A Flavour Called Deliverance

In the dark hovel

of deliverance

wings are waxed then clipped,

what was once easy, mastered,

becomes a myriad of difficult moves

resulting in immobility.

Hurdles are put under a microscope, intricately

seen now as an x-rayed fracture or

a clot under the skin swelling, expanding, 

turning purple.

In the last place before death,

a signature is made to replace

all others before, a final

heave-ho effort to maintain what was,

life-force inertia, a stickiness to fusion, 

straight-line progress.

But it slows, uses great effort to

keep going until it stops. And in that place

of cessation, in a vacuum space away from time,

metamorphosis is instant, vaporizing 

all resistance or structures left to hold.

It is untried, a beginning 

that has no obvious end,

consuming without harm or expenditure,

stillness in the astonishment, limitless,

encapsulating.

I’ve been in the dark hovel. 

I’ve witnessed its revelation.

Today doubts return as insects

swarming my insides with emergency

signals, sirens, targeting every open channel.

Simple dreams become hopeless and the

weight of life, too much to bear – entering

another dark hovel with no reservoir, 

no cooling down.

Hole

Lost amongst

the weakened growth,

yellow-stained dreams

and the sticky spread of time.

So much leading into separation,

so much nearby that aches and

cannot receive or release

the rage of perceived injustice.

The same day the hunters came

at running speed with their violence

and jarring confidence

was the same day I jumped into a hole

to escape, and have since stayed, casting my

shadows in this small space, safe in

the overgrowth.

Lost and lingering in this captured position

with a fickle faith that is not faith

because it is not absolute faith.

Eighty songs sung and slowly forgotten,

a predictable system to view and

try to fit into but there is a piercing in my side

that hurts when I sleep, when I

breathe, thinking of my lack,

my loss and not of the love

that is trying to pull me from

this freezing hole, even when 

my gratitude is lacking, gratitude 

mouthed but not meant.

Abducted by visible disappointments,

wide as flapping wings that cannot lift off.

A choice must be made. It is possible

to make a choice, to choose

to climb out and face the fear of freedom,

face myself, a small speck on the spectrum, 

myself, giving satisfactory effort, 

this one act of surrender.

I Am Gone

Free of its domination,

of its rotted breath consuming.

Your heart is a mix of manipulative

generalizations that cannot anchor.

And I am gone. 

I ran the lap and then

I ran it again, calling out your fever,

kissing the open fire.

I was trained to form habits being with you

in the lull between

expectation and judgement, 

never able to let down my guard 

or trust your tongue and motivations.

I give you my fortune, my good will

as I cancel this bond. 

I really don’t know you, 

I only know the yield between us 

is poisonous overgrowth, shadows advancing, 

conditional love and painful journeys without profit.

It has been sticky,

weighted with layers of

confusion and misunderstandings.

Occasionally it has been good.

I cannot carry your resentments

and I won’t carry mine.

Sometimes healing never happens

and trying to make it happen only

diminishes dignity.

Free, not an exuberant freedom,

just a dropping of the weight

of what I cannot change and cannot understand.

Freedom as peace from useless effort.

The gifts you gave me remain intact.

The future is open, its pathway

re-wired.

Restoration

In one swift happening

our dreams were born,

driven out of fantasy 

and dropped into flesh.

Mercy found us and saved us.

The calloused wound 

was cleared of its scar.

Gift after gift was ours.

Like discharged papers after

a long illness, or as though 

finally the medicine took,

and healing happened 

unfathomable and instant.

No after affects, no side effects.

What was once cut off

became integrated.

What was once confined 

became unbound,

became like nestlings 

that leapt from their nest

straight 

into perfect flight.

Jesus Knows

Jesus kneads the soul

into safety, illuminating

a launching pad and a way

away from the bramble and

haunted darkness of confusion,

falling into survival’s clutches, cuts,

snares and bone breaks, dream breaks,

where hope is a fragment of what

it was before 

when we were younger.

Jesus holds our hands, shows the

strength in choosing submission, the value

of releasing one chain and then another –

regeneration, cleansed of bitterness, 

regrets and greed

for what is not ours.

Jesus knows the full scope of our inner

civility, the intricate layers of deception

we follow to justify unkind acts, and thoughts that

deplete the joy we are meant to know when we know

Jesus, savior, lover to everyone,

every dying, every just-born

animal and star.

Focus and Lock 

The fractures spread

like ignored whispers

until they became cracks,

fissures, then full on separation –

body from body, lost from its

connecting bone.

Violently vapourized elements

of biology that lasted centuries,

that managed before to maneuver

eloquently despite always under

the threat of survival.

I pick a drum beat I remember

inside the wide rhythms of this harrowing

planet, my youth and where all things

get stored then used up, eventually.

Grasping for God beyond daily habit rituals,

found on a path done in replay, where there is

no play, only fear and inadequate resources.

Found and taking a step, a determination to detox

from worry in spite of 

its pressing pulse on mine, in spite

of disastrous possibilities as close

as reality, fighting for dominion.

I commit to faith. The temperature

is always shifting, there is no safe place here,

until death,

until the blackboard is erased.

I can preserve. I can serve and I can find 

a way away from fear, a way 

into a refined dignity,

holding steady, holding up myself like

an offering – burning but with an abundance

of fuel, never melting down

until my journey is over.

One Light

Through an exploration

into the darkest searing pain,

of days crammed into a corner

with spikes on all the walls

and the floor and the ceiling, 

rising, dropping, everything 

squeezing in.

No sleep, no technology

to help me or modern medicine

to ease the engine 

from driving full speed

until impact.

There I stayed for a week

or more, dispossessed of mercy at every turn

until the orbit finally loosened by surprise 

and a way out became clear.

While in, my true love sat with me and saved me.

My children stayed with me and kept me wanting a future.

Only in that repeat end-of-rope, end-of-hope agony,

chasing a cure but spiraling deeper into the lava pit,

was it made clear the necessity of love,

how love does not stop the pain 

or make the pain bearable, 

but cradles you while in the pain

and says you are not alone, says

I hurt with you, you are heard

and you matter, and you are loved –

miles infinite in every direction, 

saying be still, I am

and I am here.

Mercy Will Abide

Free-floating

now, just existing as

the accident and the healing

are over, and the revived

civilization has yet to come.

Holding a cane to walk,

an arm to lift up from 

sitting to standing, and then at last,

a smile, energy returning,

relief like the joy of a miracle.

Days when you thought you were dying,

past days shed and left in the past.

Grief is a word that multiplied 

and layered into a language,

absorbing both your understanding and conviction. 

Grief has died as has the white-knuckle-clenching,

the acceptance of suffering 

as the deciding factor.

Love is greater, doesn’t prevent or heal but

does overcome, is the only thing remembered

after the fact, in the end,

like a glowing cherished

vibrating orb –

love existing 

as the maggots

and lasers swarm, existing

in the plunge into excruciating pain 

and the abolishment of hope,

love – human, struggling

to keep loving,

turning reality’s bone crushing grip

into a blessing eternal, and in this way,

absolving.

For This Day

For today

you are my breath and focus.

The chloroplasts that feed off worry 

instead of sunlight

inch into pour pockets,

infiltrate my colon and distort

the wavelength I was given to ride

will have no lifeforce today.

A million signals of dread and doomed survival

will not race inside me like a swarm of centipedes

scurrying away from the light, but will rest

in one spot, stay put like a whirlwind covered 

in calm, there, but shielded from spread

or damaging.

For today, you will be my biology,

not just for morning prayers or midday talks,

but for all forms that arise from

my tongue and hands.

I will love you. I will trust you

like I always should,

pioneering this peace for today,

knowing you are here

even when insight fails me

and the surging bloodwind

is at my feet, at my throat,

you stand behind, in front and beside.

You are the end result,

the miracle pulsing within, 

driving the lead.

For today, I will be yours.

I will travel anywhere unscathed.

Through the Valley 

To see you writhe and twist

from fractures and complex

imbalances in the body, depressing

your joy unto death, remembering

each day plagued with renewed anguish

and the winter arriving with thick fog,

middle-of-the-night phone calls

full of tears and panic and there

we gathered – you and me and God and Jesus,

we found a bandwidth to lean into.

I must let it go,

your months of suffering and the tests and fear. 

I must draw a different equation that

will teach me a signature of peace.

Where you are planted is where you are now,

in divine deliverance, away from any anguish.

The same anguish I am still living in

and cannot seem to stop re-living 

despite God’s grace, despite how I was shown

your release into eternal love, despite 

the giant pillars of love surrounding me 

every day, since the day you left.

You have no pain,

you are as holy as the universe, in joy

as any infant suckling on its mother

or carried by its father, steady, safe,

enveloped in perfect protection

and a love so vast it radiates throughout every space,

eradicates all disease and fear gone before.

You are whole,

while I remain broken 

and keep breaking as I try

to understand –

I loved you, but my love 

could not save you from your suffering.

I love you and I know now you are saved,

resurrected into glory.

I must grow my strength stronger than my pity,

know God’s love is stronger 

than the senseless vaporous dream 

that haunts the dying and the ones left 

like me (tossing, flailing, helpless)

after death and because of it.

Where to Go

Into the summer I go

to be loved by you.

For the mercy of you is rich

as fire, as the wind speeds up its

flames, consuming dead debris.

Where forgiveness is the act of mutually

releasing and of being released –

knotting, unblocking, so the line is

straight, and the flow is unclogged 

and dreams dreamt in the mind, 

connected to the divine

are immediately realized like a kiss 

received then reciprocated 

where echoes are placed in pockets, locked in

layered dimensional spaces, existing, not

overlapping, not interfering

with the breathable air.

Allison Grayhurst has been nominated for “Best of the Net” six times. She has over 1,400 poems published in over 530 international journals, including translations of her work. She has 25 published books of poetry and 6 chapbooks. She lives in Toronto. She also sculpts, working with clay; www.allisongrayhurst.com

The Stream Of Magnanimity 

With me every then, yet now 

In every footstep

In the tranquil flow of life 

In every dark and night 

When I ceased to flow into the streams of equanimity 

I feel you deep within 

In very little shifts 

When courage overpowers the eclipse 

And then the sun smiled in you 

Not in dark neither in glow 

I find you glowing in awareness 

Providing comfort to my soil 

Beyond erosion-

Spirited beyonce which kept on filling me 

In divine mellow 

And I embrace life in your love and care 

Being a river that keeps nourishing 

Blooming into blissful blessing

Truely within in the flow of magnanimity 

All bad poetry springs from genuine feelings- Oscar Wilde 

The Broken Chord

Feelings are the mirror of 

the heart 

Where emotions 

travel deep

Where a heart thrives 

and survives

It cries out of pain 

The broken chord of life 

oozes its fountain

They appear as they are 

over a piece of paper- 

Distorted metaphors of love

and its failure 

Sometimes they’re

soothing 

Sometimes they simply 

appear to be an elegy 

With intense emotions they 

fall short of words 

A Literary craft simply 

appears as a draft 

And the molten glacier keeps 

on floating aside 

Where numbness astride

INDEPENDENCE — THE FOUNDATION OF OPPORTUNITIES: CONDITIONS CREATED FOR YOUNG PEOPLE AND WOMEN IN UZBEKISTAN 

Qosimova Zulhumor Toxirjon qizi 

Born on 27 December 1994 in Quva District, Fergana Region. In 2018, I was admitted to the History programme at the Faculty of History of Andijan State University, graduating in 2022. Winner of numerous online competitions. An advocate for women’s participation in sports. 

Abstract 

This article examines Uzbekistan’s 35-year development since independence and the modern opportunities created for young people and women. It highlights the conditions provided for education, scientific research, the implementation of innovative ideas, entrepreneurship, and professional development among young people. Particular attention is paid to opportunities for women in education, employment, entrepreneurship, and science, as well as to increasing their participation in public life. The article analyses the role of ongoing reforms in expanding opportunities for the younger generation and women and in supporting the realization of their intellectual, creative, and professional potential. It also considers prospective areas for further development of these opportunities. 

Keywords: independence, Uzbekistan, 35 years of development, youth, women, education, science, innovation, entrepreneurship, opportunities, social engagement, youth policy. 

Introduction 

Uzbekistan’s achievement of independence marked the beginning of a new historical stage in the country’s political, economic, social, and spiritual development. The 35th anniversary of independence provides an important opportunity to analyse the path taken, assess the results achieved, and identify new tasks facing society. In particular, studying the opportunities created for the younger generation, which will shape the country’s future, and for women, who make up an active part of society, is an important and timely issue. 

In today’s conditions of development, a country’s competitiveness is closely linked to the quality of its human capital. Therefore, policies aimed at developing education, science, modern professions, foreign-language learning, digital technologies, entrepreneurship, and innovation have strategic importance. According to official information for 2026, people aged 14–30 account for approximately 25 per cent of Uzbekistan’s population. The draft “New Uzbekistan Youth – 2030” strategy identifies support for youth employment and entrepreneurship, quality and inclusive education, foreign languages, vocational education, volunteering, and broader youth participation in public life as priority areas. 

The meaning of independence is not limited to state sovereignty. It is also reflected in society’s ability to determine its own path of development, protect national interests, safeguard people’s rights and interests, and create suitable conditions for future generations. From this perspective, the attention paid during the years of independence to education and science, youth policy, support for women, and the development of human capital is regarded as one of the important drivers of national progress. 

At the current stage, the “Uzbekistan – 2030” Strategy identifies the creation of suitable conditions for every person to realize their potential as a distinct objective. The strategy sets specific indicators for expanding women’s use of information and communication technologies, developing vocational and entrepreneurial skills, and supporting employment. Thus, the 35-year milestone of independence is important not only as a historical anniversary, but also as an opportunity to assess the conditions created for people to gain knowledge, acquire professions, take initiative, and build their futures independently.

Young people occupy a significant place in the country’s demographic, intellectual, and economic potential. The effectiveness of youth policy is therefore reflected in interconnected areas such as education, employment, entrepreneurship, culture, sport, innovation, and social engagement. The draft “New Uzbekistan Youth – 2030” strategy presented in 2026 sets out goals including providing employment for 600,000 young people annually, involving 900,000 young people in volunteering by 2030, and helping 450,000 young people reach B2 proficiency in foreign languages. 

Official information published in 2026 on supporting youth initiatives also notes a focus on education, vocational skills, sport, projects, and start-ups. The same source reports that the number of young entrepreneurs has exceeded 287,000, that 3.5 million young people are intensively studying foreign languages, and that some start-ups created by young people have entered foreign markets. These opportunities help young people become active contributors capable of creating new value rather than simply waiting for an existing job. However, opportunities alone are not enough: young people need to continually strengthen their knowledge, professional skills, foreign-language proficiency, digital literacy, and project-management abilities in order to benefit from them effectively. 

Education is one of the most important mechanisms for building human capital. In a modern economy, practical skills, digital literacy, knowledge of foreign languages, independent thinking, and the ability to solve problems are as important as a diploma. For this reason, the education system is paying increasing attention to developing competencies alongside knowledge. 

Educational opportunities for young people extend beyond higher education. Vocational education, learning centres, language courses, internships, international projects, and various competitions enable young people to choose development pathways that match their individual interests. The draft “New Uzbekistan Youth – 2030” strategy includes tasks aimed at developing learning centres in remote areas, encouraging foreign-language learning, and expanding vocational education. Expanding access to education is also important for social equality. Measures are being implemented to widen access to higher education by supporting disadvantaged groups and introducing additional grants and recommendation mechanisms. Official information for 2026 also refers to an additional state-grant admission mechanism for women from families in need. 

Science is a long-term driver of social development, and involving young people in research increases the country’s intellectual potential. Writing academic articles, participating in conferences, preparing research projects, conducting experiments, and carrying out studies help students become familiar with academic environments. Innovation, in turn, makes it possible to turn scientific knowledge into practical outcomes. Start-ups, technological projects, digital products, and social innovations help transform young people’s ideas into economic or social value. 

Official information from 2026 also refers to supporting young people’s start-up projects and helping them enter international markets. Developing research clubs, start-up clubs, innovation laboratories, and project schools at higher education institutions can connect students’ theoretical knowledge with practical work. Such environments help students not only master their subjects but also identify problems, develop ideas, form teams, prepare project plans, and present results. 

Women’s access to education and professional development directly affects society’s human capital. In recent years, mechanisms supporting grants, recommendations, postgraduate study, and research have expanded. According to official information for 2026, the grant quota for women from disadvantaged families who do not have higher education was increased from 2,000 to 4,000 places. The contract-based quota for women with five years of work experience but no higher education was increased from 500 to 2,500 places. These mechanisms widen access to education and create a stronger foundation for women’s future careers.

Information for 2026 states that women account for 42 per cent of research activity, and that 1,612 projects were reviewed in the “Women Scientists” competition, of which 156 received funding. These figures indicate growing participation by women in research. For female students interested in research, writing articles, attending conferences, preparing grant proposals, and working with academic supervisors can provide valuable experience for future academic careers. 

In today’s economic environment, supporting women’s entrepreneurship and innovation is seen not only as a way to increase individual income, but also as a means of improving family well-being and strengthening local economic activity. Mechanisms are therefore being developed to provide women with vocational training, entrepreneurial skills, financial literacy, and funding opportunities for innovative ideas. Information published in 2026 states that start-up competitions are to be organised in at least 10 areas to support women’s innovative ideas, with grants of up to 500 million soums for the winner in each area. 

In addition, the “Uzbekistan – 2030” Strategy sets indicators for encouraging women to use information and communication technologies, training them in vocational and entrepreneurial skills, and pairing women in need with experienced women entrepreneurs. In this context, female students’ participation in start-up clubs, business-incubation programmes, and innovation competitions can enrich their theoretical knowledge with practical experience. From identifying a problem and studying the market to developing a business model, creating a marketing strategy, and presenting a project, these processes help build entrepreneurial competencies. 

Access to decent employment is an important stage in young people’s transition to independent life. Alongside traditional professions, today’s labour market requires new competencies in programming, data analysis, artificial intelligence, digital marketing, design, media, cybersecurity, project management, and other fields. The draft “New Uzbekistan Youth – 2030” strategy identifies youth employment, the expansion of vocational education, and labour-market support as priorities. It also sets a goal of providing employment for 600,000 young people each year. 

Cooperation between educational institutions and employers is also important for turning opportunities into practical outcomes. Internships, work placements, mentoring, professional workshops, and participation in real projects help students understand labour-market requirements in advance. 

Women’s access to education should be assessed not only by whether they can enrol, but also by whether they can continue studying under different life circumstances. Balancing family responsibilities, raising children, and studying may create additional organisational needs for some students. Developing flexible education mechanisms is therefore socially important. Government information for 2026 refers to additional mechanisms to help pregnant students and students raising children under the age of three continue their education, including academic leave and distance-learning options in certain circumstances. 

Such mechanisms can help reconcile education with family life. Continuing their education enables young mothers to plan their future careers, return to the labour market, and strengthen their families’ economic stability. Academic, psychological, and professional support should therefore work together within the education system. 

Youth development cannot be measured by academic results alone. Teamwork, initiative, taking responsibility, problem-solving, public speaking, and managing social projects are also important skills for modern professionals. Student organisations, volunteering projects, intellectual clubs, sports, and cultural events provide valuable settings for personal development. Official information on youth policy in 2026 identifies the expansion of volunteering, strengthening young people’s role in participation mechanisms, and maintaining regular dialogue with young people as important tasks.

Educational platforms for women are also part of this process. The official Youth Platform website presents the “Girls’ Academy” as an educational platform designed to strengthen women’s personal, professional, and intellectual potential. To make effective use of leadership opportunities, young people need to organise their activities systematically, set clear goals, learn to work in teams, and implement projects that benefit society. Such experience can provide an important foundation for responsible work in government, business, science, and civil-society institutions. 

The opportunities being created do not automatically lead to results. Their effectiveness depends on the active participation of young people and women, their commitment to learning, their hard work, and their ability to use available programmes appropriately. Each student or young professional should therefore develop a personal growth strategy, decide which field to specialise in, and consistently acquire the knowledge and skills needed to achieve that goal. 

First, those seeking educational opportunities should regularly review the official requirements for grants, scholarships, and competitions. Second, participation in articles, projects, conferences, and research should be organised systematically to support scientific development. Third, it is important to strengthen foreign-language skills, digital technology skills, and modern professional competencies in response to changes in the labour market. In the future, key tasks will include reducing regional disparities, expanding access to information, developing mentoring and internship systems, commercialising scientific and innovative projects, and strengthening the connection between education and employment. Cooperation among public authorities, educational institutions, businesses, and civil-society organisations will be particularly important. 

Conclusion 

Uzbekistan’s 35-year period of development since independence is an important stage for examining the country’s recent history, its economic and social development, and the growing emphasis on human capital. Today, a range of opportunities is being developed for young people and women in education, science, innovation, entrepreneurship, employment, and social engagement. A long-term approach to youth policy, expanded education and professional training, support for start-ups and innovation, and increased opportunities to learn foreign languages are intended to strengthen the role of young people as a vital part of the country’s human capital. 

Additional educational grants for women, funding for research projects, support for innovative start-ups, and initiatives to develop entrepreneurial skills create important opportunities to expand women’s economic, scientific, and social participation. The meaning of independence can therefore be closely linked to the opportunities being created for today’s generation. Gaining knowledge, acquiring a profession, conducting research, developing innovative ideas, engaging in entrepreneurship, and participating actively in public life are important both for young people’s personal futures and for the country’s development. Making effective use of these opportunities requires every young person and woman to act responsibly and consistently to realise their potential. 

References 

1. Official website of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan. “The ‘New Uzbekistan Youth – 2030’ Strategy Will Be Implemented.” 20 April 2026. 

2. Official website of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan. “Additional Opportunities Established to Support Youth Initiatives.” 24 February 2026. 

3. Official website of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan. “The President Met with Young People and Put Forward New Initiatives.” 30 June 2026. 

4. Official website of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan. “Uzbekistan – 2030” Strategy.

5. Committee on Family and Women of the Republic of Uzbekistan. “Equal Opportunities for Women in Education, Science, Sport, and Healthcare.” 6 February 2026. 

6. Government Portal of the Republic of Uzbekistan. “New Benefits to Support Women’s Education.” 10 March 2026. 

7. Government Portal of the Republic of Uzbekistan. “Procedure for Issuing Recommendations for Additional State Grants for Women from Families in Need.” 2026. 

8. Youth Platform. “Girls’ Academy and Opportunities for Young People.”

Qosimova Zulhumor Toxirjon qizi was born on December 27, 1994, in Quva District, Fergana Region, Republic of Uzbekistan. She currently works as a history teacher at Diamond Valley Private School. She contributes to educating the younger generation in history, broadening students’ worldviews, and fostering respect for national history and cultural heritage

WHEN THE WORLD CHOOSES PEACE

A Poetic Appeal to Humanity

When the sky no longer trembles with fire,

when the night brings no more tears or fear,

when children sleep safely in their mothers’ arms,

and morning rises without pain or sorrow…

Then the world will understand

that peace is more than just a word.

It is bread shared with the hungry,

a hand reaching out to save a life,

and a heart that forgives without asking for reward.

Today, in so many corners of this Earth,

human beings still torture, oppress, and wound,

while children lose their innocence

in a world that should have kept them safe.

How long will the human conscience remain silent?

How many tears must fall upon this Earth,

how many lives must be shattered, how many hopes extinguished,

before humanity learns to feel another’s pain?

Let weapons fall silent and let hearts speak,

let torture and cruelty come to an end.

No power is greater than the value of life,

and no ideology can justify human suffering.

No child deserves to live in fear,

no mother deserves the pain of loss,

no human being should live in chains

of violence, hatred, or injustice.

O human being, what value have victories

when souls remain wounded?

What meaning have borders and glory

when human dignity is trampled without mercy?

Do not measure a person by nationality,

nor by faith, language, or the colour of their skin.

Measure them by the compassion they show,

the justice they defend, and the love they give.

For Earth is a home we all share,

and pain knows neither borders nor differences.

No heart should have to suffer alone

in a world with enough love for everyone.

Let the voices of good people rise,

let justice be more than a distant dream.

Let nations unite in defence of life,

so that no one is tortured, oppressed, or forgotten.

Peace is not the silence of those who suffer,

but the courage to put an end to their suffering.

Justice is not a privilege reserved for the powerful,

but a right belonging to every human being.

Let peace be our legacy,

let humanity be the light that guides us,

and let love become the language that unites us.

So that tomorrow, when children ask us

what we did to save this world,

we may answer with a clear conscience:

We did not remain silent in the face of injustice.

We did not accept cruelty as inevitable.

We defended life, dignity, and freedom.

We chose peace for all humanity.

And then, perhaps, this world

will finally learn that the greatest strength

lies not in ruling over others,

but in preserving the humanity within ourselves.

Xhuli Spahiu 

Kosovo

Smash Patriarchy
by Alex S. Johnson aka Kandy Fontaine 

I do not fit into your
gender mold 

Jelly roll and I resist
your prurient
caliper and

Rapier/rapist display of
dominance cos

It ain't wit
Bitch

It's somethin'
but it ain't nothin' but

Guys with carved 
pecs boasting street brawl
you can find a lot of these
dudes in gay 

Porn...same ass-thetic
pros-thetic

Pitiful cos-play at
Gangsta but you

Wouldn't last a 
second in my cells

Honey oh you 
see from shining sea to
port on air

Build-a-Bear
the shimmer of tinfoil 
crackle of the glass dick

Holding? Wanting to hold?
got something for me?

But ain't it all
rilly just the 
Same

Bull
Shit

Dominance front
dominance front it's a 

Put-on 
like 

Pasty pallid eyed
glam drag
Queens of the Stoned Rage

Doing the walk of 
Shame crawling back to their
monster Kafka insect

Hives to die a 
thousand
thousand 

Megadeths my 
darlings huffing Raid
again I See...

bio
Alex S. Johnson aka Kandy Fontaine is an alphabetical drag monster whose work is archived at Harvard's Widener Library. He has performed spoken word and poetry with the likes of 2.13.61/Henry Rollins-published poets Tricia Warden and Ellyn Maybe, collaborated on For Iris: The Los Angeles Poems with true punk rock progenitor Iris Berry (Ringling Sisters, Pink Sabbath, Lame Flames, The Dickies) and Richard Modiano, Joe Hill Award-winning poet and author of The Forbidden Lunchbox. Johnson/Fontaine's writing has appeared alongside Patrick Califia (Macho Sluts) and Carol Queen (PomoSexuals) and in such publications as Rolling Stone and Metal Hammer. He lives in Carmichael, California with his family. 

Pedestrian

Kari felt herself being jerked and shoved down the sidewalk by the teeming crowd. The wave of humanity had swallowed her up several blocks before, when she had been trying to keep up with her sisters, Madge and Deera, older by 4 and 6 years. At the pedestrian crosswalk, Kari had looked away for just an instant, and by then it was too late.

Kari, 4-years-old, was just 39-inches tall and weighed but a scant 35 lbs, soaking wet. It was small wonder that she was being bundled along so. She thought to stop her forward motion, but was rebuffed in her efforts by the punching of the knees of the man behind her. She hurried to regain her speed. She looked out of the corner of her eye and saw the man’s shoes: they looked two feet long! She accelerated her pace some more.

She listened, but the mob of people was relatively silent. No happy talk, no chatter like she experienced on the school bus to pre-school each morning. Were these people all angry? she wondered.

The crowd halted again. Kari looked up and saw the cartoonish stoplights which loomed over every street corner. When would this strange excursion end? she wondered bleakly. She couldn’t go on forever. She could strike out on her own, but she felt an odd comfort in the familiairity she shared with these strangers. And where were her sisters? She tried looking over her shoulder, but was shoved back into line by the hard, unforgiving knees of those behind her.

A thuddering crash from overhead, and the sky opened up to a drenching rainfall. Instantly dozens of embrellas popped open, but Kari had none. She proceeded to get soaked. As the promenade continued, attendees came and went, exiting and entering taxis and buses and emerging from and dropping into the trains in the subway. Kari looked up, had no idea where she was.

They halted at yet another pedestrian walkspace–the sixth, seventh?–and Kari felt the fatigue of overtaxed 4-year-old muscles. She looked up at those in the train and didn’t recognize any of them from when she started out. What could she do? she wondered again. She thought about what he older sister Deera might do. “Pitch a fit,” urged Deera in her ear. “No one can just stand by when a little girl freaks out.”

So Kari did. As the crowd moved forward, she halted in her tracks, was instantly assaulted by the impatient knees of those behind her. She abruptly fell hard to the ground. She cried out. Ooh, good, she thought. This was so much better. A screaming child was one thing, but a child sprawled out on the wet pavement was something else again. Like magic, the crowd halted. Several adults observed Kari owlishly, then stepped over her and proceeded on their way. Far more of them, however, stopped to see if she were okay.

“Hey,” rapped a voice belonging to a man with sharp knees, “this little girl has fallen. Who’s her parent?” he demanded. Others stood around, uncertainly, as if they’d never noticed Kari before.

“That’s her mother,” said another man, pointing to a tall, willowy blonde.

“No,” said the willowy one, “she’s not mine. I never saw her before. Let’s ask her. Honey,” she said, kneeling down and helping Kari to her feet, “where’s your mama?”

Kari, always pleased by being the center of attention, contemplated briefly whether she should start crying, in order to sell it. She decided not too. “I don’t know,” she said miserably. “I was walking with my sisters back there,” and she pointed back the way they’d come, “and then they were gone.”

“What’s your name, Baby?” asked the thin blonde, who had assumed control of the situation. Kari gave her name. “Do you know your telephone number?” asked the nice woman.

Kari turned up her tiny clutch and handed it over. The woman opened it up and found Kari’s contact info. The woman pulled out her cell and punched in the number.

________

40 minutes later found Kari’s mother, Marsha, flustered and making apologies to the willowy blonde, who turned out to be a nice woman named Francine Levy.

“I can’t tell you how I appreciate your kindness, Francine,” said Marsha as the three sat before an ice cream pushcart a half block from where Kari had been discovered. The rain had stopped, the clouds dispersed and the sun shined down brightly. “When my other daughters returned without Kari, I was aghast. They were only a block away when she disappeared. It was like a nightmare; you dream about it, but never expect it to happen to you.”

“Did your other children explain how it happened?” asked Francise, 

lapping at a cherry cone.

Marsha shook her head. “One second she was there, the next she was gone,” she said. “Deera has always been very responsible,” she said. “Things just got out of hand…I don’t know, I suppose that’s too much responsibility for a 10-year-old. During the school year it’s a lot easier to keep track of them, since every minute is structured and chaperoned.”

“Fortunately, you had Kari’s contact info on her,” said Francine, smiling at Kari and stroking her  dark hair.

“Well, I can’t thank you enough for calling,” said Marsha. “Do you have children?” she asked.

Francine shook her head. “Not yet. But, when I do,” she said wistfully, “I like the name Kari.”

Kari beamed.

The adults said their goodbyes.

“Ready to go, Gumdrop?” Marsha asked her daughter.

Kari nodded, took a final bite of ice cream.

“You be careful in future, girl,” said her mother. “Otherwise I might have to put you on a leash.”

Kari’s eyes sprang open wide in alarm, but then she realized her mother was only teasing.

“Why did you fall and call out?” asked Marsha.

“I just did what Deera said to do,” revealed Kari, recounting her sister’s advice to “pitch a fit.”

“Deera had a point,” conceded Marsha. “It’s always the squeaky wheel that gets the grease. But, you know you can always contact a policeman, right, Honey?”

“I didn’t see any around,” said Kari. “An’ I was tired of walking.”

“I think you handled yourself very well,” said Marsha. “But, not every stranger is as nice as Francine,” Marsha pointed out.

“Are we goin’ home now?” asked Kari.

“Uh huh.”

“Can we take a taxi?” the 4-year-old asked..

“Uh huh, I think you’ve rather overplayed your pedestrian gig for one day.”

And they caught the next Yellow Cab home.

The Quiet Work Behind an Intelligent Machine: Learning to Build Technology for People

There is something fascinating about a machine that appears to understand us.

We type a question, and an answer arrives in seconds. We describe a problem, and a system suggests a solution. We give software a task that once required patience and repetition, and it completes the work before we have finished thinking about it.

It is tempting to call this progress and leave the discussion there.

But I have become increasingly interested in a question that comes after the excitement: what happens when the impressive part of technology is no longer the most important part?

An intelligent system may be technically remarkable and still misunderstand the person using it. It may produce fluent answers without sufficient understanding, offer convenience without clarity, or solve a problem while creating another that nobody anticipated.

For me, this is where the more meaningful work of innovation begins. Not at the moment a machine demonstrates what it can do, but at the moment we begin asking what it should do, whom it should serve, and what responsibilities come with building it.

As a student exploring artificial intelligence and digital systems in Uzbekistan, I see technology not only as a collection of tools to learn, but also as a set of decisions that can shape people’s everyday experiences. That perspective has changed the way I think about the future of intelligent machines.

The Difference Between Making Something Work and Making It Matter

When we discuss innovation, we often celebrate what can be measured easily: processing speed, accuracy, efficiency, the number of automated tasks, or the amount of time saved.

These measures matter. A system that cannot perform its intended function has little practical value.

Yet technical performance is only one part of usefulness.

Imagine a digital assistant that answers questions quickly but leaves a beginner more confused than before. Imagine an accounting tool that processes records efficiently but provides no understandable explanation when an unusual transaction appears. Imagine an online service that works perfectly for an experienced user but becomes an obstacle for someone unfamiliar with digital systems.

Each tool might satisfy a technical specification. None necessarily succeeds as a human experience.

This distinction is easy to overlook because the machine’s performance is visible, while the user’s frustration is often hidden.

A developer can demonstrate that a feature works. It is harder to demonstrate that a person feels confident using it, understands its limitations, or knows what to do when it fails.

That difficulty does not make these questions less important. It makes them worth asking earlier.

I have come to think of good technology as something that should gradually make itself less intimidating. Its purpose is not to remind people how sophisticated the system is. Its purpose is to help them accomplish something that matters to them.

The best interface may be the one that does not demand attention. The best explanation may be the one that makes a difficult idea feel manageable. And the best automation may be the kind that gives a person more time to exercise judgment rather than asking them to surrender it.

What an Intelligent Assistant Owes Its User

Building or exploring AI assistants makes one issue particularly clear: the way a system responds is part of what it does.

Two assistants may have access to similar capabilities and provide similarly accurate information yet leave very different impressions. One may explain patiently. Another may be concise and direct. A third may sound confident even when the question deserves caution.

These differences are not merely decorative. They influence whether users feel comfortable asking questions, whether they recognize uncertainty, and whether they understand what the system can reasonably provide.

Friendliness alone is not enough. An assistant can sound warm and still be misleading. Directness can be useful, but it can also become needlessly dismissive. Confidence can reassure users, but misplaced confidence can encourage them to trust an answer that should be checked.

The real challenge is to make communication fit the situation without losing honesty.

A useful assistant should be able to explain a simple task without unnecessary complexity, acknowledge uncertainty when appropriate, and recognize when a question requires human expertise or independent verification. It should not pretend that every problem has a clear answer simply because producing an answer is easy.

This is one reason I believe that designing AI involves more than selecting a model or writing a set of instructions. It requires thinking about the relationship between a system and the person who depends on it.

What expectations does its language create? Does it help users understand, or merely persuade them? Does it encourage independent thought, or quietly replace it?

These questions become especially important when people begin using AI for education, financial decisions, professional work, and other situations where mistakes have consequences.

An intelligent assistant should not be judged only by how convincing it sounds. It should also be judged by how responsibly it communicates.

The Human Being Behind the Interface

Technology is frequently designed around an imagined user: someone with a reliable internet connection, sufficient technical knowledge, clear instructions, and enough time to learn a new system.

Real people do not always fit that description.

Some users are encountering a service for the first time. Others may be working in a second language, using an older device, or trying to understand an unfamiliar process while managing several other responsibilities.

A system that assumes everyone already knows what to do can turn a small learning curve into a barrier.

This matters in countries experiencing digital change, including Uzbekistan. The possibilities offered by online services, digital financial tools, and artificial intelligence are significant. But the value of those possibilities depends partly on whether people can access them, understand them, and use them with confidence.

Modernization should not be measured exclusively by how many services become digital. We should also ask whether those services become easier to navigate, whether their instructions make sense, and whether people can obtain help when something goes wrong.

Consider a student learning a new technical skill. A useful educational assistant does not simply deliver the correct answer. It helps the student understand why the answer works. It offers another explanation when the first one fails. Ideally, it leaves the student better equipped to solve the next problem independently.

The same principle applies beyond education.

A digital accounting system should help people understand their records, not merely move numbers from one screen to another. A public service should make its requirements clear, not force citizens to guess which step comes next. An AI assistant should help someone think more effectively, not make them feel that thinking is no longer necessary.

Human-centered design begins with the recognition that people are not obstacles to efficiency. They are the reason efficiency matters.

The Limits We Must Be Willing to Admit

There is another responsibility that accompanies intelligent technology: knowing what it cannot reliably do.

Modern AI systems can produce useful explanations, identify patterns, summarize information, and support creative work. They can also generate incorrect claims, miss important context, and present uncertain conclusions in language that sounds authoritative.

The danger is not simply that a machine can make a mistake. People make mistakes, too.

The deeper problem arises when the appearance of intelligence causes us to stop checking.

If an automated tool produces a financial figure, a person may need to verify the underlying records. If an AI assistant explains a technical concept, a learner may need to consult reliable documentation. If a system recommends a consequential action, the person using it should understand the basis and limitations of that recommendation.

Responsibility cannot disappear into the software.

The National Institute of Standards and Technology’s Artificial Intelligence Risk Management Framework: Generative Artificial Intelligence Profile, published in 2024, offers practical guidance for organizations seeking to identify and manage risks associated with generative AI. Its existence reflects an important principle: trustworthiness requires deliberate attention throughout the development and use of a system, not merely confidence in its capabilities.

UNESCO’s Recommendation on the Ethics of Artificial Intelligence similarly emphasizes human dignity, fairness, transparency, and human oversight.

These principles are not reasons to reject innovation. They are reminders that powerful tools need thoughtful boundaries.

A mature approach to AI does not demand perfection from every system. It demands honesty about limitations, sensible safeguards, and a clear understanding of who remains responsible for the decisions that matter.

Sometimes the most intelligent response a system can provide is an explanation of what it does not know.

Learning to Build with Care

For students entering technology-related fields, the responsibility to think beyond functionality begins early.

It is natural to focus first on making something work. A program runs. A feature responds. An error disappears. These moments are satisfying because they turn an abstract idea into something tangible.

But the next questions are just as valuable.

Can another person understand what I have built? What happens when the input is unexpected? Have I considered how the system could be misunderstood? Does it protect information that should remain private? If it gives an incorrect answer, will the user have a reasonable way to recognize and correct the mistake?

These questions expand the meaning of technical skill.

They encourage developers to consider accessibility alongside performance, clarity alongside complexity, and accountability alongside automation. They also reveal why collaboration matters. The person who understands the code may not be the person who best understands the user’s circumstances.

A more useful approach brings those perspectives together.

In my own learning, I increasingly see the value of treating every technical project as an opportunity to understand both a problem and the people affected by its solution. The objective is not simply to produce something that demonstrates capability. It is to create something whose usefulness can be explained in terms that matter beyond the developer’s screen.

That is a more demanding standard, but it is also a more meaningful one.

A project does not become valuable merely because it uses artificial intelligence. It becomes valuable when its capabilities are connected to a genuine need, its limitations are understood, and its design respects the people who use it.

Progress That Leaves People More Capable

We are entering a period in which intelligent tools will become increasingly familiar. Tasks that once required specialized knowledge may become easier to begin. New forms of creativity and collaboration will emerge. People will find additional ways to learn, communicate, and solve problems.

These possibilities deserve enthusiasm.

But enthusiasm should not prevent us from asking what kind of relationship we want to establish with the technology we create.

Do we want systems that make decisions difficult to question, or systems that help people understand their choices? Do we want automation that hides responsibility, or tools that make work clearer and more accountable? Do we want intelligence that merely imitates confidence, or intelligence designed to communicate its limitations honestly?

The answers will depend on countless decisions made by developers, researchers, educators, organizations, and users. They will not be determined by technological capability alone.

For a student, this realization offers both a challenge and an opportunity. Learning to build intelligent systems means learning to think carefully about their effects. It means understanding that the work continues after a successful demonstration, because a functioning prototype is only the beginning of a relationship between a tool and its users.

The future will need people who can build sophisticated systems. It will also need people willing to question their assumptions, listen to those affected by their decisions, and recognize when a simpler solution would serve the user better.

Perhaps this is the quiet work behind every intelligent machine: the work that happens before the interface is opened, after the answer appears, and whenever someone asks whether a system is genuinely helping.

The most important achievement of artificial intelligence may not be that machines can do more things that once required human effort.

It may be that we learn to use our own intelligence more carefully—to ask better questions, make more thoughtful decisions, and build tools that expand rather than diminish human capability.

A machine can be impressive because of what it can do.

The technology we should be proudest of is the technology that helps people do something worthwhile with what it makes possible.

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References

1. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). Artificial Intelligence Risk Management Framework: Generative Artificial Intelligence Profile (2024). https://doi.org/10.6028/NIST.AI.600-1
2. UNESCO. Recommendation on the Ethics of Artificial Intelligence (adopted in 2021). https://www.unesco.org/en/legal-affairs/recommendation-ethics-artificial-intelligence

About the Author

Sherzod Suvonov is a student at Tashkent State University of Economics with interests in artificial intelligence, digital transformation, accounting, and modern information systems. His work explores how emerging technologies can address practical problems while remaining understandable, responsible, and useful to people.

Explore more of his work:

• Medium: https://medium.com/@suvonov2310
• GitHub: https://github.com/suvonov2310-a11y