Words are the broken mirrors of the world
the shadowed reflectionns
of the fractured self
small within it
Fragments of soul, of truths that beg...
hear me speak
Words Are..excerpt from Speak
Welcome......
......to the site of poet and founder/editor of
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Books (click on thumbnail to order)
| Speak by Debbie Berk a second collection of poetry containing 39 poems that depict the human condition known as existence in all its flawed, deeply scarred imperfections spoken with blunt, raw, honest emotion. 52 pages (soft cover) |
| In The Shadow Of A Heartbeat, Letters To Your Ghost, a first collection of poems and writings written after the death of my father in May 2008. In The Shadow of A Heartbeat is a very personal and emotional collection of work that depicts the pain of dealing with an abusive past and the estrangement between the father who had inflicted the abuse and the daughter who struggles in his death to make peace with the father she once adored and still loves beyond the hate, the hurt, searching for a sense of closure in words that could only come from the heart, a broken heart. 26 pages (soft cover) |
the latest issue of the stray Branch
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The Spring/Summer 2009 issue #3, the first print issue of The Stray Branch. Cover art by Amer Berk, features the work of Andy Robertson, Suzanne Richardson Harvey, Amber Ritchie, Alex Galper, Ken Fisher, John Grey, Simon Perchik and more... 8 1/2 by 11 size (card stock cover) 27 pages |
Current Projects/updates
Currently I am working on issue #4, the Fall/Winter edition of The Stray Branch (which is due out in late August or September) as well as reading submissions and gathering material for future issues.
Unfornately, due to my work on The Stray Branch, dealing with some personal as well as family issues and trying to get my 16 year old daughter ready to leave in a couple of weeks for her trip to Florida where she'll be spending most of her summer I haven't devoted much time to my own writing. I have written a few pieces and I have a few that remain unfinished. Aside from lack of time I also seem to be suffering from that writer's disease...constipation of the mind (writer's block is what they call it).
I plan to publish a third book of poetry but at this time there is no expected completition date as there isn't even a title yet just a plan to produce a third book sometime in the near future. In the meantime please pick up a copy of the books I currently have available.
Speak
In The Shadow Of A Heartbeat, Letters To Your Ghost
You can also pick up a copy of the current issue of The Stray Branch by visiting the website or by clicking on the thumbnail image above.
e-mail me at straybranches@yahoo.com
The Stray Branch, A Literary Publication of poetry, fiction, artwork and photography. Founder/Editor Debbie Berk. Check it out today to find out about current issues, submission needs and guidelines, join the writers' forum or become a member of the site.
Poetry
Lovers and Strangers
We fumble through the chill
of night's silence,
trace the strangeness of skin
'til it becomes familiar again,
'til we remember the words,
find our way back
to the warmth of
something that resembles love...
6/5/09 Debbie Berk
Existence Within The Ghost
A shadow in yesterday's clothes,
haunted within these bones
of slow motion moving through hours
that cling to my skin
like dying clocks reaching
with broken hands
unable to cover deep wounds,
keep parts from spilling out
while numbers hang like ghosts
in a calendar of days
that read like my obituary
4/9/09 Debbie Berk
The Thorn Within My Heart
I pierced my own heart
with the thorn of a rose
Plucked from your
funeral bouquet
Stuck it in deep
Dug out the insides
and scribed in blood
A letter to your ghost
Signed it with a tear
then stitched up the wound
with a jagged thread
Sealing you...
...Forever
within the scar
12/31/08 Debbie Berk
Insomnia
Dreams, restless
within themselves
toss and turn
in their nocturnal beds
helplessly and hopelessly lost
to the hours of darkness
that linger far too long
and yet still it seems
the dawn arrives
much too soon
4/21/09 Debbie Berk
Butterfly
Beauty is but a brief glimpse
into the existence of perfection
within mirror's youth
lost to the years
that follow in shadow
yet only time can sustain truth
behond its reflection
2009 Debbie Berk
New Poetry
I'd Rather Miss You
The Ghosts My Father Saw
Shadows And The Secret Self
Existence Is...(When It's All Gone To The Dogs)
Alone
Knowledge
Damaged
