Category: Storytelling

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Lycanthrope (returns)

“Blue Wolf” drawn with ink on paper by Sanford Ross Bender
“Lycanthrope ” composed and performed with vocals, guitar, concertina, and banjo by Sanford Ross Bender on August 7, 2026.

Lycanthrope

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Darting furtively through the mist,

Cursed under lunar brightness,

The valiancy of my heart,

Slashed by razor teeth,

Became my darkest side.

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Evil enclosing,

My nocturnal lair,

Mud tracked prints,

Find me sprawled,

In the dawn of twisted sheets,

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Like tormented trees,

Gnarled from remembering,

What blackened life,

Is forever gone.

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But only the music,

Of wind and owls,

And the crackling rain,

Had abided my incessant howls,

Until yet another night,

When gliding clouds,

Reveal another full newness of moon.

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-Poem by Sanford Ross Bender

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Shell tree

“Shell tree” (assembled by anonymous artist ) photographed by Sandy Ross Bender at Honeymoon Island State Park along the Gulf of Mexico in Pinellas County, Florida on June 26, 2026.
“”Shell tree trio” composed and performed by Sandy Ross Bender with clarinet. concertina, and guitar on June 28, 2026.
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Toast to our health

“Stained glass goblets and shot glasses” photographed by Sandy Ross Bender on May 24, 2026.
“Toast to our health” composed and performed with vocals, concertina, and guitar by Sandy Ross Bender on June 13, 2026.

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Spinning Islands

“White conch shell” drawn with colored pencils on textured pper by Sandy Ross Bender on June, 2015.
“Spinning Islands” composed and performed with vocals and guitar by Sandy Ross Bender on June 14, 2026.

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I am going down to the Florida Keys,

Where hurricanes abound,

Spinning islands like a string of pearls, 

Wind sweeping waves into the sound.

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Mangroves and hardwood hammocks,  

Encircling the reef periphery,

Moonshine turning turquoise tides,

A wind quartet in lunar synchrony.

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I am not searching for sunken treasure,

In the deep blue depths, divers plumb.

I am looking for seashells that sparkle,

Along the shifting beaches, I comb,

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We could share a pail of whelks and cowries,

That drift in with the evening tide,

Gaze into conches and mother of pearl mollusks,

Discovering the sea, side by side.

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Lyrics and music – Sandy Ross Bender, June 14, 2026

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My lawnmower stopped working

“Mending meadow” painted with watercolor and gouache by Sanford Ross Bender on September 3, 2006
“My lawnmower stopped working”composed and performed with vocals and guitar by Sanford Ross Bender on May 31 and June 1, 2026.

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My lawnmower stopped working,

So, I let the grass grow high.

My neighbors are complaining,

That it would soon touch the sky.

I always wanted a forest,

And the birds that it would bring.

The minstrels will follow,

The troubadours will sing.

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The lawnmower was the pushing kind.

Like the mower that my father had.

He liked the clinking of the blades,

Without the fumes and noise that was so bad.

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Never had I thought of ghosts before.

But now I am in belief.

My father appeared to mow the lawn,

And now, I can sigh in relief.

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Lyrics and music by Sanford Ross Bender

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Slow walk home

“Bay wetlands” photographed at Island Beach State Park by Sandy Ross Bender on May 12, 2026.
“Slow walk home” composed and performed with guitar and mandolin by Sandy Ross Bender on May 11, 2026.
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Slip out through the window

“Outbuildings” photographed in Bucks County, Pennsylvania by Sanford Ross Bender in late February, 2026.
“Slip out through the window” composed and performed with banjo, concertina, and guitar by Sanford Ross Bender on March 29, 2026.

Slip out through the window,

Shift your unsettled mind,

Lift up your aching limbs,

Leave what holds you down behind.

Fragrant woods are beckoning,

Singing their soulful sound,

Dance beneath the gables,

As planet moons spin around.

SRB 033026

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Start of the year

“Deciding which trail to explore” drawn with pen and ink by Sanford Ross Bender on January 29, 2026.
“Start of the year” composed and performed with concertina and guitar by Sanford Ross Bender on January 28, 2026.

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Fairytale

“Barred owl” drawn with pen and ink by Sanford Ross Bender
“Fairytale” composed and performed with guitar and anglo concertina by Sanford Ross Bender on January 6, 2026.

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Crime story

“Crime story” drawn in note pad with green colored pencil by Sanford Ross Bender on December 20, 2025.
“Crime story” composed and performed with banjo, mandolin, and guitar by Sanford Ross Bender on December 20, 2025.