Tag: poem

Today I Am Grateful-A Thanksgiving Reflection

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Today I am grateful

For the darkness and the light,

For the struggles and the strife,

For the hearts who live in mine,

For the rain and bright sunshine.

Today I am grateful

For my partner and soulmate,

For moments small and great,

For morning’s singing birds,

For notebooks, pens, and words.

Today I am grateful

For cherished family love,

For those in heaven above,

For mornings, noons, and nights,

For taste, and smell, and sight.

Today I am grateful

For friends both near and far,

For dawn’s and dusk’s bright stars,

For food and drink aplenty,

For the dollars, coins, and pennies.

Today I am grateful

For rock bottom and the wins,

For forgiveness for my sins,

For the waves, the sea, the bay,

For each smile along my way,

Today I am grateful

For everything and how,

For the path to here and now,

For one more chance to give,

For one more day to live.

Happy Thanksgiving, friends! Thanks for joining me on my journey. I’m glad you’re here.

With gratitude,

Jill

“Today I Am Grateful’” was posted on jillocone.com on November 25, 2021. Views and opinions expressed in this post are solely those of the writer, who was not endorsed or compensated in any manner by any entity; views do not represent any employer. Copyright 2021, Jill Ocone. All rights reserved. Contact jillocone@gmail.com with reposting, licensing, and publishing inquiries.

PUBLISHED IN “FROM THE SOIL: A HOMETOWN ANTHOLOGY”

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From the Soil: A Hometown Anthology, Published on December 22, 2020

I am very excited to announce that my poem titled “Boro Kids” was selected for publication in From the Soil: A Hometown Anthology, published by Exeter Publishing.

From the Amazon Sales Page:

“Our hometowns raised us all differently. Our roots absorbed different values and experiences that turned us into the people we are today. Whether we realize it or not, it influenced our art in some way. Our first anthology is dedicated to hometowns.“

From the Soil-A Hometown Anthology is available for purchase on Amazon.com in Paperback for $15.00.

From the Soil-A Hometown Anthology is also available as an interactive .pdf version available for $5.

“Boro Kids” is a poem about growing up in my hometown of Point Pleasant Boro, New Jersey. I wrote it in early September 2015 as a tribute to my friend Roscoe, a fellow Boro Kid, who passed away after being dealt a bad cancer hand at the age of 43. The poem ended up resonating with many Boro Kids who grew up alongside us, so much so that several inquired about purchasing custom canvas prints of the poem over the years since. I reworked the poem for publication in the anthology so it differs slightly from the original version.

Thanks for joining me on my journey. I’m glad you’re here.

With gratitude,

Jill

“Published in “From the Soil-A Hometown Anthology” was posted on jillocone.com and on soulseaker.com on December 27, 2020. Views and opinions expressed in this post are solely those of the writer, who was not endorsed or compensated in any manner by any entity; views do not represent any employer. Copyright 2020, Jill Ocone. All rights reserved. Contact jillocone@gmail.com with reposting, licensing, and publishing inquiries.

Sublime

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Sometimes,

There are

No words

To describe

The incredulous

Beauty of

Our world.

The rising sun

Stretches her hues

To dapple

The current,

The ocean’s color

As the light

Shimmies

And dances

Atop the waves

Divine.

How could I

Have been

Created by

The same being

Who built

And I bask in

Such beauty?

The day begins,

The sublime sunlight

And in the

Sheer glory of

Being alive.

Taken September 7, 2020


 Thanks for joining me on my journey. I’m glad you’re here.

With gratitude,

Jill

“Sublime” was posted on jillocone.com and on soulseaker.com on September 7, 2020. Views and opinions expressed in this post are solely those of the writer, who was not endorsed or compensated in any manner by any entity, and do not represent the views of any employer. Copyright 2020, Jill Ocone. All rights reserved. Contact jillocone@gmail.com with reposting, licensing, and publishing inquiries.

A Dedication to Fellow Dreamers

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“A Dedication to Fellow Dreamers” – May 24, 2020

 

This is for all of the dreamers out there…

The ones who chase the rainbows

And take a front-row seat as the birdies perform their daily concerto…

The ones who rejoice at the birth of the seedling

As its tiny green head sprouts up through the dirt…

The ones who joyfully in the rain

And let the snowflakes tickle their eyelashes.

 

This goes out to the ones who make dandelion wishes

And leave the heads-up penny on the ground for someone who needs it more…

The ones who blow iridescent bubbles into the wafting breeze

And take the long way home on a Friday afternoon…

The ones whose skin prickles as the sun peeks up from beneath the horizon

And are inspired by the day’s end masterpiece.

 

This is for all who let the wet sand flow between their toes

As the sea’s wave caresses their feet…

The ones who accept a little hand into theirs

As they walk alongside the future…

The ones who continue their search for the light

In spite of overwhelming darkness…

The ones who believe in love

And faith

And hope

And joy.

 

This goes out to

You.

 

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cropped-img_0764 Thanks for joining me on my journey. I’m glad you’re here.

With gratitude,

Jill

 

“A Dedication to Fellow Dreamers” was posted on jillocone.com and on soulseaker.com on May 24, 2020. Views and opinions expressed in this post are solely those of the writer, who was not compensated in any way by any entity. Copyright 2020, Jill Ocone. All rights reserved. Contact jillocone@gmail.com with reposting, licensing, and publishing inquiries.

New Year’s Morning

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“New Year’s Morn. “Taken January 1, 2020 at sunrise in Melbourne Beach, Florida with my iPhone (no filters). Copyright Jill Ocone, 2020.

It’s quiet and calm

At the beach before dawn

As the sun peeks its head

Over the horizon.

Slowly yet deliberately,

It casts joy and hope

Masked in its first light

On a new day,

A new month,

A new year,

A new decade,

A new me.

Its grows and ascends

As it magnificently

Ignites every cloud in the sky

And shell on the sand

With its splendor of colors

And radiant light.

As it says,

Good morning, world.

Here’s a brand new day,

Another fresh start

Created just for you…

and if this one doesn’t work out,

I’ll be back around

Same time tomorrow,

With another new day,

Another fresh start,

Teeming with a new batch of

Joy, hope, and faith,

Waiting just for you.

 

Happy new day. Happy new month. Happy new year. Happy new decade.

And Happy New You.

 

cropped-img_0764 Thanks for joining me on my journey. I’m glad you’re here.

With gratitude,

Jill

 

“New Year’s Morning” was posted on jillocone.com  and on soulseaker.com on January 1, 2020. Views and opinions expressed in this post are solely those of the writer who was not compensated in any way by any entity. Copyright 2020, Jill Ocone. All rights reserved. Contact jillocone@gmail.com with licensing and publishing inquiries.

 

 

Published in 2019 American Writers Review!

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img_5527I am pleased to share that three of my poems appear in the 2019 American Writers Review, a multi-genre literary journal published by San Fedele Press and now available on Amazon in both book and Kindle format. 

The titles of my published poems are “The Sidewinder,” “Futility,” and “Cycle.”

It’s an honor for my poems to appear alongside the work of so many other wonderful writers from around the world.

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