Lolita Paiewonsky
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Lolita Paiewonsky writes librettos, drama, fiction and, especially, Poetry (since the second grade!). Her obsession (of the past year and a half) is Historical Fiction and Aleksandr Pushkin, the grandfather of Russian Literature who is Afro-Russian. A steadfast believer in artistic and inter-disciplinary collaborations, besides reading/‘performing’ her work, Lolita has presented her poetry with classical and jazz music, original choreography, and exhibited as “poet?ge” - Visual Poetry. She has been featured poet and on the program at many poetry venues, including Borders/Boston by Tapestry of Voices, Soaring Places Videos, and upcoming at the Fireside/Co-Housing Series. Her poetry has appeared in a number of journals, including The Harvard Dudley Review, The Sydney-Hampden Poetry Review, Collage-Collector’s Edition Anthology of St. Croix Poets, Bradley University Journal, and other publications and local newspapers.
The writer has published three limited edition chapbooks - Who hears the gull’s song?; Fragments and Reflections; and Lights AglowLuces Brillantes; two upper school student/faculty illustrated literary journals at St. Croix (USVI) Country Day School; edited the Harvard Graduate School of Education ALANA Anthology 2006: We are The River, and a forthcoming anthology at First Church in Cambridge (The Jazz 5:30 Anthology 2006-2007); and has two completed unpublished bilingual manuscripts, Treces Poemas/Thirteen Poems and Los Escenarios en la Poetica/Scenarios in Poetics: Frederiksted, Once upon a Time. Recipient of several grants and awards, including La Sociedad Historica de Puerto Rico y Revista Al Margen's Premio en Bellas Artes - Poesía (Fine Arts Award for Poetry), she placed first in the Langston Hughes St. Louis World Black Poetry Festival, “And Bid Him Sing”. From her Pushkin work was born an historical fiction novel-in-progress, Aleksandr and Anatoly, that of course includes poetry (both his and hers).
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L-W cycle (began 7 Ag’2005)
Stirrings?
What are these pings
Fluttering.
Like some wing of butterfly
in parts of me
I no longer know?
in lov?
In love?
Lov coming back?
Love . . . again ?
Dance with me
in lw cycle1, LP 13 Ag’2005
Dance with me
The fire is dancing
in its flames.
In your eyes,
green and yellow tigers.
There is fire
in the Moon.
Music skirts about
every corner
In lilac silence
Jazz indigo
orange tango
Blues rhapsody
See me. I’m swaying,
Holding myself
in my own arms,
when yours are so very capable.
Come, love,
take my hand,
dance with me.
ella o yo
in lw cycle2, LP 14 Sp’2005 rv Ag’2006
Lov turned cold
Ice of frozen lake
Cold, wrapped in
Blankets, forgotten memories, old fires
Cold.
A belly briefly warmed by new fires
Until every degree
Dissipated
Leaving
Only fumes of dead lov
Like cracked and brittle summer’s leaves
Until they too
Vaporless
Mingling with nothingness
Wrenched themselves from your
Belly no longer aquiver with
Arrows ready for release
Heart-bound
Ella,
O yo
Choiceless choice?
Girl-dancing-in-flames
ink drawing by Laurie-Rae, Dc’2005
Hey, blackgirl,
What do you see in those
Flames
Him?
Igniting something longsimmering
An ember
Is it real
Is it momentary
Is it fantasy
Will it die?
