Two Poems by Jamal Ali - Edmonton Poetry Magazine

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Two Poems by Jamal Ali - Edmonton Poetry Magazine

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Published December 11, 2018

Two Poems by Jamal Ali
(Calgary, Alberta, Canada)

Phantasma
Bearded Rebel

Phantasma

by Jamal Ali

Fear lit night,
sighted from a distance
coyotes run in circles,
Market Mall parking lot.
Their howls, a demon.
Thoughts about canines
pierce me on my way home.

Phantasma, a visitor wearing a crown.
I, speechless stone, stare at her in awe.
Her words, "I'm Soteria.
The Grecians have sent me
to protect you."
I am a leaf quivering
in the wind of doubt,
"I don't know, don't know
if I can, if I can,
trust, trust, trust you."
Soteria's lines, sounds of waves,
Korouta beach, Amaliada, Greece
sooth me.
"I'm the goddess of safety
and salvation, deliverance,
and preservation from harm.
Trust me. Have no fear.
Take the overpass
close to 7-Eleven."

Another direction,
holding hands in comfort,
the romance of ancient and modern.
The bridge: haven't crossed it in years,
looked down, dearth of wheels,
asphalt liberated from traffic.

My destination,
we both looked at one another.
Her question,
"What are you thinking?"
My honesty revealed,
"Soteria, I'm in love with you.
Don't leave me."
Her reply, "Well, well, well."
Tears trickle down my cheeks,
"I need you."
The Grecian's response,
"Your world is not my world.
Smile. Have courage."
Her departure, my thoughts
about the parking lot,
what do coyotes hunt?

Bearded Rebel

by Jamal Ali

Humans bombarded by commodities:
coffee, tea, beer, wine, computers,
television, cars, etc.
These tangible products,
their consequence,
a price established
by the economic laws of supply and demand.
Our contribution to nation's Gross National Product.

Bearded rebel seeks freedom from consumer economy.
His creative mind, an outlet.
Early morning,
he writes,
"Sunrise like copper.
Its beauty, a sight to behold.
Oh star, you energize my passion."
Words,
beginning of rebel's journey into poetry.

Biography
Jamal Ali is a Calgary writer and poet who enjoys using his imagination in
creative pursuits. Derek Walcott, the Caribbean poet, playwright, and Nobel
Laureate inspires Jamal. The following quote by Derek Walcott empowers
Jamal: "The English language is nobody's special property. It is the property of
the imagination: it is the property of the language itself."