are (1176) by Emily Di...
Dewdrops by Myra Viola Wilds
17 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Dewdrops Myra Viola Wilds Watch the dewdrops in the morning, Shake their little diamond heads,Sparkling, flashing, ever moving, From their silent ...
Verse for a Certain Dog by Dorothy Parker
16 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Verse for a Certain Dog Dorothy Parker 1893 – 1967 Such glorious faith as fills your limpid eyes, Dear little friend of mine, I never knew.All...
Brood by Maggie Devers
15 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Brood Maggie Devers The three hens at my daughter’s schoolAre oblivious to egg pricesConcerned with lunch scrapsAnd the stray termiteAnd their stair...
Letter #14 of 36 from "The Marilyn Rising: Letters to Marilyn" by GiGi
14 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Letter #14 of 36 from The Marilyn Rising: Letters to Marilyn GiGi Dearest Marilyn,Why didn't you speak up? Why didn't you say something?All of the mom...
The Dream by Edna St. Vincent Millay
13 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The Dream Edna St. Vincent Millay 1892 – 1950 Love, if I weep it will not matter, And if you laugh I shall not care;Foolish am I to think about it...
We never know how high we are (1176) by Emily Dickinson
12 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
We never know how high we are Emily Dickinson 1830 – 1886 We never know how high we are Till we are called to rise;And then, if we are true to plan...
Sunday Recap & Mother by Maggie Devers
11 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Here’s your recap of this week’s poems plus one new poem to carry us into the week ahead. May 5 - How often we greet each other with worries by Ma...
What the Thrush Said by John Keats
10 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What the Thrush Said John Keats 1795 –1821 O Thou whose face hath felt the Winter’s wind,Whose eye has seen the snow-clouds hung in mist,And the b...
Circe by H.D.
09 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Circe H.D. 1886 – 1961 It was easy enoughto bend them to my wish,it was easy enoughto alter them with a touch,but youadrift on the great sea,how sha...
Held by Maggie Devers
08 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Held Maggie Devers The sweetest meat is closest to the boneThe most tender, the most trueThe tissue there is hardest to reach,To manipulate from the o...
For My Daughter by Maggie Devers
07 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
For My Daughter by Maggie Devers Chop off my head and put it on your shield.I will protect you until the day I dieAnd all the days after that.You thin...
Renewal of Strength by Frances Ellen Watkins Harper
06 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Renewal of Strength Frances Ellen Watkins Harper 1825 – 1911 The prison-house in which I liveIs falling to decay,But God renews my spirit’s streng...
How often we greet each other with worries by Maggie Devers
05 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
How often we greet each other with worries by Maggie Devers I went to the wilderness to escapeAnd there are worries there too.Caterpillars falling fro...
A Lady by Amy Lowell
04 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
A Lady by Amy Lowell 1874 – 1925 You are beautiful and faded,Like an old opera tunePlayed upon a harpsichord;Or like the sun-flooded silksOf an eigh...
Radical by Marianne Moore
03 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Radical by Marianne Moore 1887 – 1972 Taperingto a point, conserving everything, this carrot is predestined to be thick. ...
Who Has Seen the Wind? by Christina Rossetti
02 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Who Has Seen the Wind Christina Rossetti 1830 – 1894 Who has seen the wind?Neither I nor you.But when the leaves hang trembling,The wind is passing ...
The Spark by Maggie Devers
01 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Asking the age old question, where do we start?The Spark by Maggie Devers I try to think where her story starts.When I went to my parents' for the wee...
Announcing One Poem Only
30 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Starting May 1, 2025.Mentioned in this episode:Join the mailing list to be the first to know when OPO submissions open ⬇️🖋️ Read My Newslette...