DONNA DESMARTEAUX-GIRARD

Shaken, Not Stirred

My bones need to rattle

a test of their ageing strength,

the bits that chip off

no longer a part of who I am.

They scatter around my feet

    like pure tiny crystals,

absorbed into the firm ground

to disappear forever.

DONNA DESMARTEAUX-GIRARD

I ache with questions

to which the answers don’t

really matter,

when knowing won’t change

what is.

Memories are just softly polished

versions of truth,

to be tucked away once

sharp edges are smoothed

to one’s perception of what was.

If I was turned inside out,

tender innards brutally exposed,

they would tumble out in the

shape of bones

with bits of cartilage thinly attached

to my former self.

ED WOODS

Pride

my heart beats proudly

alone on this ridge horizon

blue skies suspending clouds

across my heritage

our failing chief

praised higher spirits

for accepting his choice

I become tribal leader

invaders never conquered our beliefs

or this place of natural life

night howls of a solitary wolf

ice sheets reflecting stars

roaming dusty herds

bears in plentiful rapids

teaching their young

springtime fishing rights

I recall life and times of when

this land was full of movement

until the roaming sole predator

of man and bears

seeking riches and trophies

from the buffalo hunt

arrived on iron rails

holding a long rifle of change

powerful is my pride

welcoming new challenges

respectful in decisions

fearless and brave

our people trust

future plans

in time great spirits

will accept my soul

from a fiery tribute

into the night sky

as the next proud chief

will stand on this sacred land

to lead our people in honour

ALBERTO MAGSUCI

Two Souls Meet

My heart is pounding

its beat irregular

we’re on the way to

the airport to pick up

a small boy with his mother.

there he is, I call out his name

his eyes round with wonder

he turns his back and snuggles

in his mother’s lap

once again, our eyes meet

I sense deep inside

that he recognizes me

as a kindred soul

I pick him up, his head rests on my shoulder

at that moment I know, from the throbbing of  my heart

that I have not made a mistake

he is indeed destined to be my son

the cord of love binds us together

two souls become as one.

Alberto Magsuci

Bahrain, November 2013

WILMA SEVILLE

Poetry Pick

FLOATING by Wilma Seville

Minnows swim around pink runners As I forge ahead into deeper water Shades of green and blue shimmer Sun beats down on bathing cap St. Lawrence River feels cool On such a hot and steamy day I float upon my back Eyes closed against the sun Water laps gently over supine body Arms move up and down to gentle rhythm Feet flutter as I lazily float Movements calm but deliberate At peace with my little world All anxieties at bay One with the water One with the world From Tower Poetry, Vol. 59 #1, Summer 2010

ELLEN JAFFE

VIET NAM , August 11, 1966    

11 people die, 187 are wounded

it is a tragedy

because

they are civilian

11 people die, 187 are wounded

it is a victory

because

they are the enemy

11 people die, 187 are wounded

it is an atrocity

because

they are ours

skin off the labels,

taste the darkness beneath

ask a leg if it is civilian

an arm if it is the enemy

an eye if it is ours

Ellen S. Jaffe, published in Crossing Lines: Poets Who Came to Canada in the Vietnam War Era.  Ed. Allan Briesmaster and Steven Michael Berzensky, Seraphim Editions: Hamilton, 2008.

Ellen and Steven talked to Steve Paikin of TVO’s The Agenda about this book in February 2011 as a webcast feature. You can watch the interview, in which Ellen reads this poem, at http://bit.ly/gwR83k

ALBERTO MAGSUCI

A Poem for my son, Aldi

I hold you in my arms

hug you close to my breast

my inner voice whispers

to love you with all of my heart,

this moment of joy I feel

I know it will last.

I've enjoyed life,

I can write prose to a beautiful rose;

paint in canvas with greens and blues

something is missing - a father's longing

for the smile of an innocent

love is  purest at infancy.

Time quickly passes

my hair is now grey

I ask for something

to find the joy that lasts

in what remains of my life

God is great!  

the gift of life

Aldi my son, enters my life

my happiness knows no boundries

bright like the stars shining in the night

the best gift I ever have,

the gift of life with Aldi..

I am old,perhaps I will not see the

day of his maturity

everyday the innocent smile

of my son I always see

which brings out the best in me,

This poem I write

shows the inside of my heart

I will always love him

this happinekss will last till the end of my life.

by: Alberto Magsuci

Nov. 11, 2013

Bahrain

Editor's note: Alberto and his wife live in Bahrain along with their little son Aldi. Here is a picture of their little son.