Live Encounters Poetry & Writing 16th Anniversary Volume Six
November- December 2025
Pulse Electric, poems by Scott Thomas Outlar.
Titan’s Noose
Three cyclops in the forest
one vision triangulated
with eyes closed, the signal
unfurls a mighty ruckus
Melee in the viper pit
Above us, vibrating wings
the hum of orioles hymning
their way through the wind
A gentle breeze
cusp of spring
in its sendoff
surrendering to summer
Octave bellows the waves
moon pulse, tide bereft
of calm or comfort
The teasing lane of resilient sails
approaching confusion
of contusion
capsized, brittle thunder
Pulse Electric
dust of seven ages
squeezed like fresh daisies
with centrifugal gears
itching as scratched platitudes
in sore eyes
sordid sight, first rhyme I
digest tonight
and fade one degree deeper
into a feeling of comfort
two shades off the beaten path
of numb tingling and wizened orbit
a leaf, fluttering, freefall
enter the wishing well of dandelion portal
now ripped through the great divide
neuron cabinet whips out archaic relics and recipes
stir up divergent opinions in the pot
while vultures and ghouls point shadowy fingers
if you learn to grow through disillusion
the jeweled net of contentment stretches out wider
during novel periods of arcane virtue
as all the perching peacocks of inverted righteousness
slip from precarious angles of moral hypocrisy
crumbling into the heap of virtuous stones
they’ve been tossing over the spit-stained ledge
tear ducts barren
cut with shattered glass
sands of cultural hours
turned over, spilling tide
on tip of tongue
dots trace blood
taste of change and copper sizzle
© Scott Thomas Outlar
Scott Thomas Outlar originally hails from Atlanta, Georgia. He now resides and writes in Frederick, Maryland. His work has been nominated multiple times for both the Pushcart Prize and Best of the Net. He guest-edited the Hope Anthology of Poetry from CultureCult Press as well as the 2019-2023 Western Voices editions of Setu Mag. Selections of his poetry have been translated and published in 15 languages. He has been a weekly contributor at Dissident Voice for the past 10 years. More about Outlar’s work can be found at https://17numa.com/