One Poem Only

To Fall Is to BeginIrina Vérènei won’t be draggedpast the pearly gates—i’ll leave of my own volition.with these heavenly rulesstifling my breath,i must say,it seems a wise decision.amidst the flamesand the curling smoke,i shall rise anew—after all,a fall from heaven,a descent to hell,is a baptism, too.More from Irina Vérène ↓@queen_of_gore on InstagramThey are featured in Haunted Words Press' anthology, Our Dearest Devotions, which contains their flash fiction piece about friendship, fae magic, and gender transition.Mentioned in this episode:Join the mailing list to be the first to know when OPO submissions open ⬇️🖋️ Read My Newsletter: Free Flow 🖋️

Becoming AgainReyaI didn’t rise like fire —I rose like forgiveness.Lost me once, still trying,sky’s the limit, I’m craving the climb.Thoughts that once broke menow make me alive again.Words find me, like a heart reborn —one heartbreak broke a million dreams,but that heartbreak built me stronger —heartless enough to fight for them again.More from Reya ↓@moodmakerperson on InstagramHer book, Teenage Tide, is available now.Mentioned in this episode:Join the mailing list to be the first to know when OPO submissions open ⬇️🖋️ Read My Newsletter: Free Flow 🖋️

Here’s your recap of this week’s poems plus one new poem to carry us into the week ahead.Dec 29 - Eclipse of the Self by Ruvaani @ruvaani.unclaimed on Instagram. Her book, The Sunken Daffodil, is out now.Dec 30 - Cold Plunging by Kristin Yates @beautefantasy on Instagram. You can find links to her published work on her Linktree.Dec 31 - Of love and hell by Kajal @mermaidspen_ on Instagram and @mermaidspen on Substack.Jan 1 - New Dawn by Benedicta Kyeremaa Addai @Kyere_mah on Instagram. She was published in the anthology, Ancestors, answer me, a compilation of shortlisted poems entered into the 2025 New Voices Poetry Contest Curated by Creative Project Ghana. The New Voices Contest was born from a desire to give poetic voices in Ghana a platform to celebrate the richness of Ghanaian expression, language and imagination. A copy of the anthology can be found at the website of New Voices Poetry Contest or Creative Ghana Project on Instagram.Jan 2 - January Born by JC @theincidentalpoet on Instagram and Substack.Jan 3 - "My heart is a museum of every person I've ever loved" by Megan Phillips @metaphor_megg on Instagram. Her book, Uncomfortably Present, is available now.Jan 4Crawl SpaceMaggie DeversThis was the year of the snakeBut I didn’t realize it until the endNow I feel free from my itchy skin Like emerging from the steam roomPores open, every ounce of old squoze out The beginning of the year brought exit,Retreat from our burrow until the fire subsided This summer we saw a rattle on the trailThey sun themselves right in the middle of the footpath Your vibrations alert them to exit before you see them Unless they’re feeling particularly drowsyAnd who hasn’t felt slow half napping in the midday lightWe crashed out of fall and into winter with a joltIt was impossible to move until we found releaseIn slithering along the sand to the sea Where we could dig our toes inAnd recall our feet, polish them new with the gritAnd mummer to our insides how glad we wereTo be cartwheeling as the sun set on the snakeMore from Maggie Devers ↓My debut poetry collection, For My Daughter, available as an audiobook.Purchase a signed copy of For My Daughter or get one free by subscribing to the podcast: One Poem Only on PatreonFollow me on Instagram for more poetry @rembrandts.cureMentioned in this episode:Join the mailing list to be the first to know when OPO submissions open ⬇️🖋️ Read My Newsletter: Free Flow 🖋️

“My heart is a museum of every person I’ve ever loved” Megan Phillips My heart is a museum of every person I’ve ever lovedMy Dad’s birthday is national start over dayYesterday I told the ocean that I would let go of all the victim bullshitI would let the past me be in the rearviewI will be new after washing my feet in the sandVenus, I said,I will have more funAnd loveAnd I won’t be bitter and sadAbout what I don’t haveI will appreciate being 34 and on vacation with my husband aloneI will appreciate the new pet sitter who I know will train my dog I will appreciate the rabbits I saw 3-4 times this weekI will appreciate the small crab on the beach who was walked on but god damn it, he livedMy heart is a museum of every person I’ve ever loved His Mom is Portmeirion plates and ‘Hey there Delilah” Because she thought it reminded her of usWhich made no damn sense but it’s her song nowMy heart is a museum of every person I’ve ever lovedMy grandfather it’s coffee shops and poppiesMy grandmother it’s yellow daffodils cigarettes and knit sweatersMy mom is MAC Red lipstickMy Dad is tanned freckled skinMy husband is blue eyes and big handsMore from Megan Phillips ↓@metaphor_megg on InstagramHer book, Uncomfortably Present, is available now.Mentioned in this episode:Join the mailing list to be the first to know when OPO submissions open ⬇️🖋️ Read My Newsletter: Free Flow 🖋️

January Born JC I was winter’s child,wrapped in borrowed wool,breath small as frost on windowpanes.
The world outside was brittle then,trees bare-boned againsta sky that never learned warmth,roads lined with grit and quiet.
Inside, there was laughter,steam from mugs that foggedthe kitchen glass,a lullaby of radiators clankingas if they toowere proud to keep me alive.
January taught me patience—that buds sleep long before they bloom,that light returns in rationed teaspoons,that beginnings aren’t always bright,but they are strong.
And so when I look back,I see my first days threaded with cold,yet stitched with care,a child born not to fireworks,but to the hush of snow,the steady hands of a yearjust learning how to start again.More from JC ↓@theincidentalpoet on Instagram and SubstackMentioned in this episode:Join the mailing list to be the first to know when OPO submissions open ⬇️🖋️ Read My Newsletter: Free Flow 🖋️