October Contest Runner-Up - Lori Simmons

"The Stalker"

In the ghostly morning hours
Upon the black-blue granite sea
The clandestine clipper moors and waits

Clang, clang, clang, greed’s bell calls
Putrid, sultry smells stir...golden eyes glow...it awakens

As its thick, thorny skin escalates up the sea wall
The stones bristle with pain

In a manic hunt for a meal
The beast defenestrates his body onto the dark street

Like a coffee deprived morphine addict…it panics
Fear driven and blood thirsty
The night stalker filches a helpless soul before he slinks back to his ship.






Biography:

Lori Simmons was born in central Florida and moved around a lot in her childhood. She has lived in the U.S. and overseas which added to her exposure to different cultures and ideas. Since a young age, Lori wrote poems as a way to express her feelings about what she saw and experienced. Her poetry reflects her spirituality, life, passion for nature and creativity. It wasn’t until earning her BA in English from the University of Maryland University College that Lori entertained the idea of writing poetry for publication. Currently, she lives on a small farm in Cedar Hill, Tennessee with her husband.