by Milton P. Ehrlich

Was an elegant bird in a gilded cage 

who taught me how to unfurl my wings 

when I opened her cage to the sound 

of unstoppable clanging bells. 

We left behind all the rabid demons 

and faces of death inside the cage. 

We flew far across the seven seas, 

and over snow-capped mountains. 

For our symbiotic telekinetic connection, 

I will build a wooden box for two 

where we can remain together 

as we angle our heads like satellite dishes 

and wait to receive signals for our next transformation.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Milton P. Ehrlich, Ph.D. is an 89-year-old psychologist and a veteran of the Korean War. He has published poems in The Antigonish Review, London Grip, Arc Poetry Magazine, Descant Literary Magazine, Wisconsin Review, Red Wheelbarrow, Christian Science Monitor, and the New YorkTimes.

ABOUT THE ARTIST

Steven McCrystal lives in a town called Bo’ness in Scotland. He started painting in Art Therapy and found the creative outlet very beneficial. It helped him come to terms with the traumas he’d been through and enabled him to look at his troubles in a different light.  

McCrystal enjoys painting abstract art, but his repertoire also consists of emotive work and elements of his bipolar experiences. He has found that there is nothing better than feeling an emotional connection to the art he produces and hopes viewers of his art find that same connection.