Author: Tanja Ajtic, Serbia/Canada
Ljubica
I miss you, mother, on this quiet, hot summer evening
when everything carries a heightened scent.
I, too, love violets, Mama, and I grow them
on the ledge of the big window.
I miss talking with you about everything,
getting some wise advice from you,
confiding in you like always, and you comforting me.
You loved my poems and stories,
you were my first critic and listener,
and you used to say one can’t make a living from that
— and it’s true —
but that’s how I find myself.
Every time I buy shoes, I think of you,
how you always let me choose them myself,
like a little child — shoes I’d love,
shoes that felt comfortable,
shoes that would take me down the paths of life,
sometimes paths of roses, sometimes paths of thorns.
Your support brought me joy —
it was irreplaceable in all the stages of my life.
You left me too soon, in great pain you departed,
struggling so hard to part
from life into death, and I was there with you every day,
watching you fade and disappear.
I love you.
And though you're not here,
I see you in the mirror when I look at myself.
As I age, I resemble you more and more,
even my gaze is like yours, mother,
and I used to think we were different — now I see we are not.
I miss you on this hot evening,
with open doors and windows,
letting a bit of air flow through after a hellish day,
and I keep thinking —
you left me in the summer,
on a day just as hot as this one.
And then I go to look in the mirror,
to see you through your eyes,
and I know I'm not alone.
We are together.
Biography of Tanja Ajtic, Serbia/Canada
Tanja Ajtic was born in Belgrade, Serbia. She lived and studied in Serbia. She is a poet and writer but she is also an artist. She also deals with fine graphics in the linocut technique. Since 2002, she lives and creates in Canada. Moved to Belgrade, Serbia in summer 2023.
Tanja Ajtic is a member of many groups and associations. In Serbia, she is a member of the prestigious Society of Writers of Belgrade. Her poems and stories have been published two hundred collections (books), anthologies, electronic books and magazines. Her poems have been published in twelve languages. She published her book "Outlines of Love". She participated with books and anthologies at many fairs in the world with other authors.
- She won second prize in Great Britain from the Serbian Library in London (2019).
- She won III World Prize for Excellence "Cesar Vallejo" 2021 in the category of artistic excellence Lima, Peru, by the World Spanish Union of Writers and International Award of Excellence; from the World Spanish Union of Writers, UHE Mexico.
- She won the I International Award of Excellence "Cita Del Glateo" Antonio De Ferrariis, IX edition 2022 – Rome, Italy, a prestigious award in the group of poets for the English language (IX edition of the award for foreign poetry in English) in 2022, Rome, Italy.
- Winners of Foundation Naji Naaman literary prize iz 2023; (21st Edition), from the Republic of Lebanon, Honor Prize (for complete work) for Literary prizes 2023. Poetry for the competition was submitted in three languages: English, French and Arabic.
- Winning the 2023 “Zheng Nian Cup” Literary Award – Third Prize by the Beijing Mindfulness Literature Museum, China.
She is the winner of many awards, diplomas and certificate. She is currently writing poetry, short stories, haiku, gogyoshi poetry as well as graphics artist as a freelance artist.
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