POEM: The Alien

What on earth is happening on this planet?

What on earth is happening?

What on earth?

On earth?

What is happening on earth?

I used to love this lush blue planet.

It used to be my favorite vacation spot in the galaxy.

And look at it now, recklessly overconsumed.

All their treasures are gone.

Oh, dear God, if I had the privilege to live on this precious planet,

I wouldn’t take it for granted the way these silly earthlings do.

They obnoxiously think they will have it forever, what a delusion.

I would give up an arm and a leg to be its citizen,

Too bad they don’t acknowledge aliens.

And apparently, they don’t know the difference between male and female anymore.

How on earth do they reproduce, if they don’t know who’s male, who’s female?

Or should I say, how do they reproduce on earth?

They will implode themselves into extinction.

Where is that galaxy atlas of mine,

Time to find another blue retreat.

~~~~~~~~~~

From my book of poetry Despair and Hope (2024), page 17.

POEM: The Café in Paris

There was this time in Paris on Champs-Elysées,

You and I were sipping coffee at a corner café,

It was a bright morning,

We had an astonishing view of the Arc de Triomphe.

You looked into my eyes and said,

I love you,

And I looked into your eyes and said,

I love you too.

~~~~~~~~~~

From my book of poetry Despair and Hope (2024), page 100.

POEM: Despair and Hope

I thought there couldn’t be anything worse than a global pandemic,

Yet we find ourselves on the edge of destruction again.

We live in a hopeless world,

But I still choose to nurture hope.

We need hope.

We must hold on to hope.

Hope is all we’ve got.

I trust humanity will overcome the despair.

I trust we will see better days.

I trust we will see hope.

~~~~~~~~~~

From my poetry collection Despair and Hope (2024), page 81.

POEM: Time

What is time but our planet’s movement around its star,

And the star’s movement in its galaxy?

We fantasize about time travel,

But the truth is

We’re too small in the face of the Universe to change its laws.

Our only chance is to move forward,

Because the Universe moves forward.

Time is this social construct that we invented for ourselves to make sense of it better,

But in reality

It will be here with or without us,

For as long as the Universe exists.

~~~~~~~~~~

From my new book of poetry Despair and Hope (2004), page 93.

POEM: The Solstice

They say summer starts today.

Today is the longest day.

I sit on my porch and soak in the sun,

Up until the very last moment of it,

Till the last bit of sunshine.

The last sunrays of the day gently kiss my skin.

It’s always a glorious day,

The longest day.

There is only one sour note about the longest day of the year –

All the other days are inevitably shorter.

But the sweet note is that there are still many sunny days ahead,

And I will embrace them all.

The days after the solstice may go shorter,

But the summer goes ripe once its longest day is over.

~~~~~~~~~

From my book of poetry Despair and Hope (2024), page 95.

Noua mea carte de poezii “Despair and Hope”, acum pe Amazon

Dragii mei prieteni si cititori, astazi sunt foarte incantata sa anunt publicarea noii mele carti de poezii Despair and Hope, care acum este disponibila pe Amazon in editie tiparita, in Canada, SUA, Marea Britanie, unele tari din Europa Continentala, Australia, Japonia. Editia ebook Kindle a cartii urmeaza sa fie publicata in iunie 2024.

Despair and Hope este cea de-a treia mea carte, dupa Bits of Fashion (eseuri) publicata in 2013, si Sunset in Toronto (poezie) publicata in 2021. In acelasi timp, este cel de-al doilea volum de poezii dintre cele trei carti pe care le-am scris pana acum.

Stiu ca ati vazut deja comunicarile pe care le-am postat pe Facebook (precum si celelalte retele de socializare) despre noua mea carte de poezii Despair and Hope in ultimele doua luni, si va multumesc din suflet pentru reactiile pe care le-ati avut de cand am anuntat prima oara ca volumul va fi publicat in aceasta primavara – toate like-urile, share-urile, comentariile, felicitarile si incurajarile pe care mi le-ati acordat pe Facebook si Instagram inseamna enorm pentru mine; dar am vrut sa impartasesc vestea si aici pe blog. Data oficiala a publicarii a fost 23 mai 2024, iar in urmatoarele zile cartea a devenit vizibila pe Amazon, si acum sunt pregatita sa impartasesc vestea cea mare cu familia, prietenii si cititorii mei!

Volumul Despair and Hope contine 120 de poezii care sunt imbinate in doua parti, dupa cum sugereaza si titlul – Despair si Hope; iar temele despre care scriu in aceasta carte sunt tulburarile sociale din lumea in care traim acum, razboaiele culturale si divergentele de opinie sociala, razboiul din Ucraina, dificultatile post-pandemice cu care omenirea se confrunta in prezent. Partea I, Despair, capteaza o serie de sentimente si emotii mai intunecate, care sunt readuse la lumina in partea a II-a, Hope. 

Cartea de poezii Despair and Hope este dedicata sperantei pe care noi, umanitatea, nu trebuie sa o pierdem, indiferent de dificultatile sociale prin care trecem in prezent. Este un apel catre reinnoirea angajamentului nostru pentru bunul simt, pentru decenta, pentru respectul adevarului, respectul fata de Mama Natura, respectul fata de oranduirea fireasca a lucrurilor.

Amazon.ca – Despair and Hope

Amazon.com – Despair and Hope

Amazon.co.uk – Despair and Hope

Photo credit: Victoria West

My New Book of Poetry "Despair and Hope", Available on Amazon

My dear friends and readers, I am extremely happy and excited to share some great news with you today – my new book of poetry, Despair and Hope, has just been released. The book was published in May 2024 and is available on Amazon in Canada, the US, the UK, Continental Europe, Australia, Japan. The Kindle ebook edition of Despair and Hope will be released this coming June 2024.

About the book

Despair and Hope by Canadian writer and poet Victoria West is a collection of poetry dedicated to our human spirit and resilience. It’s a book inspired by the current post-pandemic times we live in. The poems reflect the social unrest of recent years, such as culture wars, the war in Ukraine, the post-pandemic struggles of humanity. Part I, “Despair”, captures a range of darker feelings and emotions, which are brought back to light in Part II, “Hope”.

About the author

Victoria West started writing about fashion in Toronto when she founded the blog FashionStyleBeautyandMore.blogspot.com in 2010, which later became VictoriaWest.net. She has written as a fashion contributor for various online and print publications in Canada, the US, and Romania for a decade (2010-2020). In 2020, she started writing poetry as a reaction to the global pandemic. Victoria is the author of three books – Bits of Fashion (essays and interviews, 2013), Sunset in Toronto (poetry, 2021), and Despair and Hope (poetry, 2024). Originally from Europe, Victoria West has been a resident of Toronto for many years now, where she lives with her husband and son.

Official website: VictoriaWest.net

I hope you'll enjoy my new book! Please check it out on Amazon (links below). Please also help spread the love and consider writing a book review or posting an opinion about my book of poetry Despair and Hope on Amazon, GoodReads, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter, YouTube, or any other social media platforms.

Thank you for your support!

Amazon.ca – Despair and Hope

Amazon.com – Despair and Hope

Amazon.co.uk – Despair and Hope

Photo credit: Victoria West