MEAT FOR TEA Vol 19 Issue 1
The Valley Review
Hot Dog p. 46 March 2025
Hot Diggity Dog
Author Archives: brontebrown2
Rhonda Bronte Brown is a National Board-Certified Teacher and retired teacher/counselor whose work has appeared in Better Than Starbucks, The Trouvaille Review, Meat for Tea, The Orchards Poetry Journal and The Best Haiku 2025 international anthology and several online journals. She holds both a BS and a Master’s degree and writes children’s literature and poetry exploring nature, SEL, and STEM.
January 2026
1. Mångata
shimmering night cadence
skipping across a frozen plateau
Mångata reverie
2. Autumn’s Play
leaf-whistles
needles oscillate
psithuric wind song
trees shimmer
deeply yawning
anticipation stirs
aureate
honeyed, tawny, burnt
Autumn's play
3. soulful
a soulful tune
summer's harmony in sync
cicadas sing.
4. psithuric whisper
psithuric whispers
a wooed heart-
her breath catches
rimes - rapid freezing of water vapors
Submission to Wales Journal 2025
--
rare fire horse
forward, focused, adaptable
old notions gone
coming moments
of wonderment and awe
touching the soul
In God's Word
seek perspicacious
clarity.
He has given us the Holy Spirit
burnishing glow
the Cold Moon kneels,
terrestrial kiss
brushed golds
silver highlights
lush greenery
5.
Oneiric trails
ice feathers
scrape the sky
dancing while tomorrow
sleeps
beneath your pillow,
wonder waits
6. Crepuscular Moment
burnishing glow
the Cold Moon kneels
terrestrial kiss
7. Winter’s Deep Sleep
moonbeams prance
atop the subnivean zone,
a gentle nightlight
winter's shield
snow blanket or hoarfrost,
what holds, what rimes,what fails, or what thins
silence broken
predatory footfalls
winter creaks
relentless onslaught
of graupel, freeze and thaw-
precarious
safely tucked
in the between, nestled deep,
all sleep
--
Nature’s Fury
blissed ignorance
twirling in the wind
a prelude
whispered chaos
distance rumbles
sirens forewarn
impending danger
thunderous clouds clash
hook echo forms
wrapped winds,
dark tornadoes swirl,
March roars
nature’s fury
in the eyes of the beholder-
watch
---
Before Tomorrow Wakes /
With a crescent wink
and radiating argent hues,
the night sky wakes.
Tomorrow sleeps
while silver beams thread through the darkness,
inviting whimsy
to skate on imaginative trails.
Dreams dance.
Slow, quick-quick, slow-
a small step etched
with sandy footprints.
Chimerical images skirt
golden pathways
across a sea of midnight blue.
Suspended momentarily
from Ganymede's summit,
hangs a breathtaking view.
Laced with ice feathers,
dreams frolic on
through the night sky,
searching for sky treasures.
Stories lie quiet
in star streams
as wide-eyed tales
fill the mind's eye.
Tomorrow wakes.
dreams collide
with opportunity
a star is born
Star Streams/ Before Tomorrow Wakes/ Prose
With a crescent wink and radiating argent hues, the night sky wakes. Tomorrow sleeps while silver beams thread through the darkness, inviting whimsy to skate on imaginative trails. Dreams dance.
Slow, slow, quick-quick, slow, a small step etched with sandy footprints. Chimerical images skirt golden pathways across a sea of midnight blue. From Ganymede's summit, a breathtaking view is suspended momentarily.
Laced with ice feathers, dreams frolic on through the night sky, searching for sky treasures. Stories lie quiet in star streams as wide-eyed tales fill the mind's eye. Tomorrow wakes.
dreams dance
on silvery moonbeams,
tomorrow sleeps
----
burnishing cerpuscular glow
Earth's kiss in terrestrial embrace
Cold Moon rises
short form
burnishing glow
The Cold Moon kneels
terrestrial kiss
---
rare fire horse
forward, focused, adaptable
old notions gone
coming moments
of wonderment and awe
touching the soul
short version
clarity
focused awe
renewed
Happy New Year!
Haiku Oct
Zephyr
morning stillness
rhythmic movement
zephyr and leaf
Leaf-whistles
Needles oscillate
Psithuric wind song
Trees shimmer
deeply yawning
Anticipation stirs
long-awaited hues
brilliant, buff, earthy
wind song
long-awaited
brilliant colors
fleeting
burnt, buff, earthy,
ushering in sienna hues,
autumn's display
1. Magnolia Blossom
elegant folds
beautiful and simplistic
cradling life
2. Captivated
sense of errantry
a whispered psithurism,
she catches her breath
3. Zephyr
morning stillness
rhythmic movement
zephyr and leaf
4. Mångata
sea of midnight blue
whimsical images skirt
Mångata pathways
submitted June 8, 2025
aureate honeyed, tawny, burnt Autumn's play
psithurism
reeds sing in the wind
howling change
a gentle psithurism
passes through,
catching her breathe
Captivated
sense of errantry
a whispered psithurism
she catches her breath
a sea of midnight blue
whimsical images
skirt along
Mangata pathways
night recedes behind the stars-
no thought to pending troubles
tomorrow sleeps
Evening's warm hues
cast a spell
of tranquility
a songless world
yearns for echoes of a
promised aria
Morning stillness
Rhythmic movement
Zephyr and leaf
life lives on in
bifurcating branches of
generational rings
leaf-whistles,
needles oscillate in
psithuric wind song
misty, moisty morning
hovering fog clouds
kissing the dew
Nature's mystery sprightly beads nestle betwixt succulent leaves
Pearly light of glistening eyes echoes a dance of the coming spring.
a soulful tune
summer's harmony in sync
cicadas sing
Shimmering night cadence
skipping across a frozen plateau
Mångata reverie
or
a sea of midnight blue
whimsical images skirt
Mångata pathways
Tempean beauty
Tranquil coastal charmer
Titivated lace
Hegemonic media parrots the same song.
morning’s blush
slips through
the mizzling mist
cicadas sing
silence merges with darkness
tree shadows creep
Tempean ox-eye
titivated petals bloom
butterflies dance
frozen heart
a kind touch
melting point
high noon
shadows hide
under feet
whispers of wishes
ascending to heaven as
I lay down to sleep.
Haikus and more Nov/Dec 2025
Winter’s Lace
Vibrant winter blooms
cast against a snowy canvas,
beneath brooding skies.
Amaryllis’ view from the window,
periwinkle winks in reply,
whisper-warm
A little ray of sunshine,
melancholy banishment
Winter jasmine.
Persistence cold,
dancing flurries.
Pansies thrive.
Deep into winter
Primrose’s colors delight.
Stark against the snow
Pale Season of Titivated Lace
(rewrite of Winter’s Lace)
Vibrant blooms ignite against a blank canvas under brooding, iron-gray skies.
Amaryllis gazes out from the window; a periwinkle winks back, whisper-warm.
Across a stark alabaster landscape, autumn falls silent while pansies thrive.
Bleak, bitter, yet, in defiance, Narcissus lifts its radiant face for all to see.
A little ray of sunshine, burnishing a crepuscular glow, Wendy’s Gold rises.
Lucille’s Squill, whimsical scent swirls with the turning season.
Write an imaginative landscape poem without using snow, snowy or wintry terms.
Winter's Lace cont-
Varied highs and lows,
February vacillates.
Snowdrops appear.
Narcissus’ beauty
shines for all to see,
defying winter’s hold
Colorful and sweet
Pansies’ cousin, Viola,
a winter survivor.
Glory-of-the-Snow,
star-shaped and whimsical,
greets winter’s end.
A little ray of sunshine
burnishing a crepuscular glow,
the Wendy’s Gold rises.
Lucile’s Squill
whimsical scent swirl,
Hints of a seasonal shift.
Wassailing through their quarters, Holly and Ivy sang yuletide tunes.
Preening on the desert table, a bourbon-soaked fruitcake that could render a sailor drunk in minutes.
And next door, the inflatable dancing Santa, now plastered like an Andy Warhol-inspired Art Deco project. TopTweetTuesday challenge.
long-awaited
brilliant hues
fleeting
Long awaited
brilliant, burnt, tawny
fleeting
Extravagant
Encore dance
Nature's splendor
Dancing in the wind
Feels like Freedom
unabated
November's finest
Harvest hues
Beaver's night light
seasonal shift
burnt, buff, earthy,
ushering in sienna hues,
autumn's display
long-awaited hues
brilliant, buff, earthy
wind song
seasonal shift
burnt, buff, earthy,
ushering in sienna hues,
aureate
honeyed, tawny, burnt
Autumn's play
anatomy of a tree
bare for all to see,
bone deep artistry
Silent church bells
Once a beacon of light
God's Word still rings
shopping cart battle
obstacles along the aisles
thanksgiving gaming
Rustling leaves,
trees shiver, yawing deeply-
anticipation.
Fall's first scent hovers
in between the blurred lines
of a seasonal shift.
Leaf whistles,
needles oscillate in a
psithuric wind song.
Crimson hues slip through
the mizzling mist of
Autumn's play.
Seasonal timing
grounding roots, true friends are the
rings inside.
Oneiric trails
ice feathers
scrape the sky
oneiric impression
dancing while tomorrow
sleeps
oneiric interludes
beneath your pillow,
lies wonderment
o·nei·ric- dream-like quality
Learning to use a new word in a haiku.
black silhouette
dark blues and grays
rippling thoughts
haiku for lake picture
@KarynCurtis21
Early morning on the lake ❄️
Imaginative trails laced with ice feathers,
Puck's in the wind searching for sky treasures.
Oneiric trails
ice feathers
scrape the sky
burnishing crepuscular glow
Earth's kiss in terrestrial embrace
Cold Moon rises
short form
burnishing glow
the Cold Moon kneels
terrestrial kiss
Leave a comment
Zephr/ The Best Haiku 2025 International Anthology
By: Rhonda Bronte Brown
Morning stillness
Rhythmic movement
Zephyr and leaf
Leave a comment
“Threnodies”
The Orchard Poetry Journal/ Winter 2025 p. 112
“Threnodies"
As autumn falls silent under evening's snow,
sheltered seeds don winter's coat below.
Sleeping silently beneath winter's breath,
trees fold into a counterfeit death.
A magical moment when the sun stands still,
winter begins with a brisk, cold chill.
Wintry winds whistle ceaseless threnodies,
glistens frosty precip melodies.
Amidst frigid fields, icicles drip.
Cardinals swoop midstream for a sip.
Mice tucked warmly under subnivean snow,
moonbeams prance across a snowlit plateau.
Betwixt two astral stars, the moon hangs bright,
eerie wolf howls echo through the night.
Playful trickery, a spring bud pops its head.
Winter snaps, not yet, and tucks them back to bed.
Thank you for submitting your work to The Orchards Poetry Journal. It is our great pleasure to inform you that we have selected your poem, Threnodies, for publication in our Winter 2025 issue.
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Thresholds
November 2025
Thresholds traces the transition from autumn’s waning light through the deep stillness and renewal of winter, exploring nature’s rhythms, endurance, and transformation.
I. Thresholds
Trees shimmer
deeply yawning -
anticipation stirs.
Autumn equinox,
the balance of light and dark,
time juncture converts.
Facing eastward.
Fall moon on the horizon
blazing golden hues.
Extravagant colors!
A migratory bird's last song.
Light wanes for evening.
Granting Fall's wish
for an encore flower dance.
Winter procrastinates.
II. Winter Solstice
motionless sun
the darkest moment
light breaks through
climactic pause
night tide meets at Winter's gate
light connects
the sun stands still,
a brief magical moment
winter begins
III. Winter’s Deep Sleep
moonbeams prance
atop the subnivean zone,
a gentle nightlight
winter's shield
snow blanket or hoarfrost,
what holds, what rimes
silence broken
predatory footfalls
winter creaks
unyielding onslaught
of graupel, freeze and thaw,
precarious,
safely tucked
in the between, nestled deep,
all sleep
IV. Winter’s Lace
Vibrant winter blooms
cast against a snowy canvas,
beneath brooding skies.
Amaryllis’ view from the window,
periwinkle winks in reply,
whisper-warm
A little ray of sunshine,
melancholy banishment
Winter jasmine.
Persistence cold,
dancing flurries.
Pansies thrive.
Deep into winter
Primrose’s delightful colors,
stark against the snow
Varied highs and lows,
February vacillates,
Snowdrops appear.
Narcissus’ beauty
shines for all to see,
defying winter’s hold
Colorful and sweet
Pansies’ cousin, Viola,
a winter survivor.
Glory-of-the-Snow,
star-shaped and whimsical,
greets winter’s end.
V. Threnodies
As autumn falls silent under evening's snow,
sheltered seeds don winter's coat below.
Sleeping silently beneath winter's breath,
trees fold into a counterfeit death.
A magical moment when the sun stands still,
winter begins with a brisk, cold chill.
Wintry winds whistle ceaseless threnodies,
glistens frosty precip melodies.
Amidst frigid fields, icicles drip.
Cardinals swoop midstream for a sip.
Mice tucked warmly under subnivean snow,
moonbeams prance across a snowlit plateau.
Betwixt two astral stars, the moon hangs bright,
eerie wolf howls echo through the night.
Playful trickery, a spring bud pops its head.
Winter snaps, not yet— and tucks them back to bed.
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AnnaLeigh and the Library of Hidden Treasures
Synopsis:
When Annaleigh steps into the Cedarville Library, she never expects to see a bespectacled elephant holding a book. But when Eleanor, the library’s magical Storykeeper, disappears, Annaleigh and her friend Riley set off on an adventure through swirling aisles and skies filled with story gems. Guided by Eleanor, the girls discover that the greatest treasures are in the stories themselves.
Why am I the one to tell this story?
Annaleigh and the Library of Hidden Treasures is a whimsical adventure that celebrates imagination, friendship, and the magic found in libraries. I wrote this especially for Literary Night as the elementary school counselor. For each class, I read this story, discussed how to select a library book, and encouraged students to imagine their reactions to seeing a magical elephant.
How it begins:
End Pages:[Illustration: Characters peek from book lined shelves]
PAGES 3-4 TITLE SPREAD
Annaleigh and the Library of Hidden Treasures
By: Rhonda Brown
PAGE 5
The Cedarville Library smelled of stories,
turning pages, and ink-whispered adventures.
Tiny gems twinkled in the sunlight between the shelves.
Annaleigh took two small steps inside.
The air inside tingled with magic.
Annaleigh gasped.
PAGE 6-7
Shimmering in the sunlight stood an elephant,
wearing glasses and holding a book!
She winked, then,
Poof!
The elephant disappeared.
Annaleigh peered down every aisle.
Ahh, there…
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September Poems
Rustling leaves,
trees shiver, yawing deeply-
anticipation.
Fall's first scent hovers
in between the blurred lines
of a seasonal shift.
Leaf whistles,
needles oscillate in a
psithurism wind song.
Crimson hues slip through
the mizzling mist of
Autumn's display.
Seasonal timing
grounding roots, true friends are the
rings inside.
Some friendships are seasonal leaves we experience briefly.
Friends who support us through several season are like sturdy branches.
Still a core group of friends who offer sage advice keep you grounded.
Yet, there is one more friendship that leaves a ring on your heart, the indelaible friend.
The heart rings' interconnectedness and resilience are linked like an aspen grove. This frienship leaves an ingrained mark guiding your life, creating a sublte beauty that is lasting.
Plantation swing,
chatty girls,
the evening wanes
into darkness.
moonbeams prance
atop the subnivean zone,
a gentle nightlight
winter's shield
snow blanket or hoarfrost,
survive or succumb
silence broken
predatory footfalls
winter creaks
relentless onslaught
of graupel freezing, thawing,
yet
safely tucked
in the space between,
all sleep
Have you ever rewritten a poem that you like even more? This poem begins softly, intrigue builds, and then the twist at the end.
A Sanguine Hope
Anticipation,
to the Father's delight,
Emmanuel is born.
Cosmic reveal
kalpa shift in God's plan,
an awakening.
A whispered tune
resonated, releasing
a poignant message
The dawning light
of a new beginning
slates our thirst.
Arousing
a sanguine hope
for the coming year
A salubrious optimism
laced with intent,
tempered.
ideas
moonbeams prance atop
the subnivean zone,
a playful cadence
(Mangata reverie or gentle nightlight)
winter's shield
snow blanket or hoarfrost,
survive or succumb
silence broken
winter creaks
footfalls
(predator footfalls or fox's footfalls or red fox
Graupel is also called snow pellets or soft hail
silence broken
winter creaks-predatory,
footfall
relentless onslaught
freezing, thawing,
yet
safely tucked
in the space between,
all sleep
WIP
A Sanguine Hope
Anticipation,
to the Father's delight,
Emmanuel is born.
Kalpa moment,
a cosmic shift revealed, released
unnoticed, quietly
A whispered tune
resonates from within
a poignant message
The dawning light
of a new beginning
slates our thirst.
Arousing
a sanguine hope
for the coming year
A salubrious optimism
laced with intent,
tempered.
A kalpa is a long period of time (aeon) in Hindu and Buddhist cosmology, generally between the creation and recreation of a world or universe.
a cosmic shift
Poems for August
haiku
sesquipedalian flow
cut short
HaaaHaa- so funny
a winded, wordy
sesquipedalian flow
clipped
sunkiss hues hug the horizon
moringing clouds cling to the moutain
yearing
people vs power, people unite against derisive power, for those who have ears to hear.
brontebrown2 
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