This blog features portions of my not yet published poems.

why write?

I have to write what I hear in my head, what I dream in my sleep, what my bones ache to express.

My poems tell stories of strength, love, regret, disobedience, loss, hope, redemption, or whatever whispers.

—Cindy B. Stevens

Longleaf Press publication

A Path to Freedom –
A North Carolina Anthology in Honor of Military Veterans
two of my poems are included in this Anthology:
"drip"
“no return war”
November 2024.

My first collection of poetry, Naked, is available at:

https://mainstreetragbookstore.com/product/naked-cindy-stevens/


This collection is also available at two local bookstores:

Purple Crow Books, Hillsborough, NC

The Regulator Bookshop, Durham, NC



More of my poems appear in:

The Phoenix, Issues 60 and 61, (Pheiffer University Literary Journal)
Heron Clan VI, VII, and VIII, (Katherine James Books)

26 May 2021

folding laundry

I’m still finding it difficult to pull my thoughts together lately or focus on choosing a portion of something new and unpublished.  So, I’ve taken the easy way and selected a poem from my chapbook, Naked, published in 2018 by Main Street Rag.  My brother’s birthday is today, he would be 70:

folding laundry

 

for my brother, Grant

 

sticky red pooled under your body

when you fell down the stairs

shot in your back

 

once

not so very long ago

but long enough to realize you

won’t remember when I kicked you

with my habanero words

 

every death I see

nudges me further from the memory of your face

your voice

until there’s nothing left

except letters

pictures

evidence I knew you

 

I fold you up

your arms crossed on your chest

feet up to your shoulders

a neat rectangle

it’s how I fold a T-shirt

 

I place you in a storage chest

try to smooth out the wrinkles of no goodbye

with words said

left unsaid

I wait to bring you out when the season changes

 

#Death #Art #ArtlixirPoetry #DarkPoetry #IGPoetry #IGPoets #InstaPoetry #Life #LovePoetry #MicroPoetry #Poem #Poet #Poetry #PoetryCommunity #PoetryGram #PoetryIsLife #PoetryIsNotDead #PoetryLovers #PoetryOfig #PoetryOfInstagram #PoetryPorn #PoetSociety #PoetsOfInstagram #SpilledInk #VeinHeartArtisans #Wordsmith #Writer #WritersOfInstagram #Writing

 

Photo credit:  haryo-setyadi-acn5ERAeSb4-unsplash

20 May 2021

vines

I’m letting this five stanza poem rest, until it declares it’s 

finished.


The fourth stanza of “vines”:

when despair

death fear

vine my cracks

I want to clip

stunt their growth

 

© 7 May 2021

Cindy B. Stevens

 

#Art #ArtlixirPoetry #DarkPoetry #IGPoetry #IGPoets #InstaPoetry #Life #LovePoetry #MicroPoetry #Poem #Poet #Poetry #PoetryCommunity #PoetryGram #PoetryIsLife #PoetryIsNotDead #PoetryLovers #PoetryOfig #PoetryOfInstagram #PoetryPorn #PoetSociety #PoetsOfInstagram #SpilledInk #VeinHeartArtisans #Wordsmith #Writer #WritersOfInstagram #Writing

 

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14 May 2021

a w a k e

I thought I was finished with this 3 syllable 12 line poem; but, I’m not entirely satisfied with the eleventh line. 




Here’s part of “awake”:

 

I’m awake

in the moon

tonight she

watches me

she does not

laugh she does 


© 7 May 2021

Cindy B. Stevens

 

#Art #ArtlixirPoetry #DarkPoetry #IGPoetry #IGPoets #InstaPoetry #Life #LovePoetry #MicroPoetry #Poem #Poet #Poetry #PoetryCommunity #PoetryGram #PoetryIsLife #PoetryIsNotDead #PoetryLovers #PoetryOfig #PoetryOfInstagram #PoetryPorn #PoetSociety #PoetsOfInstagram #SpilledInk #VeinHeartArtisans #Wordsmith #Writer #WritersOfInstagram #Writing

 

Photo credit:  daniel-lincoln-gxCFOgUrT-Q-unsplash

08 May 2021

her breath

 


This poem, “her breath”, is still tangled, trying to work itself out.  Here are two stanzas:

 

I touch her in the night

when her breath is so quiet, it’s

almost

not there

I lay my hand on her belly

it rises

falls

 

she starts her sleep at her edge of the mattress

ends in the middle

programed to not cross that line

on her back

left side

her right

all on her side of the bed

she doesn’t give herself

permission

to crowd me

when she dreams

 

© 25 April 2021

Cindy B. Stevens

 

#Tangle #Dream #Art #ArtlixirPoetry #DarkPoetry #IGPoetry #IGPoets #InstaPoetry #Life #LovePoetry #MicroPoetry #Poem #Poet #Poetry #PoetryCommunity #PoetryGram #PoetryIsLife #PoetryIsNotDead #PoetryLovers #PoetryOfig #PoetryOfInstagram #PoetryPorn #PoetSociety #PoetsOfInstagram #SpilledInk #VeinHeartArtisans #Wordsmith #Writer #WritersOfInstagram #Writing

 

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02 May 2021

tough



Here’s the start of a recent poem, currently titled “tough”:


I’m not tough enough for us

hot asphalt calloused feet

where I can’t walk

scratched knees

where I fall

I pray

plead

bargain

with my savior

tell your death angel

pass us by

don’t breathe on us

 

© 25 April 2021

Cindy B. Stevens


#DeathAngel #Art #ArtlixirPoetry #DarkPoetry #IGPoetry #IGPoets #InstaPoetry #Life #LovePoetry #MicroPoetry #Poem #Poet #Poetry #PoetryCommunity #PoetryGram #PoetryIsLife #PoetryIsNotDead #PoetryLovers #PoetryOfig #PoetryOfInstagram #PoetryPorn #PoetSociety #PoetsOfInstagram #SpilledInk #VeinHeartArtisans #Wordsmith #Writer #WritersOfInstagram #Writing

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26 April 2021

? wood fire ?

I’m having trouble focusing on my writing lately.  I find it easier to keep my desk neat, open the mail, and pay the bills.  It’s not easy to open my poem drafts and get in the zone.  I am struggling to keep to my “every six days” schedule of posting a poem portion.

 

Here are four lines that I wrote days before spring, which, of course, aren’t complete, yet.  I think the title might be “wood fire”:

 

the woods are lit

not with sugar maple fire

lit with paprika smoke

perhaps pimento spice

 

© 15 March 2021

Cindy B. Stevens




#Art #ArtlixirPoetry #DarkPoetry #IGPoetry #IGPoets #InstaPoetry #Life #LovePoetry #MicroPoetry #Poem #Poet #Poetry #PoetryCommunity #PoetryGram #PoetryIsLife #PoetryIsNotDead #PoetryLovers #PoetryOfig #PoetryOfInstagram #PoetryPorn #PoetSociety #PoetsOfInstagram #SpilledInk #VeinHeartArtisans #Wordsmith #Writer #WritersOfInstagram #Writing

 

Photo credit:  yifei-chen-xG_C2BwknDY-unsplash

20 April 2021

unrequited



“unrequited” is in NAKED, my chapbook, published by Main Street Rag:


Lester grieves for me

winds his sorrow as a winter scarf around his neck

its tendrils drape across his chest

he cries while his father hugs him

my sister is too dignified

to let tears soak her peach silk blouse

 

I watch the scene from my mirror

roll my eyes

canned music bleeds through speakers

believers raise their hands like sunshined flowers

 

there was no coin to purchase my funeral dress

so I wrapped myself with a deathbed sheet

its drape shrouds my bones

casket closed

 

I float the coffee bean aroma through wallpapered rooms

it fails to veil old lady perfumes, sweat, and aftershaves

my Irish linen tablecloth is stained with spilt tea

littered with cookie and sandwich crumbs

 

Lester walks in the kitchen to grab a banana

but they have leaked their ripeness

not even good for breads or cakes

sticky chocolate-like goo congeals at the bottom of the fruit bowl

 

my hair swept to one side

Lester dreams I kiss him

dark glasses sunscreen my eyes

my sheet sweeps dust bunnies across the plank floor

I carry his unrequited heart in my hand

try not to squeeze as I tiptoe from his bedroom

 

god, I need a Bellini

I listen for the dismissal bell

find the exit sign

I look for me, but I have flown

 

© 2018

Cindy B. Stevens



#Art #ArtlixirPoetry #DarkPoetry #IGPoetry #IGPoets #InstaPoetry #Life #LovePoetry #MicroPoetry #Poem #Poet #Poetry #PoetryCommunity #PoetryGram #PoetryIsLife #PoetryIsNotDead #PoetryLovers #PoetryOfig #PoetryOfInstagram #PoetryPorn #PoetSociety #PoetsOfInstagram #SpilledInk #VeinHeartArtisans #Wordsmith #Writer #WritersOfInstagram #Writing

 

Photo credits:

rachel-cheng-G3ElLWatpwI-unsplash

rachel-cheng-g0qpp-j-aJ4-unsplash

14 April 2021

summer country dances


“summer country dances”, when finished, will be, if not a sweet poem, a bittersweet one.  Here are three stanzas:


wheels sing concrete

road joints drowse

slow tires half turn

they minuet this tarred

summer

country

trance

 

children surveil adults

their nods

winks

their shouted whispers

dust

dresses

dance

 

hay-bail cushioned blankets watch

an oaked scotch whisky reel

a hornpipe

fiddle

eyes flirt

fingers touch

turn

withdraw

 

© 5 January 2020

Cindy B. Stevens

 

#Art #ArtlixirPoetry #DarkPoetry #IGPoetry #IGPoets #InstaPoetry #Life #LovePoetry #MicroPoetry #Poem #Poet #Poetry #PoetryCommunity #PoetryGram #PoetryIsLife #PoetryIsNotDead #PoetryLovers #PoetryOfig #PoetryOfInstagram #PoetryPorn #PoetSociety #PoetsOfInstagram #SpilledInk #VeinHeartArtisans #Wordsmith #Writer #WritersOfInstagram #Writing

 

Photo credit:  sam-moqadam-hD3WR11e590-unsplash

08 April 2021

believe

Here’s one in progress; the current title is “believe”:

the girl feels weak today

her tears surface

she doesn’t blink

she hears piano music

sees feet through a glass wall

walk on the ceiling of the floor above

 

believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house

Acts 16:31 King James Version

doesn’t say healed

does she believe God will heal?

does it take her belief to heal?

 

her shoulders won’t hold her dress

it slips

exposes her fear

her coward

her shoulders hold those


© 7 April 2021

Cindy B. Stevens



#Art #ArtlixirPoetry #DarkPoetry #IGPoetry #IGPoets #InstaPoetry #Life #LovePoetry #MicroPoetry #Poem #Poet #Poetry #PoetryCommunity #PoetryGram #PoetryIsLife #PoetryIsNotDead #PoetryLovers #PoetryOfig #PoetryOfInstagram #PoetryPorn #PoetSociety #PoetsOfInstagram #SpilledInk #VeinHeartArtisans #Wordsmith #Writer #WritersOfInstagram #Writing

 

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02 April 2021

Salomé means peace

I’ve left this piece alone for a bit more than a year.  I’ll come back to it next week.  Here are a few lines from “Salomé means peace”:

if I could pick my vessel

would I choose human

obey mother’s bidding

would I dance for my Antipas

 

if I could select

would I prefer immortal

I’d be glorious

everything I covet at my fingertips

 

except my fingernails are chipped

Antipas’ look tears me

because I must choose

 

© 7 March 2020

Cindy B. Stevens



#Art #ArtlixirPoetry #DarkPoetry #IGPoetry #IGPoets #InstaPoetry #Life #LovePoetry #MicroPoetry #Poem #Poet #Poetry #PoetryCommunity #PoetryGram #PoetryIsLife #PoetryIsNotDead #PoetryLovers #PoetryOfig #PoetryOfInstagram #PoetryPorn #PoetSociety #PoetsOfInstagram #SpilledInk #VeinHeartArtisans #Wordsmith #Writer #WritersOfInstagram #Writing

 

Photo credit:  alexander-sinn-DX5r6BNoWVE-unsplash

27 March 2021

my favorite nightgown

I started a poem the other night, more keeps coming; here are some lines from

 “my favorite nightgown”:


my favorite nightgown is

none

hers

something for the paramedics

she won’t sleep naked anymore


© 26 March 2021

Cindy B. Stevens


#Art #ArtlixirPoetry #DarkPoetry #IGPoetry #IGPoets #InstaPoetry #Life #LovePoetry #MicroPoetry #Poem #Poet #Poetry #PoetryCommunity #PoetryGram #PoetryIsLife #PoetryIsNotDead #PoetryLovers #PoetryOfig #PoetryOfInstagram #PoetryPorn #PoetSociety #PoetsOfInstagram #SpilledInk #VeinHeartArtisans #Wordsmith #Writer #WritersOfInstagram #Writing


Photo credit:  ava-sol-OREidaPKnaA-unsplash

21 March 2021

hush

On a weeknight in February 2011, I arrived early at St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church for Women’s Singing Circle.  I love to sit in a sanctuary, alone with the hush.  I’m not finished with:

hush


I haven’t heard silence all day

 

church

empty

I sit


shadow shrouds sanctuary

except the chancel cross

light swathed by the narthex

moon bathed Triptych

stained glass windows

 

I pause

I hear

hush


© 20 March 2021

Cindy B. Stevens

 

#Silent #Art #ArtlixirPoetry #DarkPoetry #IGPoetry #IGPoets #InstaPoetry #Life #LovePoetry #MicroPoetry #Poem #Poet #Poetry #PoetryCommunity #PoetryGram #PoetryIsLife #PoetryIsNotDead #PoetryLovers #PoetryOfig #PoetryOfInstagram #PoetryPorn #PoetSociety #PoetsOfInstagram #SpilledInk #VeinHeartArtisans #Wordsmith #Writer #WritersOfInstagram #Writing

 

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15 March 2021

silent spring

Here are a few lines from “silent spring”, a poem I started in March 2020:













the week the quiet begins

the wind isn’t

neither are the birds

 

a Cardinal eats from the cylinder feeder

his mate watches from the wire above

they don’t know about COVID-19

they don’t know to keep their distance from the Sparrow

 

what is it about my front room that makes the Bluebird bump my window?

does he want to come in?

how many times will he have to hit the window to know

he can’t come through?

 

© 20 August 2020

Cindy B. Stevens

 

#COVID #Art #ArtlixirPoetry #DarkPoetry #IGPoetry #IGPoets #InstaPoetry #Life #LovePoetry #MicroPoetry #Poem #Poet #Poetry #PoetryCommunity #PoetryGram #PoetryIsLife #PoetryIsNotDead #PoetryLovers #PoetryOfig #PoetryOfInstagram #PoetryPorn #PoetSociety #PoetsOfInstagram #SpilledInk #VeinHeartArtisans #Wordsmith #Writer #WritersOfInstagram #Writing

 

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09 March 2021

fifteen minutes



This poem takes a twist; I’ll share seven lines from fifteen minutes:


she’s a 15-minute woman


she showers


towels off


she fills an iron with tap water


she sprays her body with starch


lays an arm on the board


a pleasure pain


© 9 January 2021

Cindy B. Stevens


#Art #ArtlixirPoetry #DarkPoetry #IGPoetry #IGPoets #InstaPoetry #Life #LovePoetry #MicroPoetry #Poem #Poet #Poetry #PoetryCommunity #PoetryGram #PoetryIsLife #PoetryIsNotDead #PoetryLovers #PoetryOfig #PoetryOfInstagram #PoetryPorn #PoetSociety #PoetsOfInstagram #SpilledInk #VeinHeartArtisans #Wordsmith #Writer #WritersOfInstagram #Writing


Photo credit:  Marcos Ramírez on Unsplash

03 March 2021

winter spring



Hello to March!  Here’s my brief poem, winter spring:

 

moon cools

skeleton sand

 

stars flame

gray clouds

 

tide cleanse

smooths sand

 

sun blush

beams rain

 

moon wash

shines sand

 

sun warms

cold surf

 

beach bare

bone sand

 

© 21 September 2019

Cindy B. Stevens

 

#Art #ArtlixirPoetry #DarkPoetry #IGPoetry #IGPoets #InstaPoetry #Life #LovePoetry #MicroPoetry #Poem #Poet #Poetry #PoetryCommunity #PoetryGram #PoetryIsLife #PoetryIsNotDead #PoetryLovers #PoetryOfig #PoetryOfInstagram #PoetryPorn #PoetSociety #PoetsOfInstagram #SpilledInk #VeinHeartArtisans #Wordsmith #Writer #WritersOfInstagram #Writing


 Photo credit:  Caleb Stokes on Unsplash 

25 February 2021

I won't



I’m calling this a list poem.

Here are eleven lines from I won’t:

 

I won’t make the bed today

I’ll get up, but

 

I won’t pull the drapes, but

I’ll open the windows

 

I’ll get dressed, but

I won’t put on my shoes

 

if I walk in the bedroom today

if I feel like lying down

 

I won’t need to remove my shoes

close the drapes

unmake the bed

 

© 8 January 2021

Cindy B. Stevens

 

#Art #ArtlixirPoetry #DarkPoetry #IGPoetry #IGPoets #InstaPoetry #Life #LovePoetry #MicroPoetry #Poem #Poet #Poetry #PoetryCommunity #PoetryGram #PoetryIsLife #PoetryIsNotDead #PoetryLovers #PoetryOfig #PoetryOfInstagram #PoetryPorn #PoetSociety #PoetsOfInstagram #SpilledInk #VeinHeartArtisans #Wordsmith #Writer #WritersOfInstagram #Writing

 

Photo credit:  Photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash

19 February 2021

prodigal



Seven lines from prodigal:


he’s a prodigal

a prodigal who won’t return

doesn’t want to

won’t

ever

 

can a prodigal be a prodigal if he

will never return?

 

© 9 January 2021

Cindy B. Stevens

 

#Art #ArtlixirPoetry #DarkPoetry #IGPoetry #IGPoets #InstaPoetry #Life #LovePoetry #MicroPoetry #Poem #Poet #Poetry #PoetryCommunity #PoetryGram #PoetryIsLife #PoetryIsNotDead #PoetryLovers #PoetryOfig #PoetryOfInstagram #PoetryPorn #PoetSociety #PoetsOfInstagram #SpilledInk #VeinHeartArtisans #Wordsmith #Writer #WritersOfInstagram #Writing

 

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13 February 2021

I love

It’s almost St. Valentine’s Day.


Here are the first, third, and seventh stanzas from I love:

this man

fun

kind

maddening

loyal

he’ll love me when my face

is decrepit paint

 

I love this man loves me when I am a bad weather morning

when I am more than just rain

I am lightning           thunder          deluge            mudslide

I am a hurrirain

I love he rolls his eyes when I make up words

 

he makes me want more

secrets

a sleepover nightcap

tomorrow morning breakfast pajamas on the patio

I brush against beauty each time we pass in the kitchen

 

© 10 January 2021

Cindy B. Stevens

 

#Art #ArtlixirPoetry #DarkPoetry #IGPoetry #IGPoets #InstaPoetry #Life #LovePoetry #MicroPoetry #Poem #Poet #Poetry #PoetryCommunity #PoetryGram #PoetryIsLife #PoetryIsNotDead #PoetryLovers #PoetryOfig #PoetryOfInstagram #PoetryPorn #PoetSociety #PoetsOfInstagram #SpilledInk #VeinHeartArtisans #Wordsmith #Writer #WritersOfInstagram #Writing

 

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