MOTHER TONGUE 

Within me speaks 

a language not learned, 

but remembered before the first breath. 

It does not come from books, 

but from my mother’s voice, 

from the quiet of the kitchen at dawn, 

from whispers that heal fear. 

Within it live 

all my first “whys,” 

all my “stay,” 

all unspoken prayers. 

The mother tongue does not ask 

who I am — 

it knows me. 

In it, I return home 

even when I am far away. 

When the world grows loud, 

when words lose their faces, 

it reminds me 

that I am not just a name on paper, 

but a trace that remembers. 

Within it I breathe more slowly, 

walk more surely, 

love without translation. 

For the mother tongue 

is not only a means, 

it is my shadow, 

my mirror, 

my light. 

And as long as it lives within me, 

I know: I carry home inside me.

Maja Milojković was born in Zaječar and divides her life between Serbia and Denmark. In Serbia, she serves as the deputy editor-in-chief at the publishing house Sfairos in Belgrade. She is also the founder and vice president of the Rtanj and Mesečev Poets’ Circle, which counts 800 members, and the editor-in-chief of the international e-magazine Area Felix, a bilingual Serbian-English publication. She writes literary reviews, and as a poet, she is represented in numerous domestic and international literary magazines, anthologies, and electronic media. Some of her poems are also available on the YouTube platform.

Maja Milojković has won many international awards. She is an active member of various associations and organizations advocating for peace in the world, animal protection, and the fight against racism. She is the author of two books: Mesečev krug (Moon Circle) and Drveće Želje (Trees of Desire). She is one of the founders of the first mixed-gender club Area Felix from Zaječar, Serbia, and is currently a member of the same club. She is a member of the literary club Zlatno Pero from Knjaževac, and the association of writers and artists Gorski Vidici from Podgorica, Montenegro.