Dear Personal Care Department God by Chris Kads | One Poem Only

#338

Yesterday at 3:00 PM

One Poem Only is a daily poetry podcast offering a quiet moment with a single poem—read aloud, without analysis or noise.

Dear Personal Care Department God

Chris Kads

After Lancee Whetman
God of the Personal Care Department,please grant me musk. Grant methe strength of “Steel Courage” -buffness in a bottle. Let mybody be a vessel of “dragon’s breath”and “warrior’s blood”. Allow me,like men, to be baptizedin wet swagger, to have mypreconceived softnesswash away with the scentof toughness.
Bless me,with blindness in the faceof razors. Grant methe normalizatio...

Ugly Bones by Ella B. Winters | One Poem Only

#337

Last Thursday at 3:00 PM

A daily reading from One Poem Only—a quiet space for a single poem, read aloud.

Ugly Bones by Ella B. Winters

Ella B. Winters

Behind the dusty radiator,green splashed like bloodspray in a B-film, from that timewhen you decidedto paint our bedroomin the middle of the night,I keep my poemshidden in a puce manila fileso unremarkable, it chameleonsinto the background, pink tongueunfurling to swallow my wordsinto the shadowy crevice.Mostly, I don’t want youto see them, as though,in the starkness of the earlyhours, when our wallsdemand another change,they migh...

When the Moon is full by GiGi | One Poem Only

#336

Last Wednesday at 3:00 PM

One Poem Only is a daily ritual: one poem, center stage, just for now.

When the Moon is full

GiGi

When the Moon is Full, She never holds Me by the hand.
She grabs right behind the gape of My neck and drags me to all I've been avoiding.
When the Moon is Full, She never whispers in My ear.
She screams at the top of Her lungs, so loud, that her rasping voice awakens the aliens in outer space; now peering from their spaceships.
When the Moon is Full...

This is How I Die by Kris Aziz | One Poem Only

#335

Last Tuesday at 6:00 PM

One Poem Only is a daily ritual: one poem, center stage, just for now.

This is How I Die

Kris Aziz

This is how I dieGlass reflecting moonlighton the pavementMetal and gasoline mixing withBlood in the airA paramedic holding my hand
Except, wait-- rewind.I chose to get Taco BellBefore getting on the highwayAfter all.I don't worry about the caloriesOr how a dress will fitAfter all, I have a coupon forA free soft tacoThat says "you deserve it".I am not dead, I am eating aNacho fry Baja blast chalupaIn standstill traffic.<...

First Draft by Jo Wright | One Poem Only

#334

Last Monday at 6:00 PM

One Poem Only is a daily poetry podcast offering a quiet moment with a single poem—read aloud, without analysis or noise.

First Draft

Jo Wright

I don’t want AI.I want bees and seasDeep evergreen forestsGreat honeycombsIcecaps.Just, knowledgeable loversMen needing othersPeople questioning rhetoricSpeaking truthUnderstanding VaccinationsA world where we exclude no oneYears where there is still ozone.I want words to matterAnd when I draft my patterI don’t want my phone to ask‘Can I rewrite that for you?’I want credit where credit’s bloody dueAnd throwing that swear word inStops Goog...

In Warmth by Maggie Devers & Weekly Poetry Recap | One Poem More

#333

Last Sunday at 6:00 PM

One Poem More gathers all of this week’s poems from One Poem Only—an unhurried chance to listen again, or catch what you missed.

This week’s poems

Plutocracy by Alicia SwainTony and/or Tonee by Nguyen Minh TriSnail by Lizzie Elliot-Kleinintuition by rismReduced by Rosalind DaviesEpitaph On A Tyrant by W. H. Auden

Plus one new one to carry us into the week ahead

In Warmth

Maggie Devers

How many pots of tea have we forgotten to drink?Have we left sitting calmly on the counterGoing from hot to...

Epitaph On A Tyrant by W. H. Auden | One Poem Only

#332

03/28/2026

One Poem Only is a daily ritual: one poem, center stage, just for now.

Epitaph On A Tyrant

W. H. Auden

Perfection, of a kind, was what he was after,And the poetry he invented was easy to understand;He knew human folly like the back of his hand,And was greatly interested in armies and fleets;When he laughed, respectable senators burst with laughter,And when he cried the little children died in the streets.

Support + Stay Connected to OPO

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Reduced by Rosalind Davies | One Poem Only

#331

03/27/2026

One Poem Only is a daily poetry podcast offering a quiet moment with a single poem—read aloud, without analysis or noise.

Reduced

Rosalind Davies

Easy winter option, ideal for layering over your favourite outfits,regular fit, timeless crew neckline.
The glory of a full-price itemChosen in the hot bloom of the seasonMy size, my length.I take time to choose, plan ahead, create,Build a look, an image, or someone else’s,The one I want to lay on me,The one that speaks loud what I want it to say.A gift...

intuition by rism | One Poem Only

#330

03/26/2026

A daily reading from One Poem Only—a quiet space for a single poem, read aloud.

intuition

rism

Pattern recognition is acognitive discipline —congenitally decided for most,congested with emotion.Not to boast, butI’m a fucking psychicfunctioning on fumes and faint tracesof a beautywho previously inhabitedthis body, this brain.I mainline cues.It’s smooth, yet dangerous —an almost cancerous paranoia.Sometimes wildly,the past is a tool used primally;utilize your history.Intuition powerfully promotes fruitionpassionately if tempted.Trust in the process promptedby your progress.

Snail by Lizzie Elliot-Klein | Wednesday Double Feature | One Poem Only

#329

03/25/2026

Wednesdays on One Poem Only are a double feature: one poem here on the podcast, and one more by the same poet shared on Instagram.

Snail

Lizzie Elliot-Klein

In your spiral shellyou hold the answer –slowness is radical.
From the ash pileof my burn out,I see you everywhere.
Clinging to walls,meandering through moss,criss-crossing my path.
Reaching unbelievable heightsat speeds that will win no medals –
just savouring thesilvery slownessof yourtrail.
In your spiral shellyou hold the answer –softness is strength.Inching forward on vulnerable ripples,retreating when the wo...

Tony and/or Tonee by Nguyen Minh Tri | One Poem Only

#328

03/24/2026

One Poem Only is a daily ritual: one poem, center stage, just for now.

Tony and/or Tonee

Nguyen Minh Tri

The "y" is a hook, a barb in the ground,A heavy-set anchor, a masculine sound.It carries the dust of the fathers and sons,My father and his son.The weight of the "Tony" who follows/ who runs,A name like a suit that is tailored too tight,Designed for the sun, yet afraid of the light.To them, it’s a letter/ to me, it’s a wall,A clanking vibration that...

Plutocracy by Alicia Swain | One Poem Only

#327

03/23/2026

One Poem Only is a daily poetry podcast offering a quiet moment with a single poem—read aloud, without analysis or noise.

Plutocracy

Alicia Swain

In kitchens drops will drip, each brown in hue,a mother will keep her son from the truth,the senate will swear there’s nothing to do,though they tout their care for the nation’s youth.A man will cast his vote at ten to noon,his ballot broken down in only two,he lives inside a fading honeymoonwith good intentions, having not a clue:disease inside him ticks...

Cling to Me by Maggie Devers & Weekly Poetry Recap | One Poem More

#326

03/22/2026

One Poem More gathers all of this week’s poems from One Poem Only—an unhurried chance to listen again, or catch what you missed.

This week’s poems

Operating Instructions for the Day After Your Best Friend Tells You He Supports Genocide by Jané DowdSwan Dive by Maia von MaltzahnCycles by S. SalazarAn Emblem of Wounds by Henry Opeyemimortal perch by Amanda ThuyA Dream by Edgar Allan Poe

Plus one new one to carry us into the week ahead

Cling to Me

Maggie Devers

I lay on the Califor...

A Dream by Edgar Allan Poe | One Poem Only

#325

03/21/2026

One Poem Only is a daily ritual: one poem, center stage, just for now.

A Dream

Edgar Allan Poe

In visions of the dark nightI have dreamed of joy departedBut a waking dream of life and lightHath left me broken-hearted.
Ah! what is not a dream by dayTo him whose eyes are castOn things around him with a rayTurned back upon the past?
That holy dream that holy dream,While all the world were chiding,Hath cheered me as a lovely beam,A lonely spirit guiding.
What though that light, thro...

mortal perch by Amanda Thuy | One Poem Only

#324

03/20/2026

One Poem Only is a daily poetry podcast offering a quiet moment with a single poem—read aloud, without analysis or noise.

mortal perch

Amanda Thuy

upon a mortal perch i scribe away my lonely parts,pulled from deepest chasm of this broken heart.a treasure trove of loss and tattered dreams,befitting muse which in the dark sits agleam.
heartache wrapped in anguished words seeking sanity,mutated from once tightly held soliloquy.harrowing thoughts bleed from fissures of speaking heart,seeping through veins and through fingers now depart.all unspoken peers now in...

An Emblem of Wounds by Henry Opeyemi | One Poem Only

#323

03/19/2026

A daily reading from One Poem Only—a quiet space for a single poem, read aloud.

An Emblem of Wounds

Henry Opeyemi

We are in the middle of a conversation, thereflection of our lives upon glossy waters.We’re twice the age we used to be, shadinghome into grief, into a childhood memory.there is an ophicleide infused in the distance ofsouls, singing into the littleness of a heaven: aprayer old enough for the heaviness I have carried.a boy from my childhood recognizes me by a face I no longer wear, by a stil...

Cycles by S. Salazar | Wednesday Double Feature | One Poem Only

#322

03/18/2026

Wednesdays on One Poem Only are a double feature: one poem here on the podcast, and one more by the same poet shared on Instagram.

Cycles

S. Salazar

The space in which my family occupies is a revolving door—each rotation moves me further from their timelines.Yet turning to push the door in reversewon’t take me back to a time with them:to picnics beneath the Central Park oaksor a game of tag among Puerto Rican palms.I existed decades after Abuelo exited the door.I stepped between the panes of glassjust as A...

Swan Dive by Maia von Maltzahn | One Poem Only

#321

03/17/2026

One Poem Only is a daily ritual: one poem, center stage, just for now.

Swan Dive by Maia von Maltzahn

Maia von Maltzahn

It’s the kind of hotafternoon in Augustwhere the sun cracksyour mouth openso you can takea big gulp oflife
Chin tuckedwind-up lanky-limbsbare brownedshoulders humin the heatrunning warmwooden dockbeneath your feet, stepone, two, and
Leap…
gravitygreetsyou
like a pinky-promisein the lakewater answerswith a laughing splash
you elegant creaturehere, you belong.

Operating Instructions for the Day After Your Best Friend Tells You He Supports Genocide by Jané Dowd | One Poem Only

#320

03/16/2026

One Poem Only is a daily poetry podcast offering a quiet moment with a single poem—read aloud, without analysis or noise.

Operating Instructions for the Day After Your Best Friend Tells You He Supports Genocide

Jané Dowd

Upon waking: breathe deep.Savour the shimmer of momentary freedom,lack of memory and regret.Surround yourself with three dogs:sentinels; triumvirate.Check the curtain crack for signs of dawn.When the child stirs, relish her aliveness.As the small ghosts arise in protest,cup their faces in your bloody hands,whisper the useless lament:I am...

The Call by Maggie Devers & Weekly Poetry Recap | One Poem More

#319

03/15/2026

One Poem More gathers all of this week’s poems from One Poem Only—an unhurried chance to listen again, or catch what you missed.

This week’s poems

no place like home by Abhilasha GhoshThe mind unmasked by Aliyah Morayoborderline by Luna FergusonInedible by Seraadulthood by Carlee WilsonTo My Daughter Elizabeth by Mary Ann H. T. Bigelow

Plus one new one to carry us into the week ahead

The Call

Maggie Devers

They woke in slumberAnd settled in the streetsThey counted transgressionsLike it was food to eat
The bl...

To My Daughter Elizabeth by Mary Ann H. T. Bigelow | One Poem Only

#318

03/14/2026

One Poem Only is a daily ritual: one poem, center stage, just for now.

To My Daughter Elizabeth

Mary Ann H. T. Bigelow

Two flowers upon one parent stemTogether bloomed for many days.At length a storm arose, and oneWas blighted, and cut down at noon.
The other hath transplanted been,And flowers fair as herself hath borne;She too has felt the withering storm,Her strength's decayed, wasted her form.
May he who hears the mourner's prayer,Renew her strength for years to come;Long may He our Lilly spare,Long...

adulthood by Carlee Wilson | One Poem Only

#317

03/13/2026

One Poem Only is a daily poetry podcast offering a quiet moment with a single poem—read aloud, without analysis or noise.

adulthood

Carlee Wilson

gone are the days where my ceilingtwinkled with plastic magicand the only house i worried about was barbie’s.it didn’t matter if ken came home or not,didn’t matter if stacie’s car had a flator if joe’s deployment was extended.boy, i’d kill for a mud pie right now,full of everything we’ve been taught to avoid,devoid of everything we’ve been taught matter...

Inedible by Sera | One Poem Only

#316

03/12/2026

A daily reading from One Poem Only—a quiet space for a single poem, read aloud.

Inedible

Sera

I wish I could covermy body in spikes,become unappetizing,indigestible.
I poke holes into my image,pour lighter fluid over it,flicking the flame onand burning awaythe outline you memorized,char the version of meyou still think of.
I wish I could transform,shapeshiftinto something you hate.
I chop my hair inuneven sections,cut lattice into my face,unravel the centre of myself.I bite my fingers raw,throw my body against co...

borderline by Luna Ferguson | Wednesday Double Feature | One Poem Only

#315

03/11/2026

Wednesdays on One Poem Only are a double feature: one poem here on the podcast, and one more by the same poet shared on Instagram.

borderline

Luna Ferguson

borderlinebetween what may i ask?floating whilst the clock ticks bytears on the night of your lifepain in pleasurepleasure in paindoors closedthe slams still echo in your brainin-prisoned by your own namedust scatters over where you layan endless impossible escape you planned at 5imprints of those who held you tightjust to leave you in the nightskys are blue but your mind is greyit makes no sense...

The mind unmasked by Aliyah Morayo | One Poem Only

#314

03/10/2026

One Poem Only is a daily ritual: one poem, center stage, just for now.

The mind unmasked

Aliyah Morayo

My mind carries centuries.The rust of chains sits where dreams should bloom.It remembers the songs my ancestors could not finish,the languages drowned beneath the ocean,The prayers that reached heaven but never came back whole.
I carry the scent of burning villages,the hush of mothers hiding their children from soldiers,The taste of iron in blood is not yet dry.History is not behind me,it lives beneath my skin...

no place like home by Abhilasha Ghosh | One Poem Only

#313

03/09/2026

One Poem Only is a daily poetry podcast offering a quiet moment with a single poem—read aloud, without analysis or noise.

no place like home

Abhilasha Ghosh

coming back feels different—as if the walls have softenedwhile you were gone,as if the light has rehearsedthe exact way it will fall on your facewhen you step inside.you notice small things first:the old curtain breathing in the breeze,the smell of evening settling on the floor,the faint echo of who you used to bestill lingering in the cornerslike a loyal ghost.dist...

Borders by Maggie Devers & Weekly Poetry Recap | One Poem More

#312

03/08/2026

One Poem More gathers all of this week’s poems from One Poem Only—an unhurried chance to listen again, or catch what you missed.

This week’s poems

Presence of Choice by Alecia LewisHarmony by Seán TateMemory weighs more than bone and Hash browns by Charlotte DawnTangerines and Alcoholism by Labanya DeyI Am Mother by Melissa NortonComrades by Ella Wheeler Wilcox

Plus one new one to carry us into the week ahead

Borders

Maggie Devers

On the north side of the borderThe saguaro arms are droopingAnd the Oregon...

Comrades by Ella Wheeler Wilcox | One Poem Only

#311

03/07/2026

One Poem Only is a daily ritual: one poem, center stage, just for now.

Comrades

Ella Wheeler Wilcox

I and my Soul are alone to-day, All in the shining weather; We were sick of the world, and put it away, So we could rejoice together.
Our host, the Sun, in the blue, blue sky Is mixing a rare, sweet wine, In the burnished gold of this cup on high, For me, and this Soul of mine.
We find it a safe and royal drink, And a cure for every pain; It helps...

I Am Mother by Melissa Norton | One Poem Only

#310

03/06/2026

One Poem Only is a daily poetry podcast offering a quiet moment with a single poem—read aloud, without analysis or noise.

I Am Mother

Melissa Norton

I am Mother, stepping barefoot on the snake.Absorbing her power as her body wraps tight around my leg.I, with quick, sharp force sever the head full of venomAs my mother has done with the point of a shovelAs I have done with a horrified hatchetMy babies will fear no fangs.I am Mother. Protector. Warrior. Safe Haven.
I am Mother. I know powerful, truest lo...

Tangerines and Alcoholism by Labanya Dey | One Poem Only

#309

03/05/2026

A daily reading from One Poem Only—a quiet space for a single poem, read aloud.

Tangerines and Alcoholism

Labanya Dey

My mother peels tangerines Carefully scaling the orange fleshUntil her nails dig into the sour crevices Of the orange ballThe juices drip between her nails and fingertips As she puts them on a plateOn a bright afternoonAs she waits for them to be savouredAppreciated with the delicate eyes she yearns for.
She sits by the table, nails scratching through the skinThe sweet juices bubble through her veins She sits and waits Where th...

Memory weighs more than bone by Charlotte Dawn | Wednesday Double Feature | One Poem Only

#308

03/04/2026

Wednesdays on One Poem Only are a double feature: one poem here on the podcast, and one more by the same poet shared on Instagram.

Memory weighs more than bone

Charlotte Dawn

You can’t see the ghostsuntil you’re almost one—until your breath learns how to hesitate,until mirrors stop recognising youwithout thinking.They gather in the quiet margins:hospital hallways at 3 a.m.,old songs that bruise instead of heal,names you don’t say aloud anymore.The living pass straight through them,laughing, late for something,arms full of tomorrow.They don...

Harmony by Seán Tate | One Poem Only

#307

03/03/2026

One Poem Only is a daily ritual: one poem, center stage, just for now.

Harmony

Seán Tate

Harmony, intermingled with melody, falls lightly from the heavensto coat the parched earth.Rough flakes made smooth by a rich flowing sequence.And the rhythm; listen as the rhythm courses down throughcracks to slumbering seeds.Listen to that steady beat: tap, tap, tap.
Seeds aroused from peaceful repose, strumming and humming to their ownwild chorus; a deep dissonance.Compacted soil parts in compressed rattles, giving room for the buildingcrescendo.

Presence of Choice by Alecia Lewis | One Poem Only

#306

03/02/2026

One Poem Only is a daily poetry podcast offering a quiet moment with a single poem—read aloud, without analysis or noise.

Presence of Choice

Alecia Lewis

I hold no one.They can come or go.Freely.Unbound.
They may disconnectOnlineor in person.
People may condemn me.I remain unshaken.Judgment falls.I do not carry it.
If exiting brings peace,I let them go.With love.With grace.
I hold only thoseWho choose to stay.
The rest are shadows.I release them gently.

Prattle On by Maggie Devers & Weekly Poetry Recap | One Poem More

#305

03/01/2026

One Poem More gathers all of this week’s poems from One Poem Only—an unhurried chance to listen again, or catch what you missed.

This week’s poems

Same Fire by Diana JoharResist by Francesca AcquavivaThe -ness of things by SanjeevaniWomen in Me by AyushiLast Year by Samah AyeshaTo Imagination by Emily Brontë

Plus one new one to carry us into the week ahead

Prattle On

Maggie Devers

A bird in a backpack walked byTweeting plaintively from insideAnd the crows kept up their racketWith little variance
But I think...

To Imagination by Emily Brontë | One Poem Only

#304

02/28/2026

One Poem Only is a daily ritual: one poem, center stage, just for now.

To Imagination

Emily Brontë

When weary with the long day's care,And earthly change from pain to pain,And lost, and ready to despair,Thy kind voice calls me back again:Oh, my true friend! I am not lone,While then canst speak with such a tone!
So hopeless is the world without;The world within I doubly prize;Thy world, where guile, and hate, and doubt,And cold suspicion never rise;Where thou, and I, and Liberty,Have u...

Last Year by Samah Ayesha | One Poem Only

#303

02/27/2026

One Poem Only is a daily poetry podcast offering a quiet moment with a single poem—read aloud, without analysis or noise.

Last Year

Samah Ayesha

i spent the better half of last yearstaring at the ceiling,watching it bend more crookedthe longer i looked.
but it wasn't just the ceilingit was the walls, the floor,maybe my footing,maybe my mindfrom being indoors too long.
each time i completed ablution,each time i laid down my mat to pray,it seemed off too.i checked the compass,adjusted,checked againbut the ma...

Women in Me by Ayushi | One Poem Only

#302

02/26/2026

A daily reading from One Poem Only—a quiet space for a single poem, read aloud.

Women in Me

Ayushi

I think I gather dreams like picking up stonesnear an abandoned highway wherethe road leads nowhere,where the wind pants like a tiger breathingand the woman in me returns to lookfor the girl she had lost years agoperhaps the salt in me will return to the seaand the light in me will break opena door, a wound, a memory, that no one can shuta spring thunder, bolts me awake from a dreamI am dragging my...

The -ness of things by Sanjeevani | Wednesday Double Feature | One Poem Only

#301

02/25/2026

Wednesdays on One Poem Only are a double feature: one poem here on the podcast, and one more by the same poet shared on Instagram.

The -ness of things

Sanjeevani

Sadness incurable. Hopelessness, hold on—brink of collapse—unstable ecosystems, volatile geopolitics,anthropological coldness.Kindness—let the spider live.Closeness—us two, are we corrupt too?A likeness—before the doom, a thought of younearly smothers me in blue.Fondness—find me after the apocalypse,remember, black holes decay—oneness.Madness—this world and I,an intrinsic brokenness.Wilderness—A state of being.I lose, and I losein...

Resist by Francesca Acquaviva | One Poem Only

#300

02/24/2026

One Poem Only is a daily ritual: one poem, center stage, just for now.

Resist

Francesca Acquaviva

A burning wickof resistancein two seasof indifferencebitter coffeewith the sweetnessof the vehemencewith which the windwhispersI resistto desirein more than one headto becomecloversto sew togetherthe pagesthe speakersthe soft notestables pushed togetherclosewhile on the napkinsone knitsa validfutureto embroiderto knitthe handfulsof grainsto be sanda free beachwe have litwe want to lightamong the ruinsthe fingerprintsthe encephalogramthe commas stillstained with inkthe typingthe unionthe gaitthe way of speakingthe way of dressingsometimes deemedwrongthe only thing wrong isthe yoke of the dustof the old—not th...

Same Fire by Diana Johar | One Poem Only

#299

02/23/2026

One Poem Only is a daily poetry podcast offering a quiet moment with a single poem—read aloud, without analysis or noise.

Same Fire

Diana Johar

When things were beautiful,you stood in my corner—calling me strong, brave,everything you admired.
But beauty dims.And now you say I’ve got out of hand,call me crazy,as if this same firewasn’t the reasonyou loved me once.
So go—find another love,meek and gentle.Tell yourselfyou’ve done the right thing.
While I go on burning—fierce,unapologetic,like the wayI...