by Anne Kazak
Mirror, Mirror on the Wall
Hope’s no feathered thing –
it’s the Febrezed futon of tomfoolery
where we lazily sun and lick our fur
till the next slap in the face.
No pocket, even one cross-stitched by Jesus,
contain the angry cloud of gnats
circling me like a swarm of ex-spouses
in the stealthy part of any pleasant surprise.
The Crone knits hardship’s hairshirt
to make monkeys with guns and money
fall in love with perfection’s handmaid,
Patience, her rose-cheeked daughter.
Mike Wilson’s work has appeared in many magazines and in Mike’s book, Arranging Deck Chairs on the Titanic (Rabbit House Press). A second poetry collection (Before the Fall, Kelsay Books) and a debut novel (Food Court, Main Street Rag) are forthcoming in 2026. Mike lives in Lexington, Kentucky. mikewilsonwriter.com mikewilsonauthor.bsky.social instagram.com/mikewilsonauthor facebook.com/mikewilsonauthor https://twitter.com/mikewilsonauth1.
Anne Kazak is a psychologist and photographer who cannot remember a time when she didn’t have a camera in her hand. Using cameras or drones, she loves landscapes, capturing the beauty of nature, focusing on light, patterns, and telling a story about places. Her journeys draw her to abandoned spaces and the documenting the history of institutions. As vestiges of the past, these places prompt us to rethink the present. She also frequently uses diptychs or triptychs to juxtapose discrepancies and reveal unexpected connections. www.annekazakphotography.comhttps://www.instagram.com/annekazak.