“Caught within a storm
Seeking rescue and respite
For now, must endure”
Janis Haikus
Splintered raindrops splash on the remnants of my dreams as the sky fills with the haunting sounds of nightfall and cold gales. A storm thrown against the last days of March breathes its last gasp as I struggle through the wet hours of the night with thoughts of a sunnier tomorrow. There is a sense of mortality hidden amid the sound of raindrops
battering against windows, which are lit up by sprinkles of light from ribbons of lightning screaming within clouds. It is cold outside, and I hear the faint chirping of songbirds trying to stay dry by being secreted in bushes away from stormy gusts. Water is dripping off the eaves again, like pieces of time surfacing then vanishing into the haunting void of the past. Trees, are bending to the weapons of wind and rain, since their shields of leaves were blown into the air and lost. I am trying to sleep amidst the deafening
intermittent din of thunder and lightening, which assaults my ears, and eyes, and makes the room glow with an eerie explosion of light that twists around the room like a wild beast looking for a way to escape. Then in a sudden gap of timelessness, I realize that rain and wind have worn down my dreams. I then hear wood shingles on the roof being blown off onto the brick patio, making a stentorian noise. The pattern of raindrops on the windows, lit up by lightening bolts that snake across the window panes like demons, seem to be carrying messages of grief. But, as I listen to the sounds of the storm, I remember someone once told me when I was but a small child, that you must live in the
moment and enjoy everything that takes place, for each event has its place and all things are beautiful, even the din of thunder, the flash of thunderbolts, and the sound of rain pouring on roofs. Even death, it was said is just another door into another life.
James, a retired Professor and octogenarian is a Best of the Web nominee and three time Pushcart nominee, and has had five poetry books, The Silent Pond (2012), Ancient Rhythms (2014), LIGHT (2016), Solace Between the Lines (2019), and his latest book, Serenity, and over 1700 poems, five novels, seven essays, and 35 short stories published worldwide, in over 255 publications. He earned his doctorate from BYU, and his BS and MA from California State Polytechnic University, SLO. He lives with his wife Sandy in an 1880s replica of an Eastern farmhouse, in the foothills of Santa Ynez, California.
Kara Goughnour is a writer and documentarian living in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They are the author of “Mixed Tapes,” forthcoming in the Ghost City Press Summer 2019 Micro-Chap Series. They are the recipient of the 2018 Gerald Stern Poetry Award, and have work published or forthcoming in The Bitchin’ Kitsch, Third Point Press, and over forty others. Follow them on Twitter and Instagram 
Dan has an MS Degree. He is the author of four poetry Chapbooks, and a new collection of fiction, Second Stories. Recent Credits: 101 Words, Amethyst, UK., Chaleur Magazine, Cleaver Magazine, Dissections, Door=Jar, Entropy, Esthetic Apostle, Foxglove, Frogmore, High Shelf Press, Poetry Northwest, Rue Scribe, Runcible Spoon, Skylight 47, Spelk, Spillwords, The Fiction Pool, The Stray Branch, Urban Arts, The Zen Space, Tulpa and zeroflash.
Rebecca Gethin lives on Dartmoor in Devon. In 2017 two pamphlets were published: A Sprig of Rowan by Three Drops Press and All the Time in the World by Cinnamon Press who published an earlier collection called A Handful of Water and two novels. She has been a Hawthornden Fellow. In 2018 she jointly won the Coast to Coast Pamphlet competition and has been awarded a writing residency at Brisons Veor. Find more at 
Paul Robert Mullen is a poet, musician and sociable loner from Southport, near Liverpool, UK. He is a keen traveller, having lived and worked in China and Australia, and has scaled the entirety of Asia. He also enjoys Leonard Cohen, bass guitar riffs, porridge, paperback books with broken spines, and all things minimalist.
Raine Geoghegan, MA lives in West Sussex, UK. She is half Romany with Welsh and Irish ancestry. Her poems and short prose have been widely published and her debut pamphlet, ‘Apple Water – Povel Panni’ is due to be published by Hedgehog Press in November 2018. It was previewed at the Ledbury Poetry Festival in July. Her work has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize and the Best of the Net 2018. Her poems were also featured in the film ‘Stories from the Hop Yards’ as part of the Herefordshire Life through a Lens Project and one of the poems was made into a film by the Wellington Primary School. Find out more at 
paul Bluestein has written poetry for many years, but has just recently begun to submit his work. He is hoping Foxglove Journal will be one of his first steps forward on this new journey. He is a physician (OB-GYN) by profession (retired … or just plain tired), a self-taught musician (guitar and piano) and a dedicated Bridge and Scrabble player (yes, ZAX is a word). He writes poetry because The Muse, from time to time, calls him unexpectedly and keep ringing insistently until he answers, even if he doesn’t want to talk with her just then.
Geraldine McCarthy lives in West Cork. In a former life she was involved in tutoring, lecturing, translation and research. She has been writing short stories and flash fiction for nearly three years now. Her work has been published in The Fable Online, The Incubator Journal, Seven Deadly Sins: a YA Anthology (Gluttony, Wrath, Avarice), Scarlet Leaf Review, Brilliant Flash Fiction and Every Day Fiction. Find her at 
Linda Imbler is the author of the published poetry collection “Big Questions, Little Sleep.” Her work has appeared in 
Ken Allan Dronsfield is a poet who was nominated for The Best of the Net and 2 Pushcart Awards for Poetry in 2016. His poetry has been published world-wide in various publications throughout North and South America, Europe, Asia, Australia and Africa. His work has appeared in The Burningword Journal, Belle Reve Journal, Setu Magazine, The Literary Hatchet Magazine, The Stray Branch, Now Then Manchester, Bewildering Stories, Scarlet Leaf Review. EMBOSS Magazine and many more. Ken loves thunderstorms, walking in the woods at night, and spending time with his cat Willa. Ken’s new book, The Cellaring, a collection of haunting, paranormal, weird and wonderful poems, has been released and is available through Amazon. He is the co-editor of two poetry anthologies, Moonlight Dreamers of Yellow Haze and Dandelion in a Vase of Roses available from Amazon.
Ali Jones is a teacher and mother of three. Her work has appeared in Fire, Poetry Rivals, Strange Poetry, Ink Sweat and Tears, Snakeskin Poetry, Atrium,
Claire Sexton is a forty something Welsh writer who has previously been published in Ink, Sweat and Tears, Peeking Cat Poetry, The Stare’s Nest, and Light – a journal of photography and poetry. She often writes about her struggles with her mental health and loneliness.
Foxglove Journal 