Moonrise Press Authors, Hitt and Trochimczyk, at Pasadena LitFest, May 21 (3:30) in Zona Rosa Alley

Altadena Poetry Review Presents

Poet Laureates from the 2016 and 2017 Altadena Anthologies will be the Featured Poets on our Pas LitFest panel at the Zona Rosa Alley, next to the Pasadena Playouse, in Pasadena on SUNDAY, MAY 21, 2017, from 3:30pm-4:45pm. Five Laureates will present their work:

--Marlene Hitt
--Mary Langer Thompson
--Radomir Vojtech Luza
--Maja Trochimczyk
--Thelma Reyna

 

Pasadena LitFest will be on May 20 and 21, with multiple venues and lots of great poets and writers to hear. Visit the website of the LitFest 2017 for details, check out the schedule, or read the bios of the poets and writers.  Below are instructions for parking:

MARLENE HITT

Marlene Hitt is a Los Angeles poet, writer and retired educator with local history as an avocation. She has served for many years as Archivist, Museum Director and Historian at the Bolton Hall Museum in Tujunga. She is a native Californian and a graduate of Occidental College. She also studied at CSUN, USC, UCLA, Glendale College and Trinity College, Ireland. Her work appeared in Psychopoetica (UK), Chupa Rosa Diaries of the Chupa Rosa Writers, Sunland (2001-2003), Glendale College’s Eclipse anthologies, two Moonrise Press anthologies, Chopin with Cherries (2010), Meditations on Divine Names (2012), and Sometimes in the Open, a collection of verse by California Poets Laureate. She published Sad with Cinnamon, Mint Leaves,and Bent Grass (all in 2001), as well as Riddle in the Rain with Dorothy Skiles, and a stack of chapbooks for friends and family.

The first Poet Laureate of Sunland Tujunga (1999-2001), Marlene Hitt was honored as the 2016 Woman of the Year by the Congressman Adam Schiff and her name was entered into a congressional record.

https://www.moonrisepress.com/clocks-and-water-drops-by-marlene-hitt.html

Clocks and Water Drops - Poetry Collection by Marlene Hitt

Published in May 2015. 118 pages.  ISBN 978-0-9819693-5-0, $15.00

This collection of poetry includes 73 poems divided into sections on: Children, Marriages, Portraits, Neighbors, Seasons, Small Things, Passages, and Farewells.  The title captures the poet's fascination with the flow of time, as relentless and powerful as drops of water that can shape rocks and move mountains. 

                                            MARY LANGER THOMPSON, Ed.D.

Mary Langer Thompson’s poems, short stories, and essays appear in various journals and anthologies. She is a contributor to two poetry writing texts, The Working Poet (Autumn Press, 2009) and Women and Poetry: Writing, Revising, Publishing and Teaching (McFarland, 2012), and was the 2012 Senior Poet Laureate of California. Her first collection of poems, Poems in Water, was published by Green Fuse Poetic Arts of Loveland, Colorado in 2014, and she is working on a second collection entitled “It’s a School Night.” Her children’s book How the Blue-Tongued Skink got his Blue Tongue was recently released by Another Think Coming Press. A retired school principal and former secondary English teacher, Langer Thompson received her Ed.D. from the University of California, Los Angeles. She continues to enjoy conducting writing workshops for schools, prisons, and in her community of the high desert of California.

THELMA T. REYNA, Ph.D.

Thelma T. Reyna’s books have collectively won eight national literary awards. She has written four books: a short story collection, two poetry chapbooks, and a full-length poetry collection, Rising, Falling, All of Us. Her fiction, poetry, and nonfiction have appeared in literary journals, anthologies, textbooks, and regional media for over 25 years. As Poet Laureate in Altadena, 2014-2016, she edited the Altadena Poetry Review Anthology: 2015, as well as the 2016 anthology, which was the Winner in two national book competitions in 2016 (Anthology category). She was selected as a “Top 10 San Gabriel Valley Poet, 2016” by Spectrum Publications. She is also chief editor/publisher at Golden Foothills Press, based in Pasadena. Visit her site at www.GoldenFoothillsPress.com .

MAJA TROCHIMCZYK, Ph.D.

Maja Trochimczyk, Ph.D. (McGill’94), is a poet, music historian, and photographer born in Poland and living in California. She published six  books on music (After Chopin, The Music of Louis Andriessen, Polish Dance in Southern California, A Romantic Century in Polish Music, Frederic Chopin: A Research and Information Guide, and Lutoslawski Legacy), six books of poetry (Miriam’s Iris, 2008; Rose Always, 2011; Slicing the Bread, 2014; The Rainy Bread,2016; and Into Light, 2016) as well as  two anthologies, Chopin with Cherries (2010), and Meditations on Divine Names (2012). She also published 17 book chapters, 26 peer-reviewed articles, and hundreds of essays and poems that appeared in English, Polish, German, French, Chinese, Spanish and Serbian translations. A recipient of ACLS and SSRCC post-doctoral grants, and many honors for the promotion of Polish culture, she taught music history at the University of Southern California and ethics in jail. She recently received the 2016 Creative Arts Prize from the Polish American Historical Association. She serves as Secretary and Communications Director for Polish American Historical Association and was the Sixth Poet Laureate of Sunland-Tujunga in 2010-2012. In 2008, she founded Moonrise Press. More... or visit the website:  www.trochimczyk.net

http://www.moonrisepress.com/into-light-by-maja-trochimczyk.html

Into Light: Poems and Incantations 

This poetry and prayer collection presents 36 poems and 12 "incantations" that focus on the intertwined spiritual concepts of Light and Love. The poems, initially written within the Catholic mystical tradition of contemplation and adoration of the Divine presence, gradually evolved to encompass a broader scope of spiritual insights, without losing the main focus: reaching out in Love to the One Light, the Source of All. The simple and repetitive meditations and incantations are meant to inspire, uplift, and fill the heart with Light and Love.  Available as a Paperback with 82 pages in a standard trade size 6' by 9' (ISBN 978-0-9963981-8-3, $10.00),  as a Full Color Paperback, ISBN9781945938030 ($30.00) and as an E-Book in the EPUB Format, ISBN 978-0-9963981-9-0, $8.00).

New Review of "Mud in Magic" by Beverly M. Collins

Wonderful Poems and Prose - by Patricia Nolan Stein 

" “Mud In Magic” is a powerful book. This collection of poems and prose, written by Beverly M. Collins, is thoughtful and beautifully expressed.

Each poem contains the richness of a wonderful novel or an uplifting film. Every sentence tells a tale of love, joy, gratitude, courage and reflection.

And each “story” Beverly shares through her prose is unique. Every poem contains a strong storyline with vivid images.

Beverly includes a variety of subjects in this book—from Picasso and the beauty of autumn to relationships, growing up in New Jersey and visiting India. But there are many more wonderful topics, all written with an enjoyable slice of humanity, that will make any reader smile.

Beverly’s poems are very special to me. She writes from the heart and expresses herself in a very personal way. But as she shares her innermost feelings, she seems to speak for many of us. There’s a stream of consciousness that makes each poem fascinating.

I love Beverly’s prose and poetry and I recommend "Mud In Magic" to anyone who enjoys feeling enlightened through the written word.

Bevery M. Collins with Maja Trochimczyk at the Altadena Poetry Review Reading, April 2017.

Mud in Magic by Beverly M. Collins

Published in July 2015

ISBN  978-0-9963981-0-7 (paperback), $15.00, 96 pages.

ISBN 978-0-9963981-1-4 (e-book, E-Pub format), $8.00

Beverly M. Collins’s "Mud in Magic" is her second poetry book, filled with the wisdom 

of experience, Her skillful and often aphoristic or narrative poems portray a scene or a character that we could encounter on our streets, in our cafes. The poems are organized into three parts: Thought Bistro (Part I), Tinder Flames (Part II), and Elixir Café (Part III). The beauty and wonder of daily life fill these pages and delight the readers. Beverly M. Collins is fourth in a family of five daughters. Although born in Milford, Delaware, Bev is a Jersey-girl to the bone. She is also a graduate of Taylor Business Institute, a great admirer of Art who carries a deep appreciation and respect for other Artists. As a singer, Collins is a former national finalist for Talent America. As a poet, she is one of three 2012 prize winners for the California State Poetry Society whose works appear in a growing number of publications. More information and a sample poem may be found on another issue of the Moonrise Press Blog.

OTHER POETS ABOUT THIS BOOK

Beverly M. Collins' poetry is much like her: Courageous, wise and imaginative. It is a thunder clap in the middle of Manhattan, a bolt of lightning on a desert island off of Spain. But in the end, it is its power, rhythm and clarity that make it rise to the level of art. Miss it at your own risk.  ~ Radomir Vojtech Luza, Poet Laureate of North Hollywood, Pushcart Prize Nominee

Beverly M. Collins writes poetry that is a celebration of woman. She takes everyday experiences however varied and transforms them into a serene acceptance which is emotionally extremely fulfilling. Beverly M. Collins' (her) poems are gems of rare understanding.  ~ Mary A. Mann, Author, www.maryanneetamann.com

Village Poets Feature Margaret Saine's Lit Angels on February 26, 2017

The first reading from Margaret Saine's newest book, Lit Angels, published by Moonrise Press in February 2016 will take place on the Oscar Sunday, February 26, 2017 at 4:3O p.m. Saine was invited to be the  Featured Poet at the Monthly Village Poets Reading for the month of February 2017. She will be accompanied on the classical guitar by Eva Zmijewska. 

The Village Poets Monthly Readings present poets and musicians of note, since 2010 over 60 poets have read their work. The reading on Sunday will take place at Bolton Hall Museum in Tujunga (10110 Commerce Ave. Tujunga, CA 91042) and will include two segments of open mike and refreshments.  You can read more about this reading and other poets featured at Bolton Hall Museum on the Village Poets Blog. 

MARGARET SAINE

Margaret Saine lives in Los Angeles. After a doctorate in French from Yale, she taught Spanish at universities in California and Arizona. She writes poetry, haiku, and short stories in five languages and also translates other poets. Her books are “Bodyscapes,” “Words of Art,” and 5 haiku chapbooks. Poetry mss. ready for publication are “The Five Senses,” “Reading Your Lips," "Words of Winter," and "While Alive," as well as “Paesaggi che respirano” [Breathing Landscapes], to be published in Italy. She has recently completed “As You Were Saying,” a dialogue with American poet William Carlos Williams.

Lit Angels (=Literature Angels ~ Angels of Light) is a collection of poetry inspired by literature and the arts. Written in English, the volume includes several translations into German, Arabic, French and Italian.


The Tree Outside


Above the window sill
the minuscule stippled leaves
dance in the breeze

Mulberry trunk
cut by the window sill 
as if as if—

By inner eye we know 
the tree to be intact

Trunk reaches down to roots
where the atoms come from
roots and trunk 
spread into sky
rhizomes breathing 
the vital breath 
that sustains us

(c) by Margaret Saine, from Lit Angels

Lit Angels by Margaret Saine 

96 pages (xiv + 82 pages), illustrated with 14 photographs by Saine

Moonrise Press, February 2017

Distributed by Lulu.com, soon on Amazon and other online sites.

Paperback, ISBN  978-1-945938-02-3, $15.00

Color Paperback, ISBN 978-1-945938-04-7  , $35.00

EBook, for  iTunes, Nook, etc., ISBN 978-1-945938-05-4, $10.00

ABOUT LIT ANGELS

This book is Margaret's elegant, wise, and worldly oeuvre - a distilled reflection of her sagesse and sophistication. Enjoy it!

~ Mani Suri


Like her photography, Ute’s poems breathe movement, shadow and light that immediately transports the reader to the experience of moving within the social fabric of her woven words.

~ Virginia Jasmin Pasalo, poet, editor of "The Tree Anthology," Manila, the Philippines 



The poetics of Margaret Saine is a pleasant flight, ranging back and forth between sigifiers and the signified, giudiciously exploring art and nature. Each element is endowed with meaning, connecting it with human presence and human feeling. Under the poet’s gaze, a movement in time occurs that returns it to us, it tells us of other voices who are leaving traces in personal and universal history. An interesting, marvelous exchange occurs between the forms of being and their most profound abode, like a window to the sun, opening and smiling at us.

~ Rita Stanzione, poet and science instructor, Salerno, Italy

Right after the reading all guests and poets are invited to the Back Door Bakery and Cafe for the Artist's Reception celebrating "Rose of Roses" photography exhibition by Maja Trochimczyk - during the Oscar Night at the Cafe...Read more about the exhibition

on the Poetry Laurels Blog. Two other events for the exhibition include: An Evening of Poetry and Roses (St. Valentine's Day), and Shandy & Eva among the Roses on February 25, 2017 at 7:30 p.m.

http://villagepoets.blogspot.com/2017/01/margaret-saine-features-with-eva.html

Rose of Roses Exhibition and Poetry Readings for the Month of Love, 2017

St. Valentine’s Day 

Evening of Poetry & Roses

The “Rose of Roses” Exhibition

Hosted by Dr. Maja Trochimczyk 

Featuring Mariko Kitakubo with Roger

and Kathabela and Rick Wilson

The Back Door Bakery and Café 

8349 Foothill Blvd, Sunland, CA 91040

February 14, 2017 at 7:00 pm

                  

        

Moonrise Press presents the second solo exhibition of photographs, "Rose of Roses" by Maja Trochimczyk. It could be subtitled "Rose Photos for the Month of Love." The title is a tribute to the Song of Songs, of course.

This exhibition is held in the Back Door Bakery and Cafe in Sunland (8349 Foothill Blvd.),   on display for a month, from February 4th to March 4th, 2017. The Valentine's Day Evening of Poetry and Roses is on Tuesday, February 14, 2017 at 7-9 pm. and the Artist's Reception is on Sunday, February 26, 2017 at 7-9 p.m. after the Village Poets Monthly Reading at the Bolton Hall Museum in Tujunga. We will have live music, poetry readings and more...

The "Rose of Roses" exhibition features roses from Trochimczyk's garden and from Descanso Gardens, as seen after rain, in the evening, in the morning, with sharply contrasted shadows, in the shade and in direct sunlight. As she writes on her Poetry Laurels Blog: "I discovered an endless variety of patterns in their petals and decided to capture the blossoms for far longer than the five days they remain on the bushes. The result was my private collection of electronic rose photos, that I used on my website and on margins of poems. It was fun."

Rose Garland

I thought roses.
I thought rich, velvet blossoms.
I thought a red rainbow 
from deep crimson to delicately pinkish.

The secret was underground
where the roots sustain 
the multi-hued orgy of sensuous allure – 
flowers opening to dazzle and fade.

The strength of the rose
is invisible – you see the blush
of seduction in each leaf and petal, 

You admire their charms.
Yet, you care for what’s out of sight,
not for the obvious.

I thought your love.
I thought how you adore me.
I went deeper down to the source.

The rose, Sappho’s lightning 
of beauty, breathes love,
laughs at the wind and wonders

how the mystic rosebush twirls, 
crowned with the royal 
garland of fire. 

[Untitled]

For you, I'm a pear
with persimmon flavor
bathed in vanilla milk,
my skin is smooth, electric
it tingles when you touch me
I sing -
Of all the gardens of the world,
all the orchards,
all the fruit-bearing trees,
all the roses,
I'm the richest.
my blossoms are most abundant,
my fragrance - the rarest,
beyond reach

Rose Always - A Court Love Story was all in dew-drop rose-red, and filled with love poetry of delight, desire, fulfillment, and heartbreak.  Inspired by the Songs of Songs and centuries of love poems, from Sappho to Milosz, this novella in verse consisted of 85 lyrical poems and 24 brief, narrative fragments, based, in part, on authentic court documents. A range of literary allusions enriched this unlikely love story. Revised edition, Moonrise Press, 2011, 152 pp. (withdrawn in 2018).

Rose Window

I place you in the heart
of my rose, dark red one
with dew drops on its leaves.
Like a tricked-up baby
from Ann Geddes' postcard
you rest, snugly wrapped
in the comfort of my love.
"That too shall pass," they say,
"That too shall pass.
The rose will wither,
love will fade away."

Respectfully, I disagree.
I know the symmetry
of velvet petals
is but an opening
into a different universe,
a cosmic window,
timeless.
I see it in the shyness
of your smile. Yes.
You are that lucky.
In the morning
when the curtains of mist
open above silver hills
carved from time
like a Japanese woodcut,
you taste freedom.
You found your true self
under the detritus
of disordered life.
Isn't it strange
that you've been saved
by the perfection
of just one rose?

All lovers should be happy, even if their love is gone, dead, or lost in the mist of time. It is the supreme gift of having been able to feel what generations of poets have felt, from the divine Sappho until today...

Margaret Saine's Literary and Artistic Imagination in "Lit Angels" - Our First Poetry Book of 2017

Lit Angels by Margaret Saine, 

96 pages (xiv + 82 pages), illustrated with 14 photographs.

Moonrise Press, February 2017

Distributed by Lulu.com, soon on Amazon and other online sites.

Paperback, ISBN  978-1-945938-02-3, $15.00

Color Paperback, ISBN 978-1-945938-04-7  , $35.00

EBook, Apple Books, iTunes, Nook, etc., ISBN 978-1-945938-05-4, $10.00

The First Reading is scheduled for February 26, 2017 at 4:30 p.m. 
Bolton Hall Museum, Tujunga, CA 91042
See the Village Poets Blog for more details. 

DESCRIPTION

Lit Angels (=Literature Angels ~ Angels of Light) is a collection of poetry inspired by literature and the arts. Written in English, the volume includes several translations into German, Arabic, French and Italian. 

The poet, Margaret Saine, writes about her work: “Lit, past participle of ‘to light’, and Lit, abbreviation for literature? Lit used by people who love it so much they breathlessly shorten it to one syllable? Light and Literature, the mainstays of human lives, wherever we are, whenever we are so privileged. Literature and Light are best friends. But especially here, in the City of Angels, my chosen home [German ‘Wahlheimat’], Light and Literature, where people of vastly different origins, cultures, and religions try to get along. I’m part of this world, and I want to be.”

ABOUT THE POET

Margaret Saine lives in Los Angeles. After a doctorate in French from Yale, she taught Spanish at universities in California and Arizona. She writes poetry, haiku, and short stories in five languages and also translates other poets. Her books are Bodyscapes, Words of Art, and five haiku chapbooks. Poetry manuscripts ready for publication include The Five Senses, Reading Your Lips, Words of Winter, and While Alive, as well as Paesaggi che respirano [Breathing Landscapes], to be published in Italy. She has recently completed As You Were Saying, a dialogue with American poet William Carlos Williams.

ABOUT THIS BOOK 

The poetics of Margaret Saine is a pleasant flight, ranging back and forth between signifiers and the signified, judiciously exploring art and nature. Each element is endowed with meaning, connecting it with human presence and human feeling. Under the poet’s gaze, a movement in time occurs that returns it to us, it tells us of other voices who are leaving traces in personal and universal history. An interesting, marvelous exchange occurs between the forms of being and their most profound abode, like a window to the sun, opening and smiling at us.

~ Rita Stanzione, poet and science instructor, Salerno, Italy

___________________

In Margaret’s poetry we listen to the inner voice of a poet who is committed to building bridges. Beyond the versatility of her topics, the vividness of her images, and the richness of her style, almost every poem she writes is an expression of this quest – building bridges of peace between people, nations, and, in a very intricate way, between the individual and his or her inner self. 

~ Nizar Sartawi, poet and translator, Amman, Jordan

____________________

  

Like her photography, Saine’s poems breathe movement, shadow and light that immediately transports the reader to the experience of moving within the social fabric of her woven words.

~Virginia Jasmin Pasalo, poet and editor of “The Tree Anthology,” Manila, The Philippines

_____________________

 This book is Margaret's elegant, wise, and worldly oeuvre - a distilled reflection of her sagesse and sophistication. Enjoy it!

~ Mani Suri, poet and member of Poetic License Group, Los Angeles, California

SELECTED POEMS BY MARGARET SAINE

KLEE'S MOONLIGHT

A luminous blue creamy and light like looking into a blooming artichoke

Panels of soft light partitioned like dreams 

that may come when we have not yet shuffled off this mortal coil

But think of blue the soft sheen of silk of stories in morning air of hope and promise

Spaces of light spaces of trees sun and the ambiguous 

flat spaces that absorb it fighting blocks of dark

Slanted towards a hazy future ours for the taking the wanting the hoping.

A VOICE

How can you fall in love with a bird
maybe as the voice of someone
you hold dear in your heart but distant.
You long to get your hands

on her, your ears on her hazy voice.
Then in your other dealings
you forget the darling sounds
that promise to wound and heal

so that your daily life becomes
an unctuous and tortuous battle.
Until one day in the plaza

you hear that pristine voice again
from the bird cages of your search
which was a search for the right one.

BREADCRUMBS

I love breadcrumbs

and pick them

from wherever they land

tablecloths, sofas, my chest

you name it

I once read that

breadcrumbs are for the gods

If so how nice they have

good taste like me

If so on second thought

they might be angry

that I rob their crumbs

I sincerely hope

there is a goddess among them

who will smile at my folly

and placate the others

into forgiving me

for stealing their crumbs

Maja Trochimczyk Receives the 2016 Creative Arts Prize from the Polish American Historical Association

During the 74th Annual Meeting in Denver, Colorado, held on January 5-7, 2017, the Polish American Historical Association presented its Annual Awards for 2016 to a group of distinguished individuals, including Dr. Maja Trochimczyk who received the Creative Arts Prize for her poetry. In January 2016, Dr. Trochimczyk presented a reading of poems from "Slicing the Bread" at the 73rd Annual Meeting of PAHA, held in Atlanta, Georgia. 

The Awards were presented by PAHA's outgoing President and acclaimed literary scholar, Prof. Grazyna Kozaczka of Cazenovia College, NY, whose award citation is quoted below.

Dr. Maja Trochimczyk with President Grazyna Kozaczka, 

with Prof. Anna Mazurkiewicz in the background.

CREATIVE ARTS PRIZE

"The Creative Arts Award is bestowed on Dr. Maja Trochimczyk, for her achievements as a poet, especially in her two books dedicated to Polish victims of WWII, Slicing the Bread (Finishing Line Press, 2014), and The Rainy Bread (Moonrise Press, 2016). Her books of poetry include Rose Always, 2008; Miriam’s Iris, 2008; Into Light, 2016; and two anthologies, Chopin with Cherries, 2010, and Meditations on Divine Names, 2012. Dr. Trochimczyk served as Poet Laureate of Sunland-Tujunga, Los Angeles in 2010-2012 and was nominated for the Pushcart Prize in 2016."

Recognized by the Creative Arts Prize by the Polish American Historical Association

http://www.moonrisepress.com/the-rainy-bread-by-maja-trochimczyk.html

Published by Finishing Line Press, 2014.

http://poetrylaurels.blogspot.com/2014/07/finishing-line-press-to-publish-slicing.html

http://poetrylaurels.blogspot.com/2015/04/holocaust-memorials-and-reviews-of.html