Al Ortolani
Noble Silence
A fan squeaks throughoutthe noon meditation session,one of the eight that keeps
the Missouri heat movinguntil the chime of the bell.When we stretch our legs, standingin our socks on the hard wood, eyessearch the rotating bladesfor the culprit, butthe squeak has stopped, each
of us points in a differentdirection while we circlein and out through rowsof cushions, the welcome
silence well-oiled.
Al Ortolani has been a public school teacher in Kansas for the past 39 years. As a boy, he dreamed of being a second baseman for the New York Yankees. However, when they didn't call, he began writing poetry. He has three books of poetry, The Last Hippie of Camp 50 and Finding the Edge, published by Woodley Press and Wren's House, published by Coal City Press. He is an editor for The Little Balkans Review and works closely with the Kansas City Writer's Place.
A fan squeaks throughoutthe noon meditation session,one of the eight that keeps
the Missouri heat movinguntil the chime of the bell.When we stretch our legs, standingin our socks on the hard wood, eyessearch the rotating bladesfor the culprit, butthe squeak has stopped, each
of us points in a differentdirection while we circlein and out through rowsof cushions, the welcome
silence well-oiled.
Al Ortolani has been a public school teacher in Kansas for the past 39 years. As a boy, he dreamed of being a second baseman for the New York Yankees. However, when they didn't call, he began writing poetry. He has three books of poetry, The Last Hippie of Camp 50 and Finding the Edge, published by Woodley Press and Wren's House, published by Coal City Press. He is an editor for The Little Balkans Review and works closely with the Kansas City Writer's Place.