Contributor Eva Petropolou Lianou would like to let us know about this call for submissions of poetry to benefit a writer in Gaza (whom we’ve also published).

Also, contributing poet Christina Chin has a new book available now on Amazon, “First Day of the Rest.” This is a special project, a collaborative haibun/haibunga book written with Michael Hough, poet, composer, and musician featuring both photos and art by the authors. More about the book here.

Next, an announcement from contributor Chimezie Ihekuna, who is seeking an investor/executive producer for the project, One Man’s Deep Words. It is set in the US, details here.

Also, poet and prose writer Christopher Bernard would like to share that his magazine, Caveat Lector, will be giving a reading to commemorate the Winter 2025 issue, at Clarion Performing Arts Center. Information and address here.

In this issue, our international contributors address themes of passion.

Some writers explore this concept in the way modern people tend to understand it, with pieces on love of various sorts.

Madaminova Ogiloy’s tender poem praises the kindness and care of her mother. Ilhomova Mohichehra reflects on the steady consistency and dedication of her father. Xonzoda Axtamova honors a mother who cared for her children despite her own struggles.

G’ulomjanova Marjona reminds us that family love and care for parents should come before materialism and success in our short lives.

Anindya Paul’s piece compares the pressure of a son trying to live up to his father’s expectations to that of a father doing his best to provide for and raise children.

Teachers and other professionals also extend deep concern for the children under their care. Azadbek Yusupov outlines effective ways to evaluate teachers’ classroom performance. Medical student Dilshoda Izzatilloyeva outlines causes and treatments of pneumonia in young children.

Rus Khomutoff evokes a mix of spiritual and sensual feelings in his transfixing concrete dream poem. R.K. Singh’s poetry explores the feelings of men and women navigating complex sensual desires and emotions: fear, danger, lust, and ecstasy that can come with intimacy. Mark Blickley fills out the story in a bawdy Greek myth in historical speculative fan fiction.

Luis Cuauhtemoc Berriozabal fantasizes about imagined romances as his body slowly decays with time. Doug Holder crafts a mood of giddy romantic anticipation in his ekphrastic accompaniment to Gieseke Penizzotto Denise’s painting.

While the word has come to be associated with romantic emotion, the word “passion” comes from an old Latin word for suffering and originally referred to the willingness to endure much to reach one’s goals. Some of our contributors celebrate this kind of determination and perseverance, on their paths to personal or creative development or just to survive in the world.

Jacques Fleury reviews Lyric Stage Boston’s production of Lynn Nottage’s play Crumbs from the Table of Joy and discusses how the show highlights the struggles of working-class Black people for full inclusion in the United States.

In Bill Tope’s short story, a young woman rebels against the humiliation of an oppressive dress code.

Graciela Noemi Villaverde draws on gardening metaphors to describe the cultivation of character over time. Feruza Sheraliyeva writes of the corrosive nature of corruption on society and urges every individual to uphold ethical standards. Asadbek Yusupov outlines the balance between individual rights and civic responsibilities in Uzbekistan. Aminova Dilbar highlights the value placed on inter-ethnic harmony, equality, and mutual respect in Uzbekistan, codified into the highest levels of government.

David Sapp’s poetic speaker wishes to transcend this life to a higher spiritual plane, but human feelings keep calling him back to this mortal coil. Kieu Bich Hau remains resolute during her time of soul-searching loss on the shores of Italy’s Lake Como. Michael Robinson speaks to how his faith in Christ gives him joy and peace as he undergoes dialysis. Abigail George’s essay speaks to what it means to create in times of great struggle and societal marginalization.

Anna Keiko celebrates individuality in her short poem, encouraging readers to be unafraid to be themselves. Z.I. Mahmud highlights themes of female emancipation and agency and freedom from existing purely for the male gaze in Sylvia Plath’s poetry.

In his Reflective Thinking spoken word album and screenplay concept One Man’s Deep Words, Chimezie Ihekuna mulls over what makes for a wise and satisfying life. Sometimes, satisfaction can come through dedication to one’s craft.

Jacques Fleury’s poem on a day of solitude reminds us of what unites us all as human beings and brings his literary and cultural aspirations to clearer focus.

Stephen Bett evokes the feeling of hearing performance poetry at a reading in his concrete-ish piece, and also jeers at weaponized misogyny and reflects on chemical happiness. Patrick Sweeney crafts one-line poems that become near-stories with a thoughtful reading.

Poet and nature photographer Brian Barbeito outlines his creative process and goals in a creative personal essay. Kylian Cubilla Gomez’ photos this month explore mediated images of nature: drawings and cartoons we create to interface with our world from a step removed.

Actor and writer Federico Wardal spotlights Egyptian actor Wael Elouny and Italian director Antonello Altamura and their new indie film Ancient Taste of Death. Mark Young’s mix of intriguing and explosive visual pieces meld color, shape, text, and design. Texas Fontanella mixes up chatspeak and everyday language in a cyberpunk-style set of surreal anecdotes and shares some intense, wild musical vibes.

Maftuna Mehrojova outlines basics of and new directions in the craft of business marketing and communications. Gulsevar Bosimova describes and takes pride in her proficiency in traditional Uzbek martial arts.

Dilbar Koldoshova Nuraliyevna writes of how Uzbek poet Abdulla Oripov’s works were grounded in his love of his homeland. Joseph C. Ogbonna reflects on his trip from Nigeria to visit John F. Kennedy’s birthplace and rhapsodizes on the glory of the past president and his times.

Another aspect of passion, or love, is grief for what we lose. Ahmed Miqdad mourns loss of life, hope, and joy in Gaza during wartime.

Christopher Bernard laments in mythological, epic language the loss of so much beauty and history to the flames in Los Angeles. Pat Doyne grieves not just the fires in Los Angeles, but the callousness of some in society towards the survivors and the natural environment.

Rob Plath’s poetry conveys the understated numbness of grief and remembrance as Ahmad Al-Khatat’s character sketch illustrates the emptiness and fragility that can come with being displaced from one’s homeland and loved ones. In a more upbeat tone, J.K. Durick recollects fragments of people and literary works that populated his youthful consciousness and now his dreams. Taylor Dibbert reflects on the passage of time through a brief encounter with someone he remembers from long ago.

Linda S. Gunther reviews Nikki Erlick’s novel The Measure, a tale asking big questions about mortality, purpose, and destiny through the lives of carefully drawn, highly individual characters. Wazed Abdullah reminds us to cherish life, with all its ups and downs as Mahbub Alam points out how we are all mortal, how time ticks quickly for us all.

Yucheng Tao’s impressionist poetry touches on themes of memory and loss while Mykyta Ryzhykh draws on imagery of death, decay, and natural renewal.

Lazzatoy Shukurillayeva translates a poem from historical Uzbek poet Alexander Feinberg about the brevity of life and the vanity of assuming you can make yourself great in a short time. Noah Berlatsky humorously reflects on how perhaps most of us do not need to be memorialized through ponderous tomes.

Despite the finite nature of our lives, some people take passionate enjoyment in our ordinary world.

Dr. Jernail S. Anand recaptures the wonder of childhood and urges his fellow adults to reclaim youthful curiosity.

Isabel Gomez de Diego’s photos suggest the wonder in everyday scenes: a mural of a wine toast during a meal, public fountains, loaves of sourdough bread. Lidia Popa waxes poetic on birds and green butterflies as Alan Catlin sends up many different ways of looking at winter, summer, crows, and the moon.

Sayani Mukherjee illustrates the rebirth of sunrise as winter gives way to spring and she rejoins the outdoors in her running shoes.

In another kind of rebirth, we’ve just barely started another planetary journey around the sun. Lilian Dipasupil Kunimasa welcomes in the Northern Hemisphere’s wintry New Year and speaks of the difficulty of conveying the feel of snow to someone in a temperate climate. Maria Cristina Pulvirenti’s minuscule haiku captures how snow can muffle sound, dulling the senses to focus your attention.

Daniel De Culla cynically speculates that selfish human nature will not change much in the New Year. J.J. Campbell considers signs of hope in his life, then rationalizes each of them away. And, in another piece, Ahmed Miqdad contrasts the human suffering in Gaza with the world’s joyful holiday celebrations. Pat Doyne reflects on quirky, hopeful, and fearsome bits of 2024’s news cycle and wonders playfully about 2025.

A POET WHO COMES ONCE IN A THOUSAND YEARS

      My country is Uzbekistan.  I couldn’t describe this country, this people, except Abdulla Oripov. 

      — A voice from far away,

      — Tell me, what should I do, grandfather?

      — He is a voice from the Motherland, 

      — Payondoz on their way.

      — The sound came again suddenly,

      — Tell me what to do, grandfather?

      — A world with a burden on its shoulders, 

      — He is your people, help me, my child.

      It is a holy happiness for me to know that I was born in a land of fire from the loving sun, that I live.  My heart is filled with pride and joy to be the child of Abdulla Oripovday Kashkadarya, who is known and recognized as the second Navoi of world literature.

      A person can choose everything in life.  But he cannot choose the blessed Motherland and parents.  Happy land with umbilical cord blood.   My homeland is Uzbekistan.  By his own name, he is a bek, he is a sultan.  Motherland is our grandfather’s legacy, our father’s legacy.  In every line of Abdulla Oripov, he found the independence of the Motherland and its definition. 

      …Only my weak pen is mine, 

         Uzbekistan is my country.

      In the poem “Uzbekistan, My Country, My”, the poet tells a deep story about the past of the Motherland.

      Today, I decided not to criticize Abdulla Oripov’s biography or his poetry collections, but to visit the poet’s homeland, his heart’s blood, his palace.

      My heart sings the ode of the poet “Uzbekistan, my country” like a charming song.

      As I read the poem from the beginning to the end, the glory of our ancestors, the halal bread of Uzbek people, appears in my mind.  My heart trembles like a chained poem because of the dark days and difficult times they have seen.  That’s all you do, old world.  Beruni, Amir Temur, Uluğbek, Ghafur Gulam… .  In this poem, the word “Motherland” finds its form and shape and pace in the blood of the farmer in the field. This feeling flows like hot blood in my body and soul. It screams like a sign of life. Indeed, Abdulla Oripov  A unique poet who glorified and conveyed the value of the homeland in this poem, it is not an exaggeration to say that the heart that has not penetrated into this ode is not an exaggeration. 

      Don’t be sad, my dear,

      Don’t worry about your age.

      Over the centuries,

      Your everlasting love. 

      In the great human family,

      Your forehead is so bright.

      My bright abode is mine,

      Uzbekistan is my country.

      The poet wrote many beautiful poems about the “Motherland”. 

      The poet created by mixing his soul and body.  I understand the poem “Why I love Uzbekistan” as a logical continuation of the ode “Uzbekistan, My Country”.  In this poem too, the artist praises verses about the soil, sky and sun of the Motherland.  While talking about Furqat, Mirza Babur, who became a king and a khan in his own country and a king in other countries, came to my mind.   My heart is already aching.  Because, as the poet said, wherever a person is born, that soil is his land.  If his Motherland is surrounded by a cold country that dominates like ice, he will look warm and give his love.  He bows to this place and this people.

      Well, if they tell me the reason why I love Uzbekistan, before the poet’s beautiful poems – I bow to my motherland.

      Abdulla Oripov is like that, a poet who loved the people and was loved by the people.

      Today, the wind of Independence is blowing in the song that the poet sang… .  In new Uzbekistan, the country is prosperous and the people are happy.  The joy of happiness shines on the faces of our people.  Today, navbahar came to our country full of light and spring full of flowers.  The days of living and living are visited by Navròz.  We are also celebrating the poet’s 82nd birthday on such happy occasions.  This is also a great blessing of God.

Hero of Uzbekistan, People’s Poet of Uzbekistan Abdulla Oripov wrote thousands of poems, epics, dramas.  He translated masterpieces of world literature into Uzbek. 

      If he writes about the poet, he will not do it.  A poet who honors the country and the people always sings the National Anthem of Uzbekistan.  It’s no wonder that this is the pride of the poet’s heart. 

      As I put the last point, I bow to the great poet Abdulla Oripov, who instilled in me and us young people the feeling of loving the Motherland in colorful verses.

      To the homeland, grandfather,

      You have planted flowers. 

      In every line of your poem, 

      You have lost the value of the country.

      This nation, this country,

      How many bloods have you swallowed?

      Before your description ends,

      Today the pen is weak.

      Once in a thousand years,

      A saint like you.

       Kashkadarya region

Koldoshova Dilbar Nuraliyevna, a student of the 10th grade of the 10th grade of the 43rd school of Karshi district.

Dilbar Koldoshova Nuraliyevna was born on March 5, 2007 in the Karshi district of the Kashkadarya region.

   She is currently the 10th “B” student of the 43rd school. 

      Dilbarhan is the queen of poetry, the owner of creativity, a singer with a beautiful voice, and a ghazal girl.

      She came first in the “Leader of the Year” competition.

        1st prize in the regional stage of the “Hundred Gazelles and Hundred Gems” competition.

         It took part in the “Children’s Forum” category and won first place in many competitions.

          She is currently the coordinator of the training department of Tallikuron MFY in Karshi district.

          Kamalak captain of the opposite district.

          Head captain of the “Girls There” club at school 43. 

         The articles titled “Memory is immortal and precious”, “Our School” and “Mother” were published three times in Kenya Times International magazine in 2024.

     In 2023, the first poems were published in the poetry collection “Yulduzlar Yogdusi” of the creative youth of the Kashkadarya region.

      In 2024, ghazals of the creative youth of the Republic were published in the poetry collection “Youth of Uzbekistan”.

My beautiful flower 

You are my angel mother 

You are unmatched in the world 

My mother without paradise 

There is no woman like you in the world 

No even in heaven 

No even yours 

My mother without paradise 

You made me out of nothing 

You who washed and combed white 

You are sorry if I make a mistake 

My mother without paradise 

It is true that I love you 

Itʼs true that I even got hit 

This word is also true. Yes, it is true 

My mother without paradise 

There is little I can do for you 

Even the moon in the sky little 

Just laugh a little 

My mother without paradise 

If I cheer you up with my poem 

If I say my love, my flower 

Donʼt let my father be jealous, mother 

My mother without paradise 

Madaminova Ogiloy was born in 2002 in Kopkopir district of Khorezm region. 3rd stage student of Jizzakh State Pedagogical University. She is currently studying English and Turkish. In her free time, she enjoys reading and baking.

Burning

As the months processed
I surmise a new fall
Flamingo pink skies 
Burning over the horizon
A new Streetlamp hung around my closet
I swam a darkness high 
As I breathe deep I drink a new paradise
Hope's cities has new avenues
Before they all fall a decade high
Hung around still for the spring
Matches for matches 
This is what justice felt like
Over my running shoes 
I knew the darkness has tapestry
So it showed me a matchstick sky
Heaven knows I tried 
For the spring comes 
With burning winter's sickly delicate lace. 

Famous athletes from Uzbekistan‌‌

Information about Gulsevar Bosimova, a coach-athlete of the “Uzbek Martial Arts” sport at Sports School 1 in Gallaorol District, Jizzakh Region

Gulsevar Bosimova Dilshod qizi was born on December 21, 2007. Since 2023, she has been practicing the “Uzbek Martial Arts” sport at Sports School 1 in Gallaorol District. Her dedication and passion for sports are particularly noteworthy. Over the years, she has represented our region honorably in various International and Uzbekistan Championship competitions, achieving numerous successes.

Notably, on December 26 – 29, 2023, she claimed a prestigious 1st place at the Jizzakh Region Open Championship in Uzbek Martial Arts for children, juniors, and adults.

On June 27 – 29, 2024, she earned a well-deserved 2nd place in the 53 kg weight category at the Jizzakh Region Championship among juniors, youth, and adults.

For her remarkable performance and 1st place in the 49 kg category at the Uzbekistan Championship for youth born in 2007-2008, she was awarded in recognition of her achievement.

On September 21-22, 2024, she secured a 3rd place at the Uzbekistan Cup held in Tashkent. Her most remarkable achievement came in the World Championship held in Tashkent from November 1 to 7, 2024, where she earned a 3rd place in the 49 kg weight category, proudly raising the flag of our country.

On December 26, 2024, she was honored with the title of “Best Athlete of the Year” for her outstanding achievements in International and Uzbekistan championships throughout the year.

Despite her young age, Gulsevar Bosimova has shown great experience, resilience, and determination in the field of Uzbek Martial Arts. She always strives to complete every task entrusted to her to the highest standard and is highly respected among her peers. In life, she is modest, courteous, honest, and a constant hard worker, setting an example for others in diligently completing assignments. She is an exemplary student.

DIGITAL MARKETING AND NEW WAYS TO WORK WITH CUSTOMERS

Mehrojova Maftuna Soli qizi

student of the Jizzakh branch National University of Uzbekistan named Mirzo Ulugbek

maftunamehrojova64@gmail.com

Abstract: This article examines new ways of dealing with digital marketing and customers. Rapid changes and new trends in the field of digital marketing, as well as innovative approaches such as interactive content and social networks are discussed. These methods help companies develop their brands and build strong relationships with customers. The article aims to study modern approaches to increase the effectiveness of digital marketing strategies and maintain their competitiveness.

Keywords: digital marketing, customer service, personalization, social networks, innovative approaches, marketing strategies, competitiveness.

Introduction

With the introduction of digital technologies into society, it has fundamentally changed every segment of society. In particular, the growth and changes taking place in the business sector show that digital marketing has a significant impact on the development of the economy and the efficiency of the enterprise.

The organization can also implement these complex changes by establishing an effective management strategy. The primary solution for this is to develop a digital transformation strategy that unifies the system and to successfully apply it within the organization. Digitalization offers several advantages, including increased sales or efficiency, and the emergence of new forms of customer interaction.

Recently, various factors have contributed to the growth of Customer Relationship Management (CRM) usage in the market. Many organizations now focus not on competing for new customers, but on increasing the share of demand among existing customers. This involves aggregating customer information obtained by integrating internal databases and acquiring external syndicated data. Computational power is growing exponentially. Software and tools are being developed for the use of these data and computers, which instead of restricting access to analysts, convey analytical tools to the decision-maker. Despite this growth in marketing practices, CRM research in academia remains groundbreaking. The very high costs associated with the commercial failure of the new product emphasize the importance of a model that effectively predicts the product’s entry into the market at the design stage.

Key features of digital marketing

Digital marketing focuses on the process of advertising products, services, or brands through digital channels, such as search engines, social media, email, mobile apps, and other digital platforms. It encompasses a multitude of approaches, methods, and strategies for attracting, engaging, and converting an online audience to buyers or customers. This is a type of marketing that uses digital technologies to engage with customers in a useful and effective way.

One of the most important advantages of digital marketing is the ability to direct specific consumers using personalized and relevant messages. Digital marketers can develop high-target ads that are more relevant to the target audience by analyzing data on consumer behavior and preferences.

Another advantage of digital marketing is the availability of data and ideas in real time. Digital merchants can use analytics tools to track the effectiveness of their campaigns, calculate ROI, and make data-driven decisions to optimize their strategy and improve results.

Manage customer interactions

The foundation for the development of the modern digital economy is e-commerce, which is beneficial for businesses that want to test themselves, and it helps to conduct a series of customer interactions and observations. The customer relationship management system is fundamentally different from other marketing support systems. Their classification is as follows:

1. An operational method of customer interaction. It provides quick access to information about a specific customer during customer interaction (sales and service). Clear organization of customer interaction across all channels requires system integration in the process of coordination. Currently, much of the customer relationship management system is focused on this category.

2. Analytical management of customer relationships. Analyze statistical data to develop a more effective marketing strategy. System integration statistics require effective analysis. Analytical customer relationship management is used in a smaller scale than the above category, and the concepts of data storage and analysis are much closer. For this reason, system providers in this field are referred to as systems for analytical management of their relationships with customers.

3. Collaborative management of customer relationships. It allows the customer to have more influence on the design development, product creation, delivery, and service processes. The internal process of the enterprise requires technologies that encourage the client to cooperate with low costs. For example:

1. Collecting customer suggestions when developing product designs.

2. Access customer product samples with feedback;

3. Counter-price organization, that is, by placing one’s own demands on the product and how much one can pay for that product.

Digital and social media marketing strategies.

There are different strategies for achieving digital and social media marketing success. Below are some of the key techniques that are most commonly used in this field:

Content marketing is a way to engage and influence the audience by creating and disseminating useful and interesting information. This can include blog posts, videos, infographics, and many other types of content. Well-crafted content not only expands the audience, but also helps to create a positive image of the brand.

SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is a search engine optimization strategy aimed at highlighting websites in search engines. This will attract more traffic (the number of visitors to the website) and generate tremendous sales. Actions such as keyword research, in-page SEO, off-page SEO, and technical SEO are important parts of SEO.

Email marketing is the regular sending of information by email to users included in a specific list. This method allows you to report special offers, news, and products. Email marketing is very effective not only in attracting new customers, but also in strengthening relationships with existing customers.

Social media ads – Advertising on social media platforms, such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, allows you to target a target audience directly. These platforms can be clearly marked, taking into account users’ interests, age, and geographical location.

Interactive marketing, also known as marketing, is a type of marketing that encourages two-way communication between a brand and its audience. This involves using various channels and strategies to engage customers in the conversation, rather than just sending messages to them. The goal of interactive marketing is to create a more attractive and memorable customer experience, build brand loyalty, and ultimately increase sales.

There are several advantages of interactive marketing:

Increased engagement	Interactive marketing allows businesses to communicate more meaningfully with their customers, creating a two-way conversation that can lead to increased brand awareness and loyalty.
Enhanced customer experience	By delivering personalized and interactive experiences to customers, businesses improve the overall customer experience and make it more enjoyable and memorable.
High conversion rates	Interactive marketing campaigns often have higher conversion rates than traditional marketing methods because they are more engaging and memorable.
Greater customers concept	Interactive marketing allows businesses to collect valuable information about customer preferences, behavior, and needs. This information can be used to improve marketing strategies and develop new products.
Enhanced brand reputation	When customers have a positive relationship with a brand, they are more likely to recommend it to others, which can increase the brand’s reputation and attract new customers.
Cost-effective	Interactive marketing can be a cost-effective way to reach customers, especially through digital channels like social media and email marketing.

In conclusion, the introduction of new methods of digital marketing and customer service has become an integral part of modern business strategies. These methods allow not only to effectively implement marketing processes, but also to more accurately respond to customer needs. Approaches such as personalization and interactive content help build strong relationships with customers, which increases brand trust.

Influencer marketing and social media strategies play an important role in increasing brand visibility in the digital world and reaching a wide audience. It also improves 24/7 customer service through chatbots and virtual assistants, enhances brand interest and user experience.

The application of innovative approaches to digital marketing allows companies to maintain competitiveness and seize new market opportunities. New ways to work with customers are not just marketing strategies, but a powerful tool that serves to further develop the overall business model. In the future, we expect new trends and technological advancements in this direction, which will give companies not only innovation but also an advantage in effectively working with their customers.

List of references:

1. Khakimov Z.A., Sharifkhujaev U.U. Interactive and Digital Marketing. Economics Publishing House. 2020. – 183p.

2. Azizova Manzura Ibragimovna PLANNING THE ACTIVITIES OF AN ORGANIZATION USING DIGITAL MARKETING // Digital Economy (Digital Economy). 2023. No. 5.

3. URL: https://cyberleninka.ru/article/n/digital-marketing-using-organization-activity-planning

The Shore:  On Poets, Schiller And Making Mention Of The Goethean Observation

This is a prose poem that on the face of it in so many words is for children in conflict, war and genocide around the world from a South African poet, writing with a distinct voice for the voiceless. Writing too for the marginalised and disenfranchised, and those experiencing scarcity, lack and poverty in their lives.

“Art is the daughter of freedom,” said Friedrich Schiller, but I say that true art, writing, reading, and expressing oneself is the most noble form of the  communication of the heart. Difficult to attain, tough to master but the experience, negative or positive, is thoroughly worthwhile. It is an experience that gives rise to stamina, willpower, inner strength and discipline. It was the following poets: Dennis Brutus who lived that experience, Victor Wessels who embraced it. It is poets, contemporary poets and beyond, that define that specific experience (in my books) for generations to come of what a poetic life, poetic drive, poetic force truly means. It is an experience that is based on revolutionary struggle and power, strategy, design and personal freedom.

A true poet speaks from an act, a scholarly act, a pause between words, a calm interlude, the brutal heart, vulnerabilities, and images that the pen puts to paper. Putting pen to paper is sometimes all that it takes, resting awareness against wave after wave, vibration after vibration. A true poet walks that powerful line that borders dream and reality, invention and pathway into the unknown, into uncertainty. A true poet leaps into that unknown, leaps across the boundaries and borders of heaven and cloud, and the same poet creates a vision out of nothing, out of art, out of words, out of clay hands. This artistry is unique. It belongs to the poet alone, as Dennis Brutus demonstrated in Letters To Martha, Arthur Nortje in Roots and C. Swart in I Write Riddles And Remedies.

The poet tells us that out of pathetic sadness and the frustration found in struggle, hardship and despair that beauty can still be found in our aloneness, that there is still an enduring message of hope to be found in the unforgiving nature and energy of loneliness. In a time of war, I have discovered that Chantel Swart is one of those poets. Her gift resonates through bone and sinew. As I read her poetry, I draw a long breath and on the exhale I am reminded of things I want to remember but I am also  reminded of things I don’t want to remember.

She is a writer who writes for the world, for the lonely, for the disenchanted, for the disenfranchised in the same ways Nizar Qabbani, Don Afrika Beukes, Tariro Ndoro, Tendai Rinos Mwanaka, Rupert Brooke, Eugene Skeef, Mongane Serote, Khaled Juma, Refaat Alaheer, Yehuda Amichai, Nick Mulgrew, Kiran Bhat, Allan Kolski Horwitz, Miri Ben-Simhon, Diana Ferrus and Clinton V. du Plessis, Suhaiymah Manzoor-Khan have written for the interloper, for those who belong and for those who feel empty, for those who want more out of life, for those that want to be loved on their terms. These are all the poets that make Goethean observations in their work. All the writers that I mentioned write for the outsider. The poet writes for humanity. Humanity is the outsider looking in, looking for love, looking for self-acceptance.

It is the poet that is courageous. It is the poet who forgives the sins of this harsh, cruel world but it is God who forgives absolutely.

Most of all it is recognition that is wanted. The outsider wants recognition, and it is perhaps only the poet that can grant them that, isn’t that what Don Mattera defined a generation as, isn’t that what the freedom fighters who wrote poetry risked, risk? They faced assassination, and that elusive feeling of being loved for who they are, they want their identity to be embraced, they want to be identified, named, claimed, represented in the face of smoke, bone and flesh.

I remember so many things when I read poetry. When the end of a relationship came in my life, it took me years to acknowledge the pain of that ending. I discovered personal freedom and peace of mind in poetry. Childhood again, for one. That collection of sweetness and longing for mother, the presence of father and abandonment, ruin and a kind of wounded, hurt feeling. I am also reminded of a broken world, my broken world, a broken life, capturing those heady emotions and feelings in stark and bleak images. Capturing them in photographs. There they exist on the pages of C. Swart’s poetry, these images, this bleak, dull feeling inside of me as fleeting as happiness, as temporary as day and sunset. They exist for me, and for another female poet. Other poets, people of the South, other poets from Africa. I meet the sun and prayer in my loneliness in Swart’s words, on those pages.

It is important to realise that as the world falls apart around you and collapses after you have lost someone that there will always be music. Now that the relationship has ended, now that the man who was very briefly in my life is gone that is what remains. All of this beautiful and wonderful music remains. When I want to remember, when I want to think about the past, that fleeting happiness I felt so many hours and years ago I play Erik Satie, the Russian composers or Jacqueline du Pre or other classical music. John Cage, for example, or Philip Glass and what will come to me is the outline of the man’s face, the characteristic traits of his personality, the colour of the night as I watched him park his spaceship of a car in the driveway. All of these things have taken to mean so much to me. Yes, he changed me, and he is still significant.

Yes, he is still important to me. Poetry is still important to me. The crash of the music resonates throughout my entire body and a calmness is restored inside my heart. I think as I listen to the rhythm inside the piano keys of the man and I can hear him smile. I feel an ache tearing me up inside as I think of my sadness and his newfound happiness, the relationship that he has now in the country he calls home but it doesn’t matter because I have music. I have Daniel Barenboim and Leonard Bernstein and videos of ballet to watch. And as long as I have tears I will have music.

I listen to this music from the soundtrack of the film The Hours and it’s as if he’s still here. It’s as if he’s still alive for me. Your memory is still alive for me and that’s what counts. The music offers me up his memory and once more his important to me and even this is significant to me. We never really lose in love. It is just the measure of loss and grief in time. Temporary pastimes. Fleeting moments that are viewed with such precision and such mental acumen. Poets live energetic lives in flux, within a maelstrom that is never ending and that can be burdensome if they don’t get it down on paper. All I want to know as the music rises and rises and crashes against every cell in my chest and rib cage and lung and bone and meets all of this pent-up emotion within, what are the contemporary poets hailing from Africa listening to? I wonder to myself, does the man still think of me at all? I can still hear the sound of his voice in this room and sometimes that is all that matters to me. Tragic. Tragic. How tragic is that and what a bittersweet ending. Not the fairy tale after all but an ending nonetheless. I get up and make tea. The music isn’t playing anymore but it is in my heart.

Poetry belongs to the positive and the negative vibration in the wave alone. If you are a poet you speak of the truth, of what you envision, whether it is a clearer understanding of the things we hold dear in life or what we stand in solidarity with. Even the poet is innocent and can be quite innocent in their language that they use.

Even a child can understand what is right and what is wrong and the poet holds up his pen and declares like a child, like every child what is right and what is wrong. That to me is the definition of innocent. There is no struggle, no despair, no hardship in realising and acknowledging what the truth is. It is struggle, despair and hardship that is complex.

That is difficult to define and draw boundaries around. It is struggle, despair and hardship that is complicated.

When I think of Credo Mutwa, I think of the (Native American) shamans. I think of Rumi. I think of Khalil Gibran. If we do not read and write and master reading and writing how will we ever truly articulate our pain. The experience of happiness is a beautiful experience and it can be profound but pain, emotional pain, the “dense pain body” that Eckhart Tolle spoke of in The Power Of Now can be profound too and both happiness and pain can transform our being. This change can be inspiring, a motivating factor in our lives. To these people, to the poets that came before and after, money, wealth and prosperity meant nothing to them, as did material possessions. To our intellectuals, our philosophers, our teachers it is what leads to the betterment of society that is significant to them, what are the aspects of humanity that are noble and virtuous. The greatest of these are the poets, poetry.

It is far easier to carry pain in one’s heart than happiness. It is far easier to acknowledge a clinical depression than to laugh. But in the face of both suffering and malevolence in the world, in the face of sadness, utter despair and struggle, in the face of solitude, silence and the endless hours stretching out before you, there is poetry. There will always be poetry that will save you.

To taste the sweetness of life, to experience the hardship and overwhelming grief of loss and the emptiness of the world without your loved one at your side. For melancholy to always be in your inner circle, for clinical depression to never leave you, for flowers and the smell of incense burning to be a constant presence in your life, on your desk, beside your papers and important books is for your soul to be absolutely ruled by and run by and nurtured by and nourished by poetry. Who is a poet? What is a poet? If life exists, if you are alive, then you are a poet.

In love you will always find despair, always, but in poetry, for poetry to exist, it means love must exist. It means that suffering and death must co-exist. The hours may be empty but you will always have shapes of consolation. Even the intellect can and will offer you hope and cause for reflection for nothing is lost in life. The sea has waves and even the river can nourish your soul. Look, from the river to the sea, the poet finds whatever nourishes their soul. The blue sky, the green grass. You choose. It is always your choice. To despair or find the silver lining, find life, find love.

Published on the Modern Diplomacy website in the African Renaissance blog on November 14, 2024 and published again on the Ovi website on November 23, 2024.