Posted in General Interest, interNational Poetry Month, Poems/Poetry, Poets/Writers

Memories and Musings | Urmi Chakravorty

Digital Rose
©2023 Miroslava Panayotova

The Legacy of Longing

The diaphanous
sheets susurrate against the onyx parchment
As I gently turn the dog-eared pages of our mothballed 
     album—
The treasured cache of moments and memories of 
     bygone days
Conserved, before the scythe of Time mows us down.

As I gently turn the dog-eared pages of our mothballed 
     album
I chance upon ‘him’—self-assured, charismatic, 
     articulate—
The 2 a.m. buddy and confidant to my nerdy, antsy, 
     teenaged self.
Cupid struck, but with a slanted dart…and he, forever,
     remained unscathed.

The treasured cache of moments and memories of
     bygone days
Enshrouds the wringing, wrenching, carmine landscape 
     of my heart,
Crisscrossed by a breadcrumb trail of wistful longing,
Glossed over by the voguish masquerade of marital bliss!

Conserved, before the scythe of Time mows us down,
These metaphors of yesterday blend with my fragile todays
And gossamer tomorrows; and together, they help 
     me weave
The warp and weft of my soul’s fractured tapestry.
First published on Penmancy in November, 2022.


Leaves
Oil Painting ©2021 Miroslava Panayotova

April Blessings

Flashes of lightning streaking the skies,
Taking the fissured, sapless earth by surprise,
Drops of pure love, thy name is April showers!

Drenched leaves and stems waltz in glee,
Their rustling whispers are music to me,
Tiny prismatic droplets dangle on the bowers!

Purged of dust and grime, terra firma breathes easy again
My parched soul inhales the redolence of summer rain
Glens and vales come alive with fresh, iridescent flowers!
First published on ArtoonsInn Poetry Parlour in January, 2023.


Blue Rose
Mixed Media / Digital Art ©2023 Miroslava Panayotova

I Am

Sometimes I am Hope—
Weaving roseate, virile dreams in hoary, nebulous eyes
And heaving hearts, yearning for a fillip;
I play hide-and-seek with ennui, by the day
At night, I hum a plaintive lullaby of moth-eaten desires
Interred in the caverns of the infecund, impotent mind.

Sometimes I am Light—
Glinting off the Chardonnay in a crystal stein
Held by star-crossed lovers traipsing a parallel universe,
Immured within a prism of perennial passion,
Kissing the full-bodied, carmine lips of eternal youth, today
Only to be eclipsed by the penumbra of transience, 
     tomorrow.

Sometimes I am a Star—
Tucking my pearly corners into the moire duvet
Of the onyx sky, one spark at a time—
A luminous metaphor for waxing wishes,
Until I explode on the milky way of destiny,
Sprinkling confetti of crushed novalunosis and 
     half-kept promises.

I am a memory, I am a void,
I am a chuckle, I am a tear,
I am alchemy, I am Kintsugi
I am here, there, everywhere—
A celebration of life, an inventory of scars!

©2023 Urmi Chakravorty
All rights reserved

Urmi Chakravorty…

…is a former educator whose articles, stories and poems have found space in national dailies like The Hindu, The Times of India, multiple literary platforms, as well as poetry and fiction anthologies.In 2022, she won the Orange Flower Awards instituted by Women’s Web, the second position in the National Poetry Writing Competition, and several such accolades. Reviewing and editing are other areas she finds engaging

.

http://:www.wordsnverses.com / Blog Linked


The 2023 (Inter)National Poetry Month BeZine Blog Bash

Pastel of European Robin perched on a small branch by Tom Higgins ©2021
Art: European Robin, pastels, ©2021 Tom Higgins

Posted in interNational Poetry Month, poetry

Kelly Kaur — Two Poems

A Singaporean’s Love Affair

I utter in clandestine code 
Nasi lemak, mee rebus, mee siam 
Paratha, mee pok, char kway teow, 
Biryani, nasi padang, rojak, char siew pao, 
Roti john, mee soto, popiah, putu piring 
Embedded in my genetic soul 
Ravenous for the familiarity of 
a satiating sustenance
a childhood defined
a hungry rebellion usurped
a displaced gluttonous immigrant 
lost in a gumbo of new worlds 
a legacy of bewilderment
longingly relishing fuel
that coursed through my veins
I prattle my mindless mantra 
Durian, satay, ice kacang, kaya, teh tarik 
Ketupat, laksa, lontong, dosai, agar agar 
Putu piring, wonton mee, chili crab 
Bak kut teh, chendol, gado gado
A foreigner
Forever famished

Untitled III
Photograph
©2021 Miroslava Panayotova

Exist

sometimes it's arduous 
being colorful 
in this white world 
 
sometimes I stand out 
in the forest of humanity 
 
sometimes I fade 
in the landscape of dirt and mud 
 
sometimes I become invisible 
in the shroud of possibilities 
 
sometimes I crave to be  
a shade of nothing 

sometimes I yearn to be
simply monochromatic
 
Then you see me 
For who I am 

In that blind understanding

phenomenal love 
makes intricate connections

our disparities
fervently celebrated
by our equal residency
on this universal concourse
of life

and we all
simply
exist

©2021 Kelly Kaur
All rights reserved


The BeZine Spring