Philly Poetry Chapbook Review is pleased to present five original poems by Jane Ellen Glasser as our fourth of six biweekly featured poets of the Spring 2025 issue.
Poems
Plumeria
Early spring,
clusters of buds
burst open,
crowning the tree
in fuchsia.
Green leaves
join in until
the ropy branches
cradle a festival
of color.
By summer,
bitten by wind,
pinwheel petals
spiral down,
soft as whispers.
A sickly yellow,
leaves pool on lawns
till the tree stands,
a skeleton of itself.
Now the tree
must rest, must rest
in all its nakedness
throughout winter
until something
like desire stirs
roots to limbs
to begin again.
How to Befriend Animals
For the mockingbird, I mimic
their mimicry of the towhee,
whose call cries out its name.
On a good day, one will stall
when I send aloft “tow-hee”
until we volley back and forth
a purloined conversation
With egrets, if I recite poetry,
from a safe distance, in soft,
honied tones, frequently
they will linger, shaking
the baton of their extended
necks in rhythm to my verse.
A believer in irony, I court
iguanas with the love song,
“You are so beautiful to me.”
Soon, they begin bobbing
their heads, “yes, yes, yes”
as if nodding in agreement.
And, oh joy, the semaphore
of a squirrel’s tail waving
welcomes, then descending
from a high limb to greet me;
(admittedly accustomed to my
perambulations, my pockets
stuffed with peanuts).
Zebra Butterfly
Today I noticed a zebra butterfly
surveying all the offerings on a
jatropha tree. Although the tiny
red-clustered flowers seemed
undifferentiated to me, I watched
it land, here and there, sipping
nectar from this one, that one,
like an aficionado at a wine tasting.
Such fine-tuned discrimination
it signified, unless, perchance,
it simply enjoyed supping on the fly.
Lessons from Nature
Exploring caves, I learned
the value of patience:
it takes centuries to form
draperies and pearls.
Suspended in darkness,
like clothes out of season,
bats have taught me
to escape inclemency
through perfect stillness.
Like trees connecting
earth and sky, my roots
nurture me as I reach
beyond my upbringing.
Cascading waterfalls,
with their beauty and terror
born of relief, have taught
me to let go of my grief.
Ode to the Wind
Your hands at my back,
knowing the benefit of encouragement,
urge me forward.
Your hands at my chest,
knowing the virtue of challenge,
tell me to push back.
This way and that way
my long black hair
sails the air with abandon,
my eyes, my mouth, my mind
washed clear
from the weight of my thoughts.
About “How to Befriend Animals”
I am a daily jogger, averaging 115 miles each month. Aside from the healthy benefit of exercising, I am drawn to Florida’s fauna. In my fantasy world, I would be able to communicate with the animals I see every day. Some days I’m lucky: a mockingbird stalls on a branch to mimic me; egrets and herons respond to my softly intoned words by shaking their necks; when I sing “You are so beautiful to me”, the often-despised iguanas bob their heads; and squirrels wait on my daily route for peanuts. I am an advocate for animals. Each life, from a fly to an elephant, has the same right to exist as me. A simple gesture of reaching out, like a spider releasing fine silk threads from its spinneret until it becomes aloft, binds us.
Author Bio
Jane Ellen Glasser’s poetry has appeared in numerous journals, such as The Hudson Review, The Southern Review, The Virginia Quarterly Review, and The Georgia Review. In the past she served as the poetry critic for The Virginian-Pilot, poetry editor for the Ghent Quarterly and Lady Jane’s Miscellany, and co-founder of the nonprofit arts organization and journal New Virginia Review. She won the Tampa Review Prize for Poetry for Light Persists (2006), and the Poetica Publishing Chapbook Contest for The Long Life (2011). Jane Ellen Glasser: Selected Poems(2019), Staying Afloat during a Plague (2021). and Crow Songs (2021) are her recent collections. To learn more about the poet and her work, visit www.janeellenglasser.com.
Contents
Book Excerpt: The Prize of Québec by Jennifer Nelson
“I tend to lean into the transconstitutory powers of ekphrasis. … Only in poetry can one go to the moon in a way that critiques the quest for the moon.” Read a poem from Jennifer Nelson’s new collection from Fence Books, On the Way to the Paintings of Forest Robberies.
Chapbook Poem: This Is How They Teach Us How to Want It . . . by Shanta Lee
“This poem explores the levels of our participation in handing ourselves over, often to the people, places, or things that deserve no such delight.” Read a #poem from Shanta Lee’s new book from Harbor Editions, This Is How They Teach Us How to Want It . . . The Slaughter.
Three Poems by Jonathan Fletcher
“Instead of having to choose between religion or the LGBTQ community (which I know many member of the latter feel they have to do), I think it is possible (and maybe even biblical) to integrate both into one’s life.” Read three original poems from Jonathan Fletcher, along with words from the author.
What Happened? On You are Leaving the American Sector by Rebecca Foust
“Rebecca Foust’s new chapbook of poems has a strange prescience. … Foust isn’t alone in making the obvious connection between Trump’s first term and Orwell’s dystopia.” Read the full chapbook review by new contributor Rick Mullin.
‘What if we started creating together? What if we looked at who we are from the side and saw a much more complete and honest perspective?” Read four poems by poet Sarah E N Kohrs, along with words from the poet.
Book Excerpt: Challenger by Colleen S. Harris
“If we look beyond the voyeuristic tendency to focus on the tragedy, what might we see? This poem was a chance for me to zoom in on the calm before the storm.” New poem from Colleen S. Harris’s new book from Main Street Rag, The Light Becomes Us, along with words from the poet.
Chapbook Poem: What I Did This Summer by Elinor Serumgard
“I love New Year’s and the promise of a new start, but I like to remind myself that you can start fresh at any point throughout the year.” New poem from Elinor Serumgard’s chapbook from Bottlecap Press, Analogous Annum, along with words from the poet.
Four Poems by Christa Fairbrother
“Since women aren’t allowed the power of our anger, we take it out on each other, and that’s what this poem is hinting at.” Read four poems by Christa Fairbrother, along with words from the poet.
Multilingualism and Metaphor: On Desire/Halves by Jaia Hamid Bashir
“Bashir’s elegant debut collection investigates identity as the result of choices between individual appetites and cultural frames. … [It] announces an exciting addition to the global chorus of contemporary literature.” Read D.W. Baker’s full review.
Five Poems by Jane Ellen Glasser
“In my fantasy world, I would be able to communicate with the animals I see every day.” Read five naturalist poems by poet Jane Ellen Glasser, along with a few words from the poet.