You Left Us for the Vast Worlds

Why did you leave us behind,
And leave my eyes tearful, confined?
We stayed behind, crying your name,
For you left us, untamed by the frame of this world.

By your side, I used to play,
I cherished you more every day.
You were like a father to me,
Yet you left, unbounded, for eternity.

If only there were a cure for death,
If only we could hold back its breath,
A soul like yours we would keep,
And not weep in sorrow so deep.
Oh, my uncle, unmatched and kind,
You left us, beyond the world's bind.

Green Engines 

Where data rings around the poisoned
fruit coiled like the

Original sin bacillus but we're not quite
dreaded out 

Yet, foiled the plans of egomaniac
gods with blackened

Wings flapping like a cyborg fan-machine-man
over the 

Tweaked and roiling
abyss of

Scissors, there remains
a system of drillbit girls with heads like

Hammerhead sharks wearing
Polynesian skirts around the issue of 

Unholy orders, fringed, frayed, stripped
Boredom town 

Cross-hatchings in an 
addled adult 

Comic type
Stripped to 

Ill 

Turning 75 Three Times

	1-
Self-portraits by Picasso:
elbows where the head
should be, mouth and eyes
randomly scattered,
a mass of color; 
body parts trying to connect

	2-
Novels in three lines
like Japanese death poems:
a few words summing up life-
more than enough

	3-
Remembering morning at
a still lake: false dawn 
suggesting light with a
persistence of fog refusing
to lift-lines written in lieu
of mourning. 


White Noise Twice

	1-
Woman in white-
pale skin and alabaster
eyes, a white room
wraith, a scatter of
dried flowers, herbs; 
Emily Dickinson dreaming

	2-
Open Mic with thunderstorm
with unexpected static, 
dimming house lights
then total darkness;
an apology for reading
a war poem that ends
in thunder


Kawabata Six Times

	1-
At peace pagoda-
wrought iron character
for peace. At dusk
a bell rings

	2-
Clear summer night.
Where are the fireflies?

	3-
Still Life with Flower
Arrangement- 

single long stem Iris
in clear glass vase.
Shadows cast on
white interior wall;
perfect symmetries

	4-
Still Life with Waterfalls-

Summer drought reduces
flow. At the crest,
sleek stepping stones-
still a long way down

	5-
A trick of light
on lake reflects
flocks of birds

	6-
Folding origami cranes
for peace and releasing 
them into rivers, ponds,
lakes- a thousand is
never enough


Flood Tides Five Times

	1-
Cornfields on a flood
plain-only the tops
of stalks visible

	2-
Light through spider’s
web between two trees;
a world about to end

	3-
Found, barely visible
in receding tidal pool,
between a scatter of rocks,
a whale’s rib

	4-
After the flood,
gray morning sky;
a broken tree limb
with one bird on it

	5-
Weeks of rain then clear
and warm. The sun feels
strange, out of place

Seeing Sleep Four Times

	1-
Looking up from under
water, the movement
of clouds

	2-
Sleep-letting go
of the body,
the mind moves on

	3-
Light through gaps
between broken trees.
New day colors-
blue sky and rising sun,
almost liquids

	4-
Bone white trees-
moon shadows on
still water.
Nothing moves


White Symphony Three Times
	
	1-
Young woman in white
gazing into a mirror-
reflection in half tones
and light

	2-
Woman seated on piano
bench facing away from keys,
an annotated score open
to a piece for four hands,
two hands missing

	3-
Dreaming woman sleepwalking
in white, silk kimono empty
tea cups in each limp hand;
rice paper walls dissolve
around her.


Tone Poems Three Times

	1-
Outdoor concert at
night, Les Preludes
with moonglow and
meteor showers; a tone
poem with stars in it

	2-
November evening
with freezing rain

Cars sliding
on black ice

Inside a Schubert trio;
safe at home at last

	3-
Stained glass sonata:
musical notes as pure
as light through
colored glass

Time

Little girl, why the sad pout

What is there to worry about

Life may slide from North to South

And cries be held tight in your mouth

But time flies quickly from East to West

Clock ticking continuously without rest

Soon you will be leaving your nest

To face challenges of nature’s test.

Release all the burdens of your heart

Painful though it is, let go of the hurt

Waste not every breathe, for it is short

Learn and live fullest, of all that it’s worth.

Faith

What is Faith?

A belief that goes beyond what senses perceive

A belief that goes beyond what our instincts gives

A belief that goes beyond confusions that deceives

Yet, is Faith enough?

To accept the time to be born and die

To accept that fate and faith is but one

To accept a predestined destiny is done

To accept that a path is an inflexible sky

Then why is there Life?

Should life be spent by being immobile

Should one sit, silently wait in self exile

Should one watch others the world defile

As hunger, anger, greed and violence pile

Then why is there Free Will?

A choice to leash or let go one’s desire

A choice to create or destroy with fire

A choice to reject or sing along with choir

A choice to lead or be led by thorny wire

What is Faith?

Is Faith a strength to empower an action

Is Faith a comfort for failure’s depression

Is Faith a guide to worthwhile destination

Is Faith a motivation to lead one’s passion

What is the benefit of Faith in one’s belief?

What is the benefit of Faith in acceptance?

What is the benefit of Faith in one’s choice?

What is the benefit of Faith in one’s life?

With Faith, there is Trust,

Yet Trust with Wisdom,

Wisdom with Humility,

Humility with Confidence,

Confidence with Compassion.

Faith must not be blind,

For a Blind Faith is a Dead Faith;

Faith must be Alive with Free will,

Freewill needs to make wise Choices.

Lilian Dipasupil Kunimasa was born January 14, 1965, in Manila Philippines. She has worked as a retired Language Instructor, interpreter, caregiver, secretary, product promotion employee, and private therapeutic masseur. Her works have been published as poems and short story anthologies in several language translations for e-magazines, monthly magazines, and books; poems for cause anthologies in a Zimbabwean newspaper; a feature article in a Philippine newspaper; and had her works posted on different poetry web and blog sites. She has been writing poems since childhood but started on Facebook only in 2014. For her, Poetry is life and life is poetry.

Lilian Kunimasa considers herself a student/teacher with the duty to learn, inspire, guide, and motivate others to contribute to changing what is seen as normal into a better world than when she steps into it. She has always considered life as an endless journey, searching for new goals, and challenges and how she can in small ways make a difference in every path she takes. She sees humanity as one family where each one must support the other and considers poets as a voice for Truth in pursuit of Equality and proper Stewardship of nature despite the hindrances of distorted information and traditions.

Gaza, the Land of Resilience

Oh Gaza, cradle of ancient cries,

Beneath your sky where sorrow lies.

Your streets bear tales of courage untold,

A city of fire, steadfast and bold.

The winds hum songs of a broken dream,

Yet your spirit shines in every gleam.

Through shattered homes and fractured land,

You rise again with a steady hand.

The olive trees whisper their lore,

Of days of peace they once bore.

Now, roots hold firm in the scarred terrain,

A symbol of hope amidst the pain.

Don Bormon is a student of grade ten in Harimohan Government High School, Chapainawabganj, Bangladesh.

Gaza’s Grief

The sky is dark, the ground is torn,

In Gaza’s land, so many mourn.

Homes are lost, and hearts still ache,

A heavy toll, too much to take.

But still they stand, through endless pain,

Hoping peace will come again.

Through broken streets, their voices cry,

For love to bloom, for war to die.

Wazed Abdullah is a student of grade ten in Harimohan Government High School, Chapainawabganj, Bangladesh.

LAND OF SILENCE

In the valley where the wind softly smiles,

Where birds sing free from fear and pain,

Peace weaves robes of golden threads,

And crafts a world of boundless freedom.

On the horizon where dawn gleams bright,

No cannons roar, no tears of grief fall,

Only whispers of rivers, the scent of olives,

In a world where hearts rest in calm.

No longer do hands bear weapons of war,

Now they reach to build bridges anew,

Eyes once shadowed by darkness and pain

Now seek only the skies’ heavenly hue.

For in peace, love blooms and grows,

While tales of war become distant lore.

In every heart glows a spark of joy,

And life’s silence creates a radiant light.

Land of silence, sacred and dear,

May eternity rest in your gentle embrace.

Let every song from this place arise,

To spread love and the fragrance of freedom.

Maja Milojković was born in 1975 in Zaječar, Serbia. She is a person to whom from an early age, Leonardo da Vinci’s statement “Painting is poetry that can be seen, and poetry is painting that can be heard” is circulating through the blood. That’s why she started to use feathers and a brush and began to reveal the world and herself to them. As a poet, she is represented in numerous domestic and foreign literary newspapers, anthologies and electronic media, and some of her poems can be found on YouTube. Many of her poems have been translated into English, Hungarian, Bengali and Bulgarian due to the need of foreign readers. She is the recipient of many international awards. “Trees of Desire” is her second collection of poems in preparation, which is preceded by the book of poems “Moon Circle”. She is a member of the International Society of Writers and Artists “Mountain Views” in Montenegro, and she also is a member of the Poetry club “Area Felix” in Serbia.