Enjoy a lazy summer day with a book of poetry to soothe your soul, inspire you, or make you think. Here are three new poems from our Tomato poets.

Enjoy The Ride

Some days it’s a roller coaster

with a frayed and broken seat belt,

and others it’s the still of

the sagging cushion

of my orange sofa.

My old middle name was Joy.

My birthday cakes always read

Happy Birthday Nicole Joy,

in translucent gel

squeezed from a tube

and surrounded by flowers made of

flower colored icing.

Eat the cakes.

Behold the ride, the journey,

the worn out path on my plush carpet

between the bed and the bathroom

as it gains conspicuousness.

You cannot reserve a seat

because you are the seat,

the tires, the railroad tracks,

the gasoline, the velocity and the springs.

The ride is every movement and moment

propelling you forward,

fueled by all the time and events

that have propped you up

til this very minute.

By the time you get to the end of this poem,

a sliver more of time

will be captured behind you,

creating a new balance

and a gently altered history,

delicately affecting anything else

that happens going forward.

The ride is perpetually in motion.

The carpet will eventually wear out.

The baked goods will turn stale.

There will be bumps. potholes, skid marks and shortstops,

so floor it

and for god’s sake,

enjoy the ride.

~ Nicole Freezer Rubens, author of The Long Pause and the Short Breath…Poems & Photos & Reflections on New York City’s Pandemic

Is What I Have Enough?

What does it mean to have enough,

Is it a home filled with so much stuff,

Or that you have a really  large family,

With many branches on that particular tree?

For me, you see,

It means unexpectedly,

Hearing from a good friend,

A little laughter at the conversation’s end,

Being able to see the joy through pain,

A note from someone thinking you’d never see again,

The surprise of finding a long lost object,

Or hearing from an old boyfriend you’d never suspect,

Was now single and asks you on a date,

Who looks so handsome you might consider as a mate,

This, my dear friends you may appreciate,

As the simple life is really the best,

Although I do have yet another request,

To have a great meal and don’t forget bed rest,

As I am not looking for fame and fortune anymore,

Living a full life means being satisfied for sure,

With just getting up in the morning to  saying hello to the cat,

Believe me right now, that’s where it’s at.

I am so happy just to be alive!!!

~Carol Ostrow, author of Poems from My Pandemic Pen

Shut the Door

Lots to be said for open doors

Great metaphor for life

Let’s examine the opposite

Be happy for the people and places that have come and gone

Close the door

If somebody moved on and left you behind

Lock the door and don’t look behind

It is, it was, not Today or Tomorrow

Sleepless nights and worry like a chicken little gone hyperspace

Go for a walk or do something that requires positivity no matter the situation

Shut the door

~Madlyn Epstein Steinhart, author of Put Your Boots on and Dance in the Rain