Wreck the Monoliths #poems #poetry #essays #equality

Wreck the Monoliths

Corporations eat a steady diet

of wage theft

and rise as monoliths

crushing homes and hopes in their wake

The stone slabs grow steel cables

Tentacles

meant to choke us into desperation

The monoliths tell us to be good little worker bees

and carry the weight of their excess

But when the prospect of spending a lifetime

ensnared 

becomes too much to endure

a whisper drifts

through the stifling atmosphere

rolling into a thundering shout 

until all of the bees

decide to do nothing

forcing stone walls to crumble into ash

and we all agree

to never build our prisons again

Image Description: a photograph of two large yellow sunflowers. A yellow and black butterfly sits on one of the sunflowers.

Life has been weird and uncertain lately. I’m fearful that the US will regress permanently and women and minorities have drastically reduced rights. It’s strange that my kids are growing up in a time where they already have fewer rights than I had as a teenager. I grew up in the 1990s, during the time where music festivals and ragged flannel shirts were plentiful. The rebellion against the status quo was rippling out from obscure punk bands and becoming prevalent in more mainstream music, across several genres. The trend of pushing boundaries rather than adhering to them was seen in the types of television, movies, books, and magazines gaining in popularity.

Books and music were an inspiration, a way to begin difficult conversations and gauge other people’s openness to the way our little part of the world was moving forward. I had always loved reading, and around the time I hit the high school, the library down the street from home expanded it’s offerings considerably. I found a plethora of books authored by women. In these stories, the female characters, whether they were heroines or side characters, were portrayed with actual depth rather than being shown as one-dimensional plot devices that propped up the male characters. I loved that these stories were written in a way where a woman’s curiosity and imperfections were not used as morality devices intended to instill fear and shut down questions. Sadly, the time has come again where books that pose such important questions are being frequently hidden from the people who seek answers.

There have always been book bans. Political leaders and ultra conservatives don’t want us questioning the laws and rules we’re expected to live under. They don’t want us to be able to find the right words to prove that they’re trying to create a society that benefits only them. Any version of history other than the sanitized, colonized words of writers who couldn’t begin to understand how much empathy they lacked, is being removed from the shelves and tossed in the proverbial fire, once again.

Some states now require parents to accompany their children, even kids old enough to drive and take SATs, through the library and authorize all books checked out. Imagine the information that will be lost, the staggering amount of opportunities for learning and progressing forward that will be crushed because information is being hidden with foolish fervor.

I miss the innocence of thinking progress and rights that had been fought for and won before and during my childhood would be guaranteed in perpetuity. I miss the security of thinking things would continuously improve for people who had often been denied opportunities in the past. While advancements in medicine and technology had been phenomenal, humanity’s capacity to lift each other up and care for one another does not seem to have evolved.  

During the past thirty years, I have completed a master’s degree, raised two children, changed careers to become a writer, and dealt with various health issues that gave me a glimpse at my own mortality. In all that time, my country has become increasingly bigoted and intolerant, and those perpetrating such ignorance have been noticeably more empowered by political leaders to speak out and enact laws that openly discriminate.

Power hungry billionaires and CEOs want more wage serfs to serve their purposes. In time, it won’t just be poor people, people of color, or women whose lives and chances for prosperity become drastically limited. After a while, the billionaire class will come for everyone but their own, even the millionaires. The line of inequality will continue moving and if we don’t scream about things and disrupt the process now, there may be no way out of the path of becoming human ants who have no time to do anything except work brutal hours before falling into an exhausted sleep, yet still barely make enough to survive.

I don’t know what will happen in the next few years or decades, but I can’t just sigh and accept the inevitability of living in a sad, subservient future. I will continue to write stories and poetry that shows truths and possibilities, I will make phone calls and show up in protest lines, I will ask questions, and I will find as many ways as possible to resist.

Ghost Town Origin Story #poem #poetry #nature #water

Origins of a Ghost Story

Uranium invades harmony

Fish can’t out swim toxicity

Corporate goals achieved

Image description – photograph of a desolate dirt road beneath a foggy sky.

This is my first attempt at a lune poem (three words/five words/three words version). Origins of a Ghost Story was inspired by the ever-present problem of corporations and real estate developers overtaking a terrifying amount of natural land. The consequences are devastating to the environment but not to the corporate entities and shareholders who bring about the destruction. They have no reason or requirement to care about what they’ve done, so the damage continues. Ghost towns and over-priced, treeless suburban mega sites packed with chain restaurants and phone stores are often the result of these development projects.

The land doesn’t have a voice, so when I write fiction, I try to create characters who take care of nature and see it as a necessary part of life and soul, rather than a resource to be developed into oblivion. In my poetry, I often write about the harmony of humanity and nature, and the capacity for greed to disrupt what could be a peaceful coexistence.

Melting – #poem #poetry #haiku #nature #winter #resist

Melting

Sun shines on the dance floor

melting away ice masks of

winter’s masquerade

Image description – The sun is shining on a partially frozen section of the James River. Sections of ice are thick in outer areas and broken and thin towards the middle.

I have to keep reminding myself that there’s always a light shining. Even when the sun sinks into the sky, the moon will still rise, and when clouds block her brilliance, there are still lighthouses on distant shores. And if we can hold out a little while longer, we’ll see the sparks of fireflies that risk their lives to light the night with the hope and truths that fuel our reason.

Simmer #poem #poetry #resist #equality

Simmer

In that uncertain space

where fear and hope

are still separate things

take a rest

take a breath

Let rage and indignity simmer

We’ll stir the pot

until our anger boils into a scream

that rises above

their manufactured misery

Image description – photograph is of the night sky. Clouds are on the left side, the moon is in the middle, and clear dark sky is on the right side of the photo. Barren branches rise from the bottom of the photo.

I don’t really have adequate words for the sadness and fear many of us feel about the orange mistake taking place today. I’m still in shock and trying to process how this could happen and what the fallout will be. Taking a moment to rest and gather strength is the kindest thing we can do for ourselves, but after we rest, we rise and we won’t relent until equality and decency prevail.

NEW POETRY ANTHOLOGY RELEASE – Unstable #poems #poetry #anthology #books

I’m thrilled to have three poems (Salt, Garden’s Revenge, and Transformation) in Querencia Press’ anthology, Unstable!

This anthology was inspired by a bunch of asshats on social media being jerks. In response to that behavior, the creative team at Querencia Press asked contributors to send in our most unhinged work, and out of that, they put together Unstable. Read with care.

Purchase links for Unstable:

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/UNSTABLE-Emily-Perkovich-ebook/dp/B0DPLLGFS3

Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/unstable-emily-perkovich/1146640020?ean=9798341839038

If you’d like to read more of my poems, find about my latest book release information, read excerpts, get book recommendations, and other fun stuff, you can find me at:

BookBub:  https://www.bookbub.com/authors/christina-lynn-lambert

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WordPress: https://christinalynnlambertwordpress.com

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/cllambauthor.bsky.social

Everything is Fine #poems #poetry #workersrights #humanrights

Everything is Fine

Relentless misinformation

permeates the fabric of logic

Propaganda

gives insatiable corporations

an excuse to create

ants

that march through the prescribed routine

Punching time

Hoping for enough scraps

to tide them through

to the end of the line

but the liars redraw the line

and move the bodies

so they can pretend

everything is fine

Image description – a photo of a small tree that has fallen and become partially submerged in the muddy water of the James River. Surrounding shrubbery appears unkempt and somewhat unhealthy.

What inspired this poem?

The broken system of unchecked corporate greed and wage theft in the US was weighing heavily on my mind when I wrote this poem. In a country with relatively few protections for employees, there is no real incentive for business owners and corporate executives to pay their workers a living wage or ensure that employees aren’t overworked. One particular tool of misery currently being utilized to lower employee pay is the customer satisfaction survey.

Though the original intent of the surveys was (possibly) to make businesses aware of how to improve the quality of their service, that is rarely how the surveys are applied. The results of customer satisfaction surveys are tied to frontline employees’ bonuses. In many cases, their actual pay rate can be contingent on their survey ratings. What makes it difficult for employees to consistently achieve good scores is the fact that the questions employees are evaluated on are often out of their control, which gives employers a way to sneakily cut costs without having to expend much effort.

The problems customers complain about on the surveys won’t be fixed— more people won’t be hired, equipment won’t be updated, prices won’t go back down, quality of the product won’t be restored, not until the business is financially ready to make the investment. But since employees are usually the scapegoats for bad management decisions and corporate cost cutting strategies, employees impacted by negative surveys will be the ones who have to apologize to the customer, grovel for forgiveness, give free merchandise or discounted services, and beg for better ratings on the next survey.

Every time I see a customer satisfaction survey in my email inbox, I’m disgusted that politicians have allowed businesses and corporations to design a system that keeps employees constantly in fear of losing their jobs along with their health insurance. It’s time to fight back against the corporations that have refused to pay proper wages while forcing workers to sacrifice their physical and mental health.  

The Forests After Fire #shortstory #romance #lovestory #flashfiction #romantasy

There’s always a little bit of magic, even in the most ordinary things. In my flash fiction story, The Forests After Fire, a song, along with some help from the universe, brings two strangers together.

#shortstory #romantasy #romance #seasons #lovestory #flashfiction #healingafterheartbreak

The Forests After Fire

The weather was still warm enough for one last weekend at the ocean when Caletta’s world fell apart. Well, not her whole world, just enough of it to ruin her weekend getaway and take half the stuff in her house. He left a huge mess in his wake and Caletta was too tired to clean. She had to duck underneath all the questions that hung in the doorway. Numb habits— a gift from a universe that understood that healing isn’t instantaneous, like striking a match or pouring water over a fire.

Trees and people take time, and by the time the autopilot light burnt out and woke Caletta from her sleep-walking life-dance, the leaves had changed colors. The trash can full of microwave dinner containers was full and she found herself craving something cooked on the stove. She soaked chicken thighs in butter and seasoned them with parmesan, crushed red peppers, and oregano. Spicy and savory. How long had it been since she’d been able to cook with red pepper flakes? He had hated spicy foods. Dinner tasted so good she cried at the tragedy of eating it alone. Then she cried harder at how the pitiful sound echoed through her half empty house.

The memories and the emptiness burned. Her tears burned too, long into the night. By morning, her tears tasted like the ocean and she wrapped herself inside her blankets to shake off the cold. Things were fine while she took a shower and got dressed. Her playlist begged her to sing, not quietly like she used to, but at top volume, until the lyrics were an anthem. She was happy for a few minutes, but then, the walls made her mad.

Every room in the house was some shade of beige. He’d convinced her that the bland tone would go with everything. Then, he’d made sure everything went with the beige, no contrasts, no vivid splashes of brightness— including her. Somewhere along the way, she’d learned to keep everything on mute, including her thoughts and ideas, because only soft, gentle things got space and love, at least with him. No more. Time to paint the walls.

Caletta dug around the boxes in the back of her closet and found her purple jacket, frayed jeans, and multicolor Doc Martens. Dressed like the Caletta that had been forced into hibernation for stupid reasons, she went to Best Mart. On the way to the paint aisle, she spotted the clearance section for Halloween stuff. Damn, I missed my favorite holiday! She’d missed that time of year when the veil was weak and two different worlds walked together, for those who wished to see. After Halloween, the magic was softer, quieter. But the veil that she felt open every Halloween wasn’t the only veil, nor the only kind of magic that wound through what seemed like ordinary days.

She found a bracelet of tiny silver skulls that jingled and a necklace of red leaves and alternating white beads that gleamed like little snowflakes. The necklace didn’t seem to be in the right place. She checked the price tag. Definitely not on sale. She put the necklace in her basket along with the bracelet, anyway. As she walked down to the paint aisle, she heard a song she couldn’t place but found she couldn’t turn in the direction of the sound. She didn’t feel… ready to hear the whole song. She shook off the strange feeling and picked out paint colors that would make her house feel alive again.

Matteo heard a soulful song playing through static. He wished Best Mart would fix their speakers because the music was… he didn’t know what it was. He needed to hear more of the saxophone notes and the singer’s powerful voice, but the sound faded out completely. He went on about the chore of stocking up on groceries and finding everything on his list for repairing the damage she’d done to the house when she’d left. Ordinary chores and an ordinary day mixed with memories and pain, and questions he’d never have answers to, but that song stayed on his mind. Songs were for hope while the forests healed.

On a night so hot, his ancient air conditioner gasped and tapped out, Matteo dreamed of red leaves blowing in the wind, of snow falling, and soft bells jingling. He heard the song again and found himself on a path of oak trees, lit by fairy lights. Something purple caught his eye, just a flash, then gone before his dream-self could get a better glimpse. When he woke to a broken air conditioner, he opened his bedroom windows and memories slipped out. Fireflies ate the worst parts and lit them up inside their bellies, one last, bright, awful time, then flew off into the night.

That November, the red leaf wind blew quickly into the first snow. The Autumn Festival of Lights in Great Oaks, Virginia began at sunset and Matteo, though he was running late, still managed to snag a good parking spot. He texted his friends that he would meet them soon at the arena for the outdoor concert. Strings of colorful fairy lights lit up the trees at the entrance to the festival. The sound of something softly jingling caught his attention.

A woman in a purple coat crossed his path. Her brown hair and lovely green eyes stole his breath and his words. He could have sworn that he’d seen her before. Somewhere. But he couldn’t find the words to ask. In the distance, he heard the band introduce themselves and their first song began.

“That song!” she said. “I’ve been dreaming of that song for over a year but I couldn’t remember more than a few notes.”

Matteo nodded. “I’ve been hearing it, too.”

They found a seat together and listened to the band play. The snow fell on the concert and the universe wove her magic through the forest and trees, and into the two people who were ready to see.

I typically write paranormal romance novels with a ton of steam and suspense. Over the past couple of years, I have been writing poetry as well as dystopian, horror, and fantasy short stories. I am just beginning to get the hang of writing flash fiction. It’s been a challenge to condense an entire story into less than 1,500 words, but I feel like I’m starting to fall in love with writing flash fiction.

 If you’d like to follow me on social media for my latest book information and excerpts, poems, contest info, book recommendations, and other fun stuff, you can follow me here on my blog. You can also find me at:

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/Christina-Lynn-Lambert/e/B01MCYK0K7

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The Moon Screams the Truth – new poem #poetry #womensrights #equality #poems #resist

The Moon Screams the Truth

Spoiled

vines strangled the moon

She grew teeth and tore free from

rules meant to keep her

silent

Image description – a photograph of the night sky. The moon is visible and shining bright above several trees.

The initial shock and numbness of the previous day has worn off and now, I’m livid. Now, I’m gathering strength and screaming the truth. Many rules aren’t created to keep us safe, rather, they’re passed by those in privilege and power to keep people quiet. Their main objective is to shut questions down and make it too hard, too dangerous, too costly to object. My voice gets louder every year. My teeth get sharper.

We have to come together in anger and find ways to tear down the system that tries to silence us. We can stand and hold signs, write and call lawmakers and demand they give us an audience. We can run for office in record numbers. We can write about the truth, whether in fiction, Fahrenheit 451 style, or as journalists reporting the truths we see. We can continue teaching our children to be decent human beings and we can reach out to people who need a hand. We have to fill the time and space with our presence and with our voices. We have to be unrelenting.

Trick or Treat Book Bonanza #bookish #SpookyReads #GiveawayContests #ParanormalRomance #NNLBH

Trick or Treat! ‘Tis the month to celebrate all things paranormal, supernatural, suspenseful and mystical. If you’re like me, you’ll want to accept this very special invitation to join the festivities at N. N. Light’s Book Heaven’s 6th annual Trick or Treat Book Bonanza. 24 authors share what they’d dress up as for Halloween as well as 33 books featured plus a chance to win a $100 Amazon gift card.

I’m thrilled to be a part of this event. My book, Coyote’s Vow, will be featured on October 31, 2024. Wait until you read what my Halloween costume would be. You won’t want to miss it. The Trick or Treat Book Bonanza runs from October 1 – 31, 2024

Bookmark this event and tell your friends:

https://www.nnlightsbookheaven.com/trick-or-treat-book-bonanza

Image Description: a graphic of a spooky grey mansion surrounded by grave markers, pumpkins, and leafless trees. At the top of the graphic is written in white letters- A N. N. Light’s Book Heaven Trick or Treat Book Bonanza Pick. At the bottom of the graphic is an image of a smart phone with a book cover picture shown of my paranormal romance novel, Coyote’s Vow. The book cover image features a couple embracing in the forest at night. Below the book title is a coyote peering out of the trees.

Funnel #poem #poetry #nature #horror

Funnel

Sparrows navigate

through radioactive fog

Glossy brochures are selling the dream

Ornamental trees placed sporadically

near coffee shops and phone stores

Unforgiving concrete

choked up the streams

but developers were still hungry

They swallowed the river

and spat out luxury homes

Newly paved roads funnel shiny cars

into a rat maze

Competing strangers mow lawns and try not to drown

in rain that burns

and mortgages that sit like cinderblocks

on heavy chests

Keep moving in the circle

Don’t stop working

Don’t breathe

Don’t ask questions

The banks want you to hold on tight

to their dream that stops

everything from singing

Image description – photograph of snowy forest of barren trees. In the center of the barren trees is one small, bright green tree.

The county where I live is becoming more and more overdeveloped. Each month, a new cluster of expensive houses, condos, and high rises appears. The amount of forestland and waterways that have been destroyed in the last ten years is astounding. The traffic is an ever-increasing nightmare, and the air isn’t fresh and crisp anymore. The haze of funk is spreading and thickening. It’s harder to breathe. There are shops everywhere but nothing good, or strange, or weird, or unusually fun, just phone stores, vape shops, coffee places, and chain restaurants- the same old thing up and down the main road.

Did we really need more of the same? Was this necessary? Was it a good idea? I guess it was for the banks and real estate developers, but there are so many other ways to increase revenue to a county or city. There were other options. One of the best options, of course not the most beneficial to developers, would have been to help the people who were struggling with employment and with home maintenance and with feeding their families- on a scope beyond just the basic crumbs that barely suffice. When people are able to do more than just barely survive, when they have hope, there’s prosperity within the community. I guess it’s just cheaper and easier to ignore the people who need help and ignore the people who could use a few steps up the ladder to lift themselves into better circumstances, and to build new, expensive homes instead.

The people living in those new, high-end homes have their own share of problems. Some live in constant fear of losing what they have so they spend their lives working but not living. Others have so much, they forget to see and care about the struggles that people below their income bracket face, and instead become the monsters that eat the rivers and pour concrete over the truth.