fading light—

the glimmering shadow

of a sea-worn rock

Hifsa Ashraf, Pakistan

Sufi hymn—

sea wind echoes 

through the rock

Hifsa Ashraf, Pakistan

receding tide 

the missing tune

of a sailor’s whistle  

Hifsa Ashraf, Pakistan

he gale shows malice

so fill Manitou’s chalice

with highlands whiskey

David McMurray, Canada

rolling waves break

on the rocky shore—

white pine trees

David McMurray, Canada

a good old boat

she'll stay afloat through gale

and rocks beware

David McMurray, Canada

When the summer ends

we will rest again in the lee of Manitoulin Island

David McMurray, Canada

life-force

struggling into the light

from deep within the stonedeep beneath

the island’s heart

a secret cavern waits

Sherri J Moye-Dombrosky, USA

still twisted

within the womb of the earth

an island forms

waiting for its birth

into the world of light

Sherri J Moye-Dombrosky, USA

what ancient 

gentle creature

lies forming within the deep

Sherri J Moye-Dombrosky, USA

life-force

struggling into the light

from deep within the stone

Sherri J Moye-Dombrosky, USA

kneeling before

the lake's muddy edge

his hands grasp

Manitou's brimming chalice

as he offers libation

Marilyn Humbert, Australia

Zen teaching 

what stone feels like

no skin grafts 

Ernesto P. Santiago, The Philippines

not giving up 

on being beautiful

a stone chalice

Ernesto P. Santiago, The Philippines

delivering the stone 

I hand over 

my fingerprints

Ernesto P. Santiago, The Philippines 

science and pain 

majority of scholars 

skipping certain stones

Ernesto P. Santiago, The Philippines

crossing the river 

a serious rockhound touches 

the rock in his bag 

Ernesto P. Santiago, The Philippines

oval pebbles —

time grinds heaviest boulders

smoothens sharpests edges

R.K. Singh, India

a canoe…

slipping into an inlet

with sunrise

Joanna Ashwell, UK

basalt deep

a shoreline curve

backstops the island

Joanna Ashwell, UK 

pockets of stone

carved into land

I return the pebble

left by you

to mysterious waters

Joanna Ashwell, UK 

sipping 

from the chalice 

everlasting life

Neena Singh, India

the priest falls dead 

during Mass— 

Manitou legend

Neena Singh, India

basalt stone 

years before 

its creation

Neena Singh, India

this sinful world…

our never-ending search

for the Holy Grail

Natalia Kuznetsova, Russia 

coolness…

time and tide

chisel a chalice 

Monica Kakkar, India and USA

balmy breeze…

basking in the brimful

basalt by the bay

Monica Kakkar, India and USA

heaven is high…

making its odyssey

Manitou’s Chalice

Monica Kakkar, India and USA