Review of Collateral Damage

Collateral Damage: Literary Biographies by Virginia Aronson is a keeper.

As explained in the Introduction, the poems in this collection focus on some well-known poets who have caused suffering and suffered themselves. Each poem is narrated by the poet, or a lover, spouse, muse or other intimate. Having read Smiling Little Hooks, her biographical poems related to Sylvia Plath, I knew she was up to the challenge. Aronson keeps her empathy ability set on eleven.

Now add her well-honed poet’s eye, a filter through which she renders powerful metaphors and depth perception. Her poems lay out what happened in the lives of these revered authors and those descriptions are smoothly linear yet have the unexpected potency of seemingly harmless cocktails: Long Island Iced Tea, Cosmopolitan, Mai Tai.

I don’t want to give them all away but here are some favorite zingers: 

In a poem speaking for T.S. Eliot’s first wife, she writes: And when living is done/ he told me one firey night/ he would like his bones/ flung into my grave.

Speaking for Robert Lowell’s widow: It’s the worst to see/ a man, a woman, an estate/soaked in the black suds/of disaster and sold off/ to help pay off/ debt, help, rooms/rented out while I wrote/of the abyss he fell in/without me.

For Anne Sexton’s therapist she channeled this: I was the one who/ she later wrote/ walked from breakfast/ to madness at the sad hotel / while she raged in her own/ glass bowl…

And for Dylan Thomas’s wife:  Drink was his temporary escape/ from the slavery of his calling/ there was no escape/ for me/ from Dylan/ his werewolf heart/ full of black blood/ until he died/ from drink.

It seems a familiar story: when mortals follow muses down that path—be it writing, making music, painting…other forms of self-expression, the ride can be rocky and fraught with collateral damage.

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Tim Bryant’s has two published novels, Blue Rubber Pool (2018) and The Bird in Your Heart: A Carolina Sea Island Story (2023) with a third, The Stained Glass Mustang, scheduled for publication in May of this year through Unsolicited Press.

Virginia Aronson’s Collateral Damage: Literary Biographies is available here.

Influenza – a Disease That Should Not Be Taken Lightly

Influenza is not just a common cold; it is a highly contagious infectious disease that weakens the entire body. It occurs most frequently during the autumn and winter seasons and is dangerous because it can spread rapidly from one person to many others. A person suffering from influenza often feels extremely weak, experiences body aches, dizziness, loss of appetite, and lacks the strength to carry out daily activities.

Influenza is caused by Influenza A, B, and C viruses. These viruses enter the respiratory tract and damage the nose, throat, and lungs. Since influenza is a viral disease, antibiotics are ineffective against it. The virus also mutates quickly, which is why influenza can occur repeatedly every year.

One of the most dangerous aspects of influenza is how easily it spreads. When an infected person coughs, sneezes, or talks, the virus is released into the air and enters a healthy person’s body through breathing. In addition, the virus can spread through contact with contaminated surfaces. For example, the virus can be transmitted via door handles, mobile phones, money, or dishes, and infection occurs when a person touches their mouth, nose, or eyes afterward. This is why influenza can spread quickly and infect many people in a short time.

People with influenza usually develop a high fever, sore throat, runny or blocked nose, cough, muscle and joint pain. The most troubling symptom is severe weakness and fatigue, making it difficult even to get out of bed. As a result, patients may be unable to go to work or school and struggle to perform household tasks. This significantly reduces a person’s quality of life.

If influenza is not treated properly or is ignored, it can lead to serious complications such as bronchitis, pneumonia, ear infections, or heart-related problems. Influenza is especially dangerous for pregnant women, children, the elderly, and people with chronic illnesses.

Therefore, influenza should not be considered a mild illness. Prevention is extremely important. Regular handwashing with soap, wearing masks in crowded places, ventilating rooms, avoiding close contact with sick individuals, eating vitamin-rich foods, and getting vaccinated against influenza whenever possible are strongly recommended.

Influenza is a serious disease that exhausts the body, reduces quality of life, and can cause severe complications. By taking responsibility for their health and following preventive measures, people can protect both themselves and those around them.

To prevent influenza, cleanliness, caution, and a healthy lifestyle are essential. Frequent handwashing, being careful in crowded places, ventilating living spaces, eating nutritious foods, and getting enough rest are simple yet effective ways to protect against influenza. If everyone follows these rules, they can help safeguard both themselves and others from the disease.

Inomova Kamola Rasuljon qizi was born in 2003 in the city of Andijan. Uzbekistan. She is a 5th-year student at Andijan State Medical Institute.

Silence 

The heart to heart talks silently. 

A feverish morning waiting for the evening, 

Whispering, fish-colored gasps, running and laughing, 

The new bud on the new path is everyone’s eye. 

The talk goes on saying that you should be quiet. 

Time will give some answers. 

To retreat silently to the last position, 

To feel the attitude of behavior and continue work. 

In the composition of silent situations & words, 

without words are expressed in the sea, 

Illusory imagination floats in the world of the mind. 

Magh comes to Paush to compose sentences. 

The witness remains in the quiet room of the understanding mind. 

Answers play a silent role in the passage of time. 

Reflection takes place in silent discourse as causality. 

Insistence comes to the new creator, 

providing words without words, 

Silence wins in the dawn.

Short biography: Amb. Dr. Priyanka Neogi from Coochbehar. She is an administrative Controller of United Nations PAF, librarian, CEO of Lio Messi International Property & Land Consultancy, international literacy worker, sports & peace promoter, dancer, singer, reciter, live telecaster, writer, editor, researcher, literary journalist, host, beauty queen, international coordinator of the Vijay Mission of Community Welfare Foundation of India.

ONESELF EXPERIENCES 

Human oneself experiences 

Happiness too Pain too

Sometimes tells some

Because these emotions

Experiences himself 

Happiness too 

Pain too 

Always stays inside 

Sometimes he is always happy 

Sometimes his throe stays in his.

ürkan Ergör, Sociologist, Philosopher, Writer, Poet, Art Photography Model. Türkan Ergör was born 19 March 1975 in the city of Çanakkale, Turkey. She was selected International “Best Poet 2020”. She was selected as International “Best Poet, Author/Writer 2021”. She was selected as International “Best Poet, Writer/Author 2022”. She was awarded the FIRST PRIZE FOR THE OUTSTANDING AUTHOR IN 2022. She was awarded the 2023 “Zheng Nian Cup” “National Literary First Prize” by the Beijing Awareness Literature Museum. She was awarded the “Certificate of Honor and Appreciation” and “Crimean Badge” by the İSMAİL GASPRİNSKİY SCIENCE AND ART ACADEMY. She was awarded the “14k Gold Pen Award” by ESCRITORES SIN FRONTERAS ORGANIZACIÓN INTERNACIONAL.

Suspension

What will I write in my poem?

And what will I say to you all?

When everything around us look so dry and gray

When smoky sound stops our breath

Our eyes close when we look outside

Nothing blooms to be gold

Nothing blooms to look at the rose

The black or white clouds are floating in the sky

No expected rain over there

Only suspension, hot or winter weather 

Always fills the green with something mournful to dear

The road is covered with snow

Thoughts are lying on the misty, snow-covered road

When the deaths and wounded are whispering with the angels

Then at the same time the earth is firing too much

How can I propose to my dear, “Love”

Love has been transformed to the unknown phase

Here nothing blooms to be gold

Nothing blooms to look at the rose.

Md. Mahbubul Alam is from Bangladesh. His writer name is Mahbub John in Bangladesh. He is a Senior Teacher (English) of Harimohan Government High School, Chapainawabganj, Bangladesh. Chapainawabganj is a district town of Bangladesh. He is an MA in English Literature from Rajshahi College under National University. He has published three books of poems in Bangla. He writes mainly poems but other branches of literature such as prose, article, essay etc. also have been published in national and local newspapers, magazines, little magazines. He has achieved three times the Best Teacher Certificate and Crest in National Education Week in the District Wise Competition in Chapainawabganj District. He has gained many literary awards from home and abroad. His English writings have been published in Synchronized Chaos for seven years.

Once when he was in grade ten in 1990, his Bangla letter was selected as the best one from Deutsche Welle, Germany Radio that broadcast Bangla news for the Banglalee people. And he was given 50 Dutch Mark as his award. They would ask letters from the listeners to the news in Bangla and select one letter for the best one in every month.     

From 17 to 30 September, in 2018 he received a higher training in teaching English language in Kasetsart University of Thailand for secondary level students through a government order from education ministry. 

On 06 November 2015 he achieved Amjad Ali Mondal Medal for his contribution in education field by a development organization in the conference and felicitation function for the honorable personalities at Rajshahi College Auditorium. 

On 30 December 2017 from West Bengal in India he was declared a ‘Literary Charioteer’ in Bangobandhu Literary and World Bango Conference and they awarded him with a Gold Medal in their International Literary Conference and Prize Giving Ceremony.

In 2018, he achieved Prodipto Lirerary Award in Prodipto Literary Conference at Kesorhat, Rajshahi for poems in Bangla literature. He received honorary crest from the administration of Chapainawabganj District Literary Conference and Cultural Function in 2021 and 2022 consecutively. 

His poems have been published in many international online magazines such as Juntos Por las L Raven Cage Zine, and Area Felix.  His poems have been translated and published in Argentine and Serbian, and he participated in many international online cultural meetings. 

A GOODBYE

It was stormy, cold day, autumn breezes were crashing against her window from time to time and Anne was sitting there without blinking her eyes like a statue in Plato’s academy of Athens, lost in the typhoon of her thoughts. Meanwhile, her mother knocked on the door.

‘’Anne be ready, your father is about to arrive, you have to go to the market’’

It shocked her for a while, she quickly placed her sketch book back in her tote bag, her eyes got captivated by her very own laptop, her ‘fantasia’. A river of tears, started to follow through her eyes. Today was the day, she had to go to market to buy a new laptop, as her ‘fantasia’ was no longer working. She had to replace it, although her heart was reluctant to idea of let go of her partner of years, with whom she shared her nights, days, her ideas, her laughter. It wasn’t easy for her to let go.

She took out her diary and began to write something, while tears flowed through her eyes:

‘I loved you as much as I love blue, as much as I love winter. You have been a piece of my heart for so long; no one can take your place. Fantasía. Goodbyes are hard, yet inevitable. Leaves grow from the stem, withstand so many winds, breezes, and storms, until they lose the stem and fall in late autumn. Spring returns with new leaves, but can they replace their predecessor? Just like the Deluge can’t replace the Big Bang. Wounds shed skin, yet when they heal, they leave a scar behind. Oceans dry up, yet they leave behind their remains. Nothing is replaceable. Everything holds a somewhat unique place in space, and this prophecy is eternal, long-standing, and as old as the tiniest particle in the universe.’’

She closed the diary with the hope that fantasia will always accompany her as memory of love and resilience. The storm outside had been silenced just like ashes of pain in her heart.

Fiza Amir is a Pakistani writer and poet, and a medical student by training. Her work grows out of hospital wards, history, and the quiet interior lives of people—where grief, compassion, and resilience meet. She writes with a spare, lyrical voice that turns lived moments into witness, believing that some stories survive only when they are written.

The hymn of the homeland in the hearts

Soibjonova Mohinsa, a student of the 1st general education school of the Kurgantepa district of Andijan region 

Annotation: This article discusses how love for the homeland awakens high feelings in the human heart, how these feelings are passed on from generation to generation, enriching the spiritual wealth of our people. The beauty of the homeland, its historical heritage and faith in the future become an inexhaustible hymn in every heart. This hymn in the hearts is manifested not only in words, but also in deeds as a bright expression of loyalty to the homeland.

Keywords: Motherland, love, loyalty, hymn, heart, beauty, opportunities, historical places, heritage, future, pride, inspiration, feelings, country, values.

Introduction: Homeland is the birthplace of man, the cradle of his language and the most sacred feeling in the deepest corner of his heart. It is not only a geographical area, but also the center of our history, culture, and aspirations. Great scholars such as Abu Rayhan Beruni and Alisher Navoi emphasized that loving and preserving the homeland is the highest duty of a person.

Main part: Our people always add the word “mother” to the word homeland. Mother is the homeland. Because the homeland is like a mother. Therefore, the mother must be the homeland. The homeland is the greatest blessing, and the more we talk about it, the less we talk about it. Because the homeland is the place where our umbilical cord blood was shed.

It is not only the place where we were born, but also an important support for our entire life. Our great scholars have also expressed deep thoughts about this.

Alisher Navoi, on the other hand, said, “Whoever is separated from his homeland, will not reach the homeland,” and tried to feel the pain of separation from his homeland and the value of the country. After our homeland gained independence, many opportunities were created in our country for future generations, not only for the younger generations, but for all people. First of all, after independence, our Islamic values were restored. People could freely pray, fast, and, if they wanted, go on the Hajj pilgrimage. This is evidence of the restoration of our scientific values. In addition, large investments are being made for the young future generation and extensive conditions for education are being created. Our Uzbekistan is flourishing. Nowadays, tourists from different countries are also visiting our country. They visit historical places and express positive opinions about our country. Because historical structures built by our great thinkers for centuries have been preserved in our homeland. Of course, this is also one of our our values. After independence, our national anthem was adopted on December 10, 1992. After that, “The Anthem of the Motherland in the Hearts” began to sound. The anthem awakens in the human heart a feeling of love and loyalty to one’s Motherland, and most importantly, love for the country.

Conclusion: To summarize this article, they say that love for the motherland is not proven in words, but in deeds.

Therefore, each of us, while loving it, should protect it like the apple of our eye, cherish it, always be vigilant in the face of various harmful ideas and songs, and encourage each other to do the same. Only then will we find satisfaction from the Motherland. There is some wisdom in this satisfaction. I believe in the young future generations. They still achieve high results in science, sports, and all fields. I will also be the young generation of a bright future that will benefit my country! Until now, there have been those who have achieved these achievements with their own labor, and future generations will not stop seeking knowledge. After all, it is not for nothing that they say, “Seek knowledge from the cradle to the grave.” Abu Nasr Al-Farabi also emphasized the need for enlightenment and moral perfection for the prosperity of the country, saying, “A well-educated people sacrifice their lives for the welfare of their country.” We are also our homeland We must be ready to give our lives for it. I would also like to say that we live in a peaceful country where such conditions have been created. For this, first of all, we must be grateful. Let me be grateful that we live in such a peaceful and quiet homeland!

This article is dedicated to the 34th anniversary of our independence

List of used literature:

1. Alisher Navoi. Mahbub ul-qulub. Tashkent: Gafur Ghulom Publishing House, 1983.

2. Forabiy, Abu Nasr. Views of the people of Fozil city. Tashkent: Yangi asr avlod, 2009.

3. Karimov, I.A. The homeland is as sacred as a place of worship. Tashkent: Uzbekistan, 1996.

4 Khayrullayev, M. Spiritual heritage of the Uzbek people. Tashkent: Fan, 1994.