NILAVRONILL SHOOVRO

WELCOME

TO

OUR POETRY ARCHIVE

Any poet would like to be applauded mostly for his literary brilliance and be appreciated for his literary craftsmanship. Each of them likes to know that his poems are well accepted by the readers. That is quite natural. Actually, a poet waits patiently to see how many readers like his poems. With the advent of the internet it has really become easy to find out if many readers like a poem or not. It has surely become even easier nowadays to publish poems, reach a wider audience, see how many readers are favouring our poems and receive any appreciation what we consider as a proof of our literary merits. That not only boosts up our confidence as poets, satisfies our own personal ego but also can help grow our self-esteem to such an extent, that we may begin believing that we are very good poets.

This particular belief is necessary to pursue any literary work. But an overconfidence is not a good approach to poetry. It may satisfy our ego, but it also blocks the path to further developments or makes us blind and we don't look around any longer but start following our ego which leads us to nowhere. The blind faith of being good poets, or writers only can bring to mediocrity.

Unfortunately, the majority of poetical productions in the internet are just mediocre literary exercises. But even though this is the real state of affairs, yet we know there is also few poets and readers as well, who try to break the shackles of mediocrity. They are well aware of the present conditions of literature around the web publishing spheres. Now one also wonders how can we break the shackles of literary mediocrity. Yes, we can do it, do it through literary criticism.
Literary criticism is that field, which can safely guard us from that overconfidence which we have already discussed in details. It can also help us to develop our literary skills constantly.  A true poet should never take it for granted to be good enough. He can only develop thanks to his improvement in literary knowledge. Without which, the growth of any poet is not possible and his poetry can never survive. It is only the literary criticism which can help us to survive as poets and guide us through our literary development to the proper directions. So, for our own self-interest we should accept a good literary criticism of our work and welcome the ones who can judge our literary works. Any poet needs to know the actual value of his poems. But who can assess our literary productions? A literary critic can assess the true merits of our literary works. So why shouldn’t we appreciate literary criticism of our work? The evaluation of our poetical production can save us from mediocrity.

Critics can evaluate our writings on the basis of real literary merits to bring positive changes in our poetical creative skills, try to highlight the different aspects of a writer’s piece of writing but also his probable limits. This may eventually help us to make necessary adjustments. So, true literary criticism of our works actually propels us forward for further enhancements.

Unfortunately, most of the poets hovering around the internet and social medias, abhor literary criticism. Their sole interest lies in receiving appreciation of their works without any criticism and go around their blind faith of being good enough to be a poet. Their self-esteem and overconfidence make them blind. Actually, this hampers the path of their literary development. Although most of them have inherent potentialities of literary merits, yet without harnessing that potentialities they remain dwarfs in the literary field.

These poets believe in a spontaneous expression of personal feelings and emotions, according to them the main purpose of poetry is to convey them either in rhythmic or in non-rhythmic form. They aspire to just narrate a story, to communicate with their audience through personal emotions and feelings. They forget that it is not up to the poet to narrate a story, but to create an atmosphere where the readers can take shelter and feel the truth behind the words. Poetry is not a medium to say something, to  send any particular message, it is the medium to represent life in such a way to help their readers to grasp some truths.

The poet shouldn’t communicate his or her own emotions directly to the readers, the poet has to find suggestive images, able to evoke the same emotions in his or her readers. This requires great skills and a poet should work on these almost the whole of his lifetime to master his art properly. Literary criticism can help a poet immensely through a process of developing literary skill as it rightly points out the strengths and the weaknesses of the poet. It can suggest necessary alternatives to cultivate the literary merits of the poet.

Actually, poetry is not just inspiration, it needs organization.  The poet has to organise his emotions and visions in such a manner, that's in an impersonal way, so that his poetry can evoke emotions without revealing his own. A poet’s mind is like an ocean of emotions and experiences which helps him to build up his personal vision. The poetic process fuses these distinct emotions and experiences into an impersonal vision. This impersonality is the essence of true poetry. A poet has miles to go before achieving this impersonality. Without a wide acceptance of literary criticism, it is almost impossible for any poet to achieve that height. And to survive as a poet one has to acknowledge this fact. The sooner a poet realizes it, the better for him or her.

From The Editorial Desk

OPA

A

WORLDWIDE WRITERS’ WEB

PRESENTATION!

PUBLISHED BY

OPA

OUR

POETRY ARCHIVE

ONLINE MONTHLY POETRY JOURNAL

https://ourpoetryarchive.blogspot.com

email us to:

ourpoetryarchive@gmail.com

**************************************

ELISA MASCIA POET OF THE MONTH

OUR POETRY ARCHIVE FEATURED

POET OF THE MONTH

ELISA MASCIA

FEBRUARY 2020

ALICJA KUBERSKA: What does poetry mean to you?

ELISA MASCIA: Poetry is essential and it is a life requirement for me to write, it is an event that comes to visit me and I welcome it

ALICJA KUBERSKA: What’s according to you the meaning of poetry in the contemporary world?

ELISA MASCIA: Poetry has always been a valuable aid for memory by offering men the opportunity to celebrate: native places, the worries of love, the cycle of seasons, the memories that have marked life for better or for worse, loss of an affection that in the past were immortalized in eternal rhythmic verses, today everything is more immediate and even the poetic verses are consumed in the ephemeral space of events, leaving faded memories entrusted to messages that are always more swirling.

ALICJA KUBERSKA:  Can you describe your creative process while writing a new poem?

ELISA MASCIA: Writing a poem follows a communicative process in which I want to convey my emotions to those who read the poetic verses so that they can decode the most genuine message possible. Therefore my research is among the many synonyms to choose the most appropriate and pertinent lemma for my original thought and sensation to give, moreover, also musicality and stimulate the sensitivity of the recipient of the message.

ALICJA KUBERSKA:  Did it happen to you that a poem was just your dream?

ELISA MASCIA:  Although, sometimes, it stems from a purely personal dream, after reading, it seems that it had been tailor-made for people who enjoy the same effects to their mood

ALICJA KUBERSKA: Tell us about your inspiration. What’re the most important subjects to you?

ELISA MASCIA: Inspiration often occurs spontaneously with a speed of thoughts that arise freely with the need to transcribe early in order not to lose those poetic verses. Other times the inspiration is aroused following a proposed theme, an image, an event, nature, dedications.The themes are social in nature: friendship, love, experience, eternal themes that are brought up to date, philosophical, psychological and it is important to bring current events to the contemporary level (what does not inform but gives shape)

MARIA MIRAGLIA:  Which were the emotions that inspired your first verses?

ELISA MASCIA: The emotions that inspired my poems, from the beginning, were purely those that arise from events of pain that, through resilience, find the maximum expression to write poems and to share my feeling always in a positive way for anyone read and expand as much as possible to a broad response of social empathy.

MARIA MIRAGLIA:  Was your aspiration to become a poet or did all happen by chance?

ELISA MASCIA: Although I had a passion for poetic writing, I hadn't thought of becoming a poetess. It all happened by chance and gradually meeting people who invited me to participate in national and international events and competitions of poetry and who marked the beginning to carry out a passion inherent in me and which came out with escalating always of randomness.

MARIA MIRAGLIA:  Who is the first person you read your poems to and why?

ELISA MASCIA: I don't like to submit to a possible and consequent judgment of a person with constancy and habitually can read my poetic works first of all. I like to share with those who in reading a poem of mine feel completely free to express their thoughts

MARIA MIRAGLIA:  Have you published any poetic anthology, if so, what did you feel the first time you got it in your hands?

ELISA MASCIA: Yes, I have published: Magical emotions of the soul Silloge of 10 poems that received the 2018 Histonium Prize and Painted Dreams, Silloge of 10 unpublished poems inspired by 10 paintings by the artist Erminio Girardo who was awarded the Histonium 2019 Prize. In July 2019 my first book of poems was published The grater of the moon of over 110 poems and the first feeling of holding the book in my hands was to associate it with a child, unique and unrepeatable moments full of a mix of emotions. Same feelings as the publication of the poetic translation in Italian from the English of the poet Asoke Kumar Mitra of his book Savage Wind.

MARIA MIRAGLIA:  Who are the poets you prefer reading? Do you get inspiration from them?

ELISA MASCIA: In addition to the poets I studied at school: Dante, Foscolo, Leopardi, D'Annunzio I also really like the contemporary ones known on social networks including: Erminio Girardo, Renato Margareci, Pasquale Vulcano, Rosario Di Modica, Sergio Garbellini, Stefano Capasso, Carolina Turroni writer. For some poems, a poetic verse turns out to be inspiration for a poem of mine even if it happens sporadically.

APRILIA ZANK:  How important is accessibility of meaning to you? Do you challenge the readers to work hard to decipher your poems, or do you prefer transparency of meaning?

ELISA MASCIA: For me, the style of writing is fundamental and the message I want to convey must have a clear and precise reading without twirls or revolving around the concepts, I like to be directed in simplicity but also to use a poetic lexicon with evident appropriate and courtly lemmas of use not common but the result of studies

antecedents and continuous to today. Therefore I don't like to challenge the reader with tightness.

APRILIA ZANK:  What kind of poems do you write mostly? Do you have recurring themes, or are all your poems unique?

ELISA MASCIA: The guiding thread of my poems is to highlight the true values ​​of life which consist in love as a gift bestowed from which all the other essentials that derive from it arise including peace, hope, respect, courage, friendship , sincerity, vital energy, lived in relationship with the psycho - physical wellbeing deriving from dance, music, art and the concept of "beauty" that can be discovered from and in everything if one puts oneself in mind pure as that of a child.

APRILIA ZANK:  Do you think your poetry is typically feminine / masculine? If yes, in what way?

ELISA MASCIA: My poetry is addressed indiscriminately to readers and readers written, deliberately, very often, in an impersonal way without the particular identification but in general that suits everyone.

APRILIA ZANK:  Do you write mostly about yourself, or do you also have an open eye /ear for the issues of the world?

ELISA MASCIA: I don't write mainly about myself and what I live in a specific period but I prefer to write looking at the world and all the issues that, for a variety of reasons, bind human minds for better or for worse by bringing them together in joy or pain also inserting personal sensations to live it or have lived it in the past, sometimes imagining myself in the situation.

APRILIA ZANK:  In what way is your poetry different from that of other poets?

ELISA MASCIA : I believe that my poetry is different because it feeds on words like seeds of positivity that always highlight love, peace, hope, escaping and avoiding the words of hatred, anger, rancor, despair but who wants to give a message with an open mind to brother. It shows the joyful and sunny being, explosion of colors, courtesy of mind and thought.

LEYLA IŞIK:  What are the main factors to make poetry real poetry?

ELISA MASCIA: One of the main factors that distinguishes the "true poetry" is the reader's immediacy in receiving the poetic message even before understanding it after the detailed reading but at the first impact. The clear language without imperfections and ambiguities that is direct in rendering the idea in its original meaning that the poet has caught with his inspiration expressed in poetry by every single word.

LEYLA IŞIK:  Do you think imagery is important in poetry? Where does the importance of imagery begin in a poem, where does it end?

ELISA MASCIA: I believe that the images associated with poetry are not essential, the poet's mastery consists that his poetic verses give the same sensations by imagining what he prefers, therefore the photo is no longer limiting in addressing but opens to the imagination of each.

LEYLA IŞIK:  What are the most used types of poetry in your country?

ELISA MASCIA: In Italy the majority of poets prefer to write in free style without respecting the metric or the rhyme reserved only to a small number of poets

I like to write in sonnets of three quatrains and closed in two verses, but also the free style taking care of the musicality of the verse.

LEYLA IŞIK:  What’s important to be a good poet? To write good poems!

ELISA MASCIA: It is very important to write correctly and with the widest possible knowledge of appropriate words of what you want to communicate, study and update because it is good to present a correct and flawless poetry in form and content while maintaining simplicity to be understood by readers from all over the world needs to be in step with modern times in which the poetic and literary dissemination is much easier today than in the past with the powerful means of communication represented by the internet and fast social networks.

LEYLA IŞIK: Who are the most important poets and their main properties nowadays?

ELISA MASCIA: Alda Merini who knew how to transform the tragedy of a "different" life into universal poetry. In reading his poetic verses one enters directly and deeply into his life and his own existential condition.

DEBORAH  BROOKS  LANGFORD:  Understanding poetry begins with visualizing the central images in the poem. What do you see, taste, smell, hear, and feel? What is the imagery of your poetry?

ELISA MASCIA: For me it is not important the image associated with my poetic verses it is important that you read each word carefully and wander in the universe of the reader. Most introspective and philosophical. He wants to remain in memory for having given an impression of positivity and energy which is what the human soul needs.

DEBORAH  BROOKS  LANGFORD:  What is the mood of your poetry? (Or How does it make you feel?)

ELISA MASCIA: The overwhelming mood that unites almost all my poems is of simplicity and benevolence towards others. A mood of openness to understand and welcome the brother.

DEBORAH  BROOKS  LANGFORD:  In your poetry who is the speaker of the poem? Are you speaking to yourself or to others?

ELISA MASCIA: Definitely the speaker of my poem is the reader and whoever feels the poetry and the sensations aroused in reading it. Even when it is written in the first person it is always for everyone.

DEBORAH  BROOKS  LANGFORD:  What is the message of your poetry?  What messages do your poetry convey?

ELISA MASCIA: My poem wants to convey a message of positivity that is as universal as possible, to transmit the values ​​of peace, of brotherhood so that they last over time and can survive in modern times when it seems that everything is increasingly diminished and devalued and that be overcome as honesty, respect, hope, love, joy, being tolerant.

DEBORAH  BROOKS  LANGFORD:  Does the internet and social media contribute to the success of your poetry? Is this the reason you write for?

ELISA MASCIA: Certainly, the internet and social media facilitate the rapid diffusion of everything and even poetry, reaching a multitude of people all over the world, decreeing appreciation and success that give new impulses and an opportunity to compare and improve in poetic and literary growth. However, this is not the main reason why I write because, regardless of the acknowledgments received, I really like writing and reciting my poems and then sharing with the aim of being able to offer a glimpse of life, a little relief through my words .

NILAVRONILL SHOOVRO:  Thank you so much dear poet for the interview. We would like to know your personal experience with OPA as a literary web journal. Would you like to share anything more with our readers?

ELISA MASCIA: My personal experience with the OPA started by chance reading a post from my friend poet Anna Ferriero and I asked for registration, From here I entered the universe of world poetic and literary culture. An important escalation took place in me as a person and as a poet for having had the opportunity for new friendships among which the Indian poet Asoke Kumar Mitra and her poetic translation project of the book Savage Wind from English into Italian and which it gave me a way to enter into a perspective of poetic styles permeated with delicacy and soul, albeit suffering, open to resignation and addressed in prayer. I got to know the inimitable poetic style of the poet and writer NilavroNill Shoovro. All this allowed me in the short time of a few months to donate in my turn the knowledge acquired to be a reference figure for many poets who see me as a Councillor ambassador of poetic and literary culture in the world for the invitation that I address to a an increasing number of people to share their works. All this always taking advantage of the advice and teachings of the mentor artist and poet Erminio Girardo, dedicated in memory.

ELISA MASCIA

ELISA MASCIA

Here And Now.

Of days, months and years

that count in being together

err is possible to add,

to deduct the relative time,

writing a year more or less doesn't matter

what is essential,

from the meeting of souls,

it is established that there is no time limited by the future or the past.

Blessed is the present that becomes unlimited,

it is convention to say a year,

it's all in the here and now concentrated: living a life in two!

Infinite Love.

In the colourful reflections of the rainbow

souls dance in the sky

light interposed with a light veil

light up your serene heart now.

That rhythm is repeated in the air

for a time that knows forever

in space, brotherly love

dance and melody intersect.

It is undeniable your love I have not lost

in the chest the beat is always alive,

on large sheets of words, I write,

notes of a mute pain.

In reviving I understand only then

that two hearts albeit distant

always extend their hands,

by fate or other nature in their home

with the secret of a never-ending love

never completely lost

sure, it won't be destroyed

as long as memory leads to infinity.

 Walk Under The Moon.

In a corner of the world

of a cold autumn night

man of pupil life,

stars and moon in a circle

all on the ground are waterfalls,

sparkling glitter of diamonds

smiles for heartbroken hearts,

new hopes are born.

With your hands, a big star,

grabs from being able to follow,

light that must never fade,

the smell of cinnamon spreads in the air.

A dream to be realized

only if there is love to give,

illuminate life for everyone,

night of stars and moon, it has flourished again.

The Heart Never Sleeps.

Rest between the petals of a rose,

the heart, but never sleeps,

doubles its beat

among the dreams that open up to life.

The heart never sleeps

in the dark of night, naked as the moon, it shines in the center of heaven and earth,

driving force behind love for humanity.

He has a lot of heart to never sleep.

Watch with its ticking sound

cradle the beloved from afar,

song of early music,

the eyes follow to never leave him alone.

Silence

How many times alone in silence

find myself in the room of thoughts

in perfect symbiosis

I highlight hugs carried by the wind

in the paths that lead to the soul

and in the empathic paths

with a smile or a tear

they come to us happy.

Meet in the minds of both

at the same time joy overflows

and there is no expectation of repayments,

it happens in unison without bothering.

Slightly a little off the ground

thoughts in silence again lock.

ELISA MASCIA

ELISA MASCIA: Born in Santa Croce di Magliano (Cb), on 13/4/1956, she lives and works in San Giuliano di Puglia (Cb). From an early age she had a predilection for poetic and literary culture and photography. Writing, writing always and on every occasion, is a real need for life. Looking at a simple and particular image, a photo of a sunrise or sunset, of a painting or of what is in nature and in the whole world arouses an inexhaustible motive and source of inspiration. Writing always for oneself and for others is a great moral benefit, everyone can make their own feelings by being excited and moved as very often happens and is reported by attentive readers. She has participated in various national and international poetry competitions obtaining awards, certificates of participation and merit, also honorable mentions also as a virtual poet invited to participate in multiple international and world events, commemorative and with a compulsory theme, receiving certificates and diplomas of recognition. In July 2019 the first collection of unpublished poems was published in a book entitled "The Grater of the Moon" by the publisher L'inedito Letterario with the editorial by Fabio Martini. She participated in IX of the XXXIV editions of the Histonium Prize, in 2019 with the Silloge of 10 unpublished poems inspired by 10 paintings by the great artist and poet Erminio Girardo n. on 12-7-1924 in Milan passed away on 14-2-2019 who had the role of teacher for poetic-cultural evolution and represented an important meeting and reference point, marking a decisive turning point in the activity of writer and today with gratitude he remembers it. Silloge entitled "Painted Dreams" was awarded the Histonium 2019 Jury Prize with artistic plaque and Certificate of merit, dedicated to Erminio Girardo, published in December 2019. From 10 May 2019 she writes poems in the Opainternational group in the Anthology, participated in the Spirit of Nature event with 5 poems included in the anthology 2019 and every month in the Archive of poems with 3 poems and biography as well as having translated some poems of the poet NilavroNill Shoovro from English into Italian. The book of poems Savage Wind of the original in English by the poet Asoke Kumar Mitra has been published by the Literary Unpublished at the end of September, translation and reading by Elisa Mascia as a realization of the project to spread the poetic and literary culture in the world that represents the new goal as a poet engaged in many groups of world arts and poems. In December 2019, by the councilor for culture Carmen Lalli and by the Mayor Nicola Giovanni Montagano of the municipality of Bonefro, she was invited to the cultural event of presentation of the books "The Moon Grater" and "Savage Wind"

ADIELA AKOO

ADIELA AKOO

As You Perceive

I am a flower that blooms

Perfume filtering the air

I am a veiled mystery

To hearts that don’t understand

And eyes that cannot yet see

I am a reflection

I am a teacher

I am a lesson

I am the yang and the yin

I am the quiet voice amidst the din

I am a stranger, and stranger yet

I am a beloved friend

A secret well kept

I am a seeker

And I have been sought

I have been crushed and ground

Tempered by fire

I have been dead

And I have been reborn

With passion and desire

I am fiery, yet cool

Strong, yet gentle

Creating from destruction

I am nurturing and can feel you

In the hidden depths of your soul

I am ancient and I am young

I am a germinating seed

I write and I am written

I belong to The Love Creed

But I remain, only as you perceive…

Redolent

Curtain of night pinned with stars

Crickets serenading a dancing breeze

Water wafting wilfully on slime-smoothed stones

Singing songs of appease

A lilting song picking pirouetting petals

From fragrant frangipani trees

Intoxicated spirit quietly redolent of the Highest Call

Enamoured soul on its knees!

A Scent On A Breeze

a scent on a breeze

a distant voice

a fated chance encounter

evoke memories my soul recalls

and yearns for me to remember

with gentle nudges unfolding in dreams

that long to wake me from slumber

ADIELA AKOO

ALICJA MARIA KUBERSKA

ALICJA MARIA KUBERSKA

My Trip To China

I take a long journey to China in my dreams

It's enough for me to find a white cloud in the shape of a dragon

and I can travel with it through heavenly spaces.

Together, we will bring life-giving raindrops as a gift.

Looking from above, I can see the winding Great Wall,

roofs of temples and water glittering on rice fields.

Our soaring paths are lit by paper lanterns,

hung like colorful dots in the wind.

I admire the meanders of the rivers - Yangtze River and Huang Ho,

beautiful terraces similar to patchwork bedspreads

which are covering the majestic Dongchuan Hills,

and Shin Lin formations as gray as the petrified forest

I believe that one day I will go to the Middle Kingdom

I will tie my poems with a red ribbon and go on a journey.

Today I am wearing a jade bracelet,

a symbol of harmony and happiness, the beloved Chinese stone.

Flower Garden

Mother spread a carpet on the fertile ground,

by the damp ribbon of a stream.

Woven of many shapes and colors,

on the canvas of sun’s golden rays,

in seeds and rhizomes it stores

the memory of the beauty of past years.

In the morning,

the eyes of flowers moistened by dew,

intensely flash with all colors

like small pieces of stained glass in church windows.

The evening subtly paints the landscape over

with interplay of light and shadow, and adds a shade of gray.

The garden abides by the laws of nature,

its heart beating to the pace of the seasons.

Both subject to the will of man and independent,

variable in its unbridled beauty,

constantly evades the reign of the creator

– the gardener.

Homeless Cat

I observe a homeless cat.

Distrust is hidden in his green eyes,

fear can be seen in the spiked hair

and his paws are always ready to run.

Fate is unkind to him,

it has given the common coat.

People do not admire him

and nobody looks into the cat’s soul.

Always hungry and scared,

wandering through the surrounding backyards,

he peeks in the urban garbage.

Sometimes he catches a mouse.

There is no chance of soft pillows,

the abundance of meat and warm milk.

He does not know the caressing touch of the hand

and the voice of one calling gently- kitty, kitty…

Sometimes he visits the homeless,

They understand each other without words.

The food for a small companion of misery

is waiting in the rusty tin.

ALICJA MARIA KUBERSKA