THE POEMS OF BUNNY ISKOV

all smiles are rainbows
I.B. Iskov

we have had two thousand years
to stumble and lean
squawk great cries
detached and horrible
clamor for attention
carry on like a hyena
then retreat to the corner
with a quiet that could be taken for patience

we have had two thousand years
in the cold
behind the fence
fixed under the cover of cloud
in troubled silence
to worry about the clinging terrors
of everyday life
in a landscape that could be taken for paradise

we have had two thousand years
to point broken fingers
in the summer heaviness
spin anger
spew up air furious
meet triumph in the gutter
wait for sun and light
from a window that could be taken for vision

we have had two thousand years
to sing like thunder
dissolve chaos
touch into wholeness
bind hearts together
fill the air with promise
spirit commitment resilience
in peace that could be taken for a miracle

This poem won Honourable Mention in a contest by Pandora’s Collective in 2003.
It was previously published in Witness Anthology Of Poetry by Serengeti Press in 2004.

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Freedom Space
by: I.B. Iskov

The sun sails over the continents
outfoxing the imperial
intelligentsia, worn fleets
pretend importance.
What a spectacle. Gust transports
a red balloon on its
back, flees
with a child’s infectious laughter
while below, people
wheedle as the national security surrounds
history, aiming their guns.

I’m not protesting. To vanguard
the heads of states
encoded in blue and yellow
and not care if any of them
refuses to look up (though
it would be novel)
now that is
when I’d grant
a full pardon
and freedom space for all

This poem was previously published in a chapbook "SPACE ALCHEMY" - a tri-poet collection with Katherine L. Gordon and Joan McGuire, Passion Among theCacti Press, 2004.

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Holocaust cemetery
On visiting the Zaglembier Monument
By: I.B. Iskov

grass and mud mingle
in trodden sorrow
around the granite

beloved names
of the dead
etched in Yiddish
like a story by Sholem Aleichem
written in Auschwitz

the engraved columns
bitterly sleep
on a slate grey landscape
in the orphaned park
without a voice
or a dream

the sun is buried too
under swollen clouds
the compressing sky
near tears
and the wind clings
to my legs
like a frightened child

the air is in pain
its dull white grasping breath
makes the minutes crawl
in naked trembling silence

This poem was previously published in my full collection "AFTER THE RAIN", published by Snowapple Press, 2001

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memorial
by: I.B. Iskov

The world crawls somewhere
under a sinking sky
large and hollow
without soul
without compassion
beyond touch

The whole long truth
pieces of memory
fall tenderly
in sorrow
become a journey mourned
shtetl after shtetl

Impaired logic
trembles       steals
my heart
from my blood and skin
a chunk of hungry earth

The world spins
feverish, cradled in a cry
bloated       barren
perspiring
hard

Pieces of time
assemble
solemnly
summon the forlorn
in meeting halls
with hope and dedication
proud among
the poignant stars
sharing history

This poem was previously published in the Canadian Jewish News, 2004.

---

sacred wood
by: I.B. Iskov

I need a pious charm
carved from orchards
hand rubbed
bright like burning glass
just the thing to take

when the weather is overhead
      the garden barren
      the road intense
      the dream unremembered
      the heart swollen
      the night stomached       again

the polished ebony
would candle a flame
like a font curling over rock
the moonlit ritual
sparkle       specter       solace

I split wood on cool days
work alone
by the book
in the pitch
the naked stillness
memorized on scrolls
in a prominent place
for supplication

the timbered talisman
an apologetic panacea
nailed to my forehead
the certain hallmark
the consolation for fancy

This poem was previously published in a chapbook
Moon-flares: A Cosmic Collection by I.B. Iskov andKatherine L. Gordon - self-published.

---

Candle Lighting
By bunny iskov

I am self-taught in the art
of memorized magic
ancient incantations
ignite in a moment
bloom at once
bright yellow flickering petals
spike halos
run off into the air

my grandmother would be proud
again and again
lighting her candle sticks
pray respectfully
with mellowed hands
weighted with worries
beneath salt water and scars

my Hebrew is a pretense
I have created myself
wrapped in a Canadian shawl
on a dead end street
desperate for forgiveness
desperate for love
desperate

a thick fabric of warmth
shades precious
still

---

Poems In Honor of YOM HA-SHOAH - 2005

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Holocaust Cemetery
On Visiting the Zaglembier Monument
by: I.B. Iskov

grass and mud mingle
in trodden sorrow
around the granite

beloved names
of the dead
etched in Yiddish
like a story by Sholem Aleichem
written in Auschwitz

the engraved column
bitterly sleeps
on a slate grey landscape
in the orphaned park
without a voice
or a dream

the sun is buried too
under swollen clouds
the compressing sky
near tears
and the wind clings to my legs
like a frightened child

the air is in pain
its dull white grasping breath
makes the minutes crawl
in naked trembling silence

---

memorial
by: I.B. Iskov

the world crawls somewhere
under a sinking sky
large and hollow
without soul
without compassion
beyond touch

the whole long truth
pieces of memory
      fall tenderly
in sorrow
become a journey mourned
shtetl after shtetl

impaired logic
trembles       steals
my heart
from my blood and skin
a chunk of hungry earth

the world spins
feverish, cradled in a cry
bloated       barren
perspiring
hard

pieces of time
assemble
solemnly
summon the forlorn
in meeting halls
with hope and dedication
proud among
the poignant stars
sharing history

---

I.B. Iskov is the Poetry Editor for the Outreach Connection newspaper, sold by the homeless and the unemployed in Toronto.
She is also the Founder of The Ontario Poetry Society, a Registered Not-For-Profit Provincial, Democratic, Grass Roots Poetry Organization.
Her work has been featured in numerous literary journals, anthologies and private collections.
Kindly visit - http://www.mirror.org/tops.