However, this storm packs all the wallop of a literary hurricane and more… straight from the eye of swirling vapors, all at the center of one progressive poet’s mind… Rafik Romdhani.
I first came across Rafik in Wheelsong Poetry Anthology 1 which was the first of a series highlighting international next level poets to raise funds for Save The Children… ,which by the way is highly recommended… he slammed a poem entitled “Face of the Moon”. … It’s resonating line echoed above all else I read for some time…
“… the hands of death will be more merciful at the bottom of this luminous chalice hanging from the invisible throne of God…”.
After that I was hooked on Rafik’s voice.
Two books on the Wheelsong label, Dance of the Metaphors (2021) and Rough Roads (2022), have preceded his newest release, titled Vapour of the Mind. This book illustrates Rafik’s transcendent journey deeper into the subconscious ocean of rich life that resides within his imagination… evoking the provocative content and lyricism that has become his trademark. As an English teacher in Tunisia, he has narrowed his voracious vocabulary into microscopic focus upon the realms of illusion and reality.
Long form poems and shorter poems create a whirlwind of dizzying windows into the mind of a poet that sees the world as something more tangible than dreams.
His shorter poems dazzle with lines like “… poetry hits minds at non-poetry times..” from What Poetry Does.
Or even “Hearken life! How dare you shut before her your door and milk out the nascent Nile in her blossoming eye?” composing the whole of “Blossoming Eye”.
With laser precision, he cuts to the quick of natures wounds and attempts, to suture all loss.
Varying themes rustle throughout the collection… ranging from the romantic, emotional, daily grinds, translating experiences into reason, to societal issues on a global level. “Paper Boats” paints a most visceral ending with “What will a Maths lesson do for a starving child flipping food pictures in his French copybook?”
One line alone plucked from one of his poems does not give it enough weight when taken into consideration with how it works within the intrinsic depth and texture of his word tapestries.
It is in the larger efforts that Rafik shines… his effervescent magic most apparent in poems like “The Glow Of Silence”. This piece made my eyes widen as they perceived the words, “I don’t write. I draw dances, then search the dancer till she is finally found. I throw bones to nightmares to keep their eyes to the ground..” There are many lessons to be learned between the lines of Rafik’s profound perceptions.
He is a poets' poet. The intensity and character of his expression are so creative and original, the seemingly easy flight of his metaphors present a lesson in next level poetry. His execution is flawless, evident in so many lines of this book. It’s hard to choose examples! This execution is most present here within the lettered breath of Vapour Of The Mind: “Don’t be afraid of me, words! Do not feel strange, plodding poetry… for all the elements of nature are strangers.”
Rafik Romdhani is a beacon of light to intermediate poets of all persuasion looking to up their game. His vision has opened my eyes to ways of writing I have never considered as possible before… and I have been writing a long time.
He sees what many others see but don’t understand… like this fruitful line from “Where is Meaning?”... “Meaning decides its beginning from our end, my friend”.
This master crafting of translating ethereal perception speaks for itself in every poem Rafik sets his pen to. An amazing poet in every regard, Rafik Romdhani continues to wow me every time my widened eyes gaze upon one of his literary visions.
Matt Elmore
Outstanding review! Rafik is a master poet and I hope his art can continue to find the audience I know it deserves.
ReplyDeletemost appreciated! 🙂
DeleteMuch appreciated! 🙂
DeleteYour review of this Poet is exemplary, if I, as a simple lay-poet, may say. Matt, your way with words weaves like Rapunzel letting down her hair. They spill out effortlessly. Thank you for everything you do blogging with Steve and Charlene to helping others like myself. You are Poetry’s treasure. Second to Steve Wheeler, of course!
ReplyDeleteUniversal Peace & Love 🪷
Many thanks Karin! We are all invisible poets! 💥
DeleteAn excellent review Matt. Rafik is indeed a magician of words, and can conjure them into many shapes to convey emotions and meaning. That's why Wheelsong Books has now published three of his collections. Long may the relationship continue.
ReplyDeleteI’m honored to have wrote this review. Rafik certainly presents a brilliant beacon of the Wheelsong light!
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