Nightingale & Sparrow

Category: Sakura (Issue No. XVIII)

  • Karen E Fraser

    KF Profile pic

    Karen E Fraser

    Poetry Contributor

    Karen E Fraser is a Melbourne-based writer and poet, with degrees in Professional and Creative Writing, and Anthropology. She has been published by Humana Obscura, Bloodmoon Journal, Freeverse Revolution Lit, Querencia, Wee Sparrow Press, and Poetica Christi Press. Karen has held professional roles as a writer, and editor of Verandah Journal. Her poetry embraces the beauty of the natural world; activism, advocacy and social justice; and the absolute necessity of freedom, love, dignity and belonging.

     

    Works in Nightingale & Sparrow

    The Gravity of Tenderness

  • Kersten Christianson

    Kersten Christianson BW

    Kersten Christianson

    Poetry Contributor

    Alaskan Poet, Moon Gazer, Raven Watcher, Northern Trekker, Teacher. Kersten Christianson derives inspiration from wild, wanderings, and road trips. Kersten is the poetry editor of Alaska Women Speak. She has authored Curating the House of Nostalgia (Sheila-Na-Gig, 2020), What Caught Raven’s Eye (Petroglyph Press, 2018), and Something Yet to Be Named (Kelsay Books, 2017).  Kersten lives with her daughter in Sitka, Alaska and enjoys road trips, bookstores, and smooth ink pens.

     

    Works in Nightingale & Sparrow

    At the Edge of Hope

  • Sublet

    Sublet

    Emily Kedar

    I come back
    to find my grandmother’s
    pink geraniums dead. The only
    living being
    that knew us both
    and had no tongue to lie.

    I drag my finger
    across the glass face
    of the coffee table. My thumbprint
    warped and elongated, presses
    down into dust. 

    I rearrange the stones
    I’d left on the window sill
    back the way they were.
    The coffee grinder’s bust, so 

    I head out
    into the light snow
    of morning, my feet landing
    step after step
    in someone else’s footprints.

    Emily Kedar

  • for Now

    for Now

    Tylyn K. Johnson

    let this momentary experience be
    for us, to turn ourselves
    into a messy painting
    on your wall, made of
    our skin and flesh and
    sweat and laughter

    Tylyn K. Johnson

  • At the Edge of Hope

    At the Edge of Hope

    Kersten Christianson

    I want to pen a note about spring.
    Not the dead alder, rain after rain after
    rain despair of it, but the rose
    gold sheen of storm having passed,
    dissipating at the knife-sharp edge of outer coast
    where blue herons and mallards frequent
    the estuary’s ebb and flow.

    I want the medicine of tender greens
    the tangle of blooming branch,
    squall of cherry blossoms adrift

    under patches of blue-sky canopy
    with supple heart and thoughts of you,
    I want the spring that snaps winter’s back.

    Kersten Christianson

  • sakura

    sakura

    Contents

    ISSN 2642-0104  (print)
    ISSN 2641-7693 (online)

    Sakura Print Edition

    Sakura Online Edition

    add-to-goodreads

    Editor’s Letter

    Founding Editor, Juliette Sebock

    Poetry

    Breakfast    Grant Burkhardt
    The gravity of tenderness      Karen E Fraser
    Neighborhood    Ed Brickell
    Iris   Robert Rice
    Frederick the Night Blooming Cereus     Valerie Hunter
    Mother, Sister, Daughter, Sakura     Vikki C.
    for Now    Tylyn K. Johnson
    Sublet   Emily Kedar
    At the Edge of Hope     Kersten Christianson
    Final Measure     Ellen Malphrus

    Fiction

    A Strong Man    Jennifer Mills Kerr
    Sweet Sorrow      Jennifer Geisinger

    Visual Art
    Early Blossoms in Spring 2     Jacelyn Yap
    Early Blossoms in Spring 3    Jacelyn Yap
    Early Blossoms in Spring 4    Jacelyn Yap
    Seattle Sunrise     Lindsey Pucci

    Cover Image
    Early Blossoms In Spring 1     Jacelyn Yap

    Micropoems

    In the leadup to poetry, we shared a series of micropoems across social media: 

    sakura micropoems

  • Breakfast

    Breakfast

    Grant Burkhardt

    Grant Burkhardt

  • sakura micropoems

    In the leadup to our eighteenth issue ’sakura’, we shared a series of micropoems from our talented submitters:

  • The gravity of tenderness

    The gravity of tenderness

    Karen E Fraser

    delicate petals creak open
    slower than snowflakes falling
    in an airless, lavender sky.
    wide-eyed stamens quiver, waiting
    patiently to be pleasured by bees.
    stems of ear-shaped leaves
    silently unfurl a lush fullness
    in blinding verdant greens.
    the light of life remains fully switched on,
    fizzing with moon-neon phosphorescence,
    ever emergent, ever consuming, gifting and
    receding in waves that spiral through
    an inescapable fragrance-
    a constant, unnameable
    yet deeply known by the gentle heart.

    Karen E Fraser

  • Letter from the Editor Sakura Issue

    Letter from the Editor

     

    Dear Reader

    Welcome to the enchanting world of sakura! As we unveil our latest issue of Nightingale & Sparrow Literary Magazine, we invite you to immerse yourself in a realm of delicate beauty and ephemeral wonders. It is with great joy that we present our eighteenth issue, marking yet another milestone in our journey.

    For this issue, we asked writers to capture the essence of sakura—the pink and white world where everything feels delicate and fleeting. We sought stories “about a moment of fleeting beauty, a memory that lingers like the sweet scent of sakura.” And oh, dear readers, the responses we received were nothing short of breathtaking.

    Within these pages, you will discover tales that encapsulate fleeting beauty, moments that leave an indelible mark on our souls. Love and loss intertwine in narratives that resonate deeply, while quiet realizations about the passage of time gently unfold. Our talented contributors have masterfully harnessed the power of sakura to transport you to a realm where beauty and transience coexist.

    As you delve into the tender tapestry of words and emotions we’ve curated for you, you will encounter mesmerizing pieces such as “At the Edge of Hope” by Kersten Christianson, “Sweet Sorrow” by Jennifer Geisinger, and “Seattle Sunrise” by Lindsay Pucci. These captivating works invite you to reflect on the fragile nature of existence and the profound impact of fleeting moments.

    Before bidding you farewell, we would be remiss not to express our gratitude to those who have helped bring this issue to fruition. Each contribution, whether through submitting their work, supporting us behind the scenes, or simply being a devoted reader, is invaluable. Nightingale & Sparrow continues to thrive because of the unwavering dedication and passion of our global community of creators.

    Wishing you moments of ephemeral joy through sakura and beyond.

    Juliette Sebock

    Editor-in-Chief, Nightingale & Sparrow