Gnashing Teeth Publishing

| words that get in your teeth

Let America Sing by Jason Derr

Let America sing,
let America sing her failures
and her glories
but sing.
Sing.
Sing to drown out hate,
to confess our broken past
Sing today
so we may sing
a better tomorrow.
But sing.
Sing about all of it.
And if you are crying
then cry out while singing
cry because the opposite
is not worth living:
mad men and clowns
and broken humanity
breaking each other.
So sing.
Sing a new song.
Singe a new vision.
Sing.
sing you mother-fuckers.
Sing loud.
Jason Derr is the United Campus Ministries campus minister in La Crosse, Wi. He studied creative writing at Eastern Washington University and has his MA in Theological Studies from the Vancouver School of Theology. His fiction has appeared in Relief, The Midnight Diner, Green Brier Review and Literary Orphans. He is the author of the audio play ‘Forever and Ever, Amen’ from Shoestring Radio Theater and ‘Little Houses’ from La Crosse Community Theater and ‘The Monks Tale’ from Howler Theaters production of the Canterbury Tales.

Goodnight, Taj Mahal by Andre Peltier

Deep below earth, clay and sand, deep below roots and aquifers, it lies in wait. Like that silent coyote stalking her white-tailed deer through the brush, it waits patiently and

contain by Megan Cartwright

verb past tense: contained; past participle: contained 1. have or hold (someone or something) within. Similar: hold carry To have and to hold in our own microcosm, constructed of hope.

Listening to Words by Mona Mehas

Listening to words out of touch cross lily pads, one to the next my rules, a tiny picture frame debt of honor, repay the gift. Headlights illuminate the path listening

Blooming by Elizabeth Gade

Some days are easy and some days are exhausting the days you have to dig through the muck inside take more hits than a heavyweight prize fighter cling to life

Pomegranate Rose by Laura Peña

I want to feed this delicacy To my concubine A tiny spoonful at a time I want to watch the luscious sorbet Linger on the tip of her tongue Melt

connect

we love hearing from you. tell us everything