Crystal Fire. Poems of Joy and Wisdom (2022), ed. Maja Trochimczyk 

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Edited by Maja Trochimczyk, and illustrated with paintings by Ambika Talwar, the “Crystal Fire” anthology gathers poems of joy and wisdom by 12 poets, 8 women and 4 men: Elżbieta Czajkowska, Joe DeCenzo, Mary Elliott, Jeff Graham, Marlene Hitt, Frederick Livingston, Alice Pero, Allegra Silberstein, Jane Stuart, Ambika Talwar, Bory Thach, and Maja Trochimczyk. The poets span all ages and diverse life experiences. They include émigrés from Poland, Cambodia, and India, and those born in the U.S. College professors join community poets. Native speakers appear alongside those for whom English is the second, or even the third language. The ”joy and wisdom” they write about are also different, as each poet follows their own path and gathers unique reflections to share with their readers.

​MORE ABOUT THIS BOOK: moonrisepress.blogspot.com/2022/09/moonrise-press-publishes-crystal-fire.html
BUY IT NOW: ISBN 978-1-945938-58-0 (color paperback), 188 pages. $53.00. 
​ISBN 978-1-945938-59-7 (eBook), $10.00 instant download.
ISBN 978-1-945938-57-3 (hardcover), $68.00. With 144 poems and 12 paintings.
Poets Joe DeCenzo, Ella Czajkowska, Susan Dobay (gallery owner and exhibition curator), Maja Trochimczyk and Bory Thach, at the closing of the "Sky Garden" exhibition at the Scenic Drive Gallery in Monrovia, CA, on November 20, 2022

From the Preface by Maja Trochimczyk

The phrase of “Crystal Fire” may be seen as the  symbol of all humanity,  with each person born from the union of man and woman, the male and female DNA strands interlocking in ever new patterns to create human beings. In this phrase, "Crystal" stands for the feminine and “Fire” for the masculine. “Crystal” is peaceful, somewhat static, but well-constructed, stable, and growing slowly into perfection. It is the cosmos of order and being. Remember, only women give birth (though some want to construct artificial wombs and detach humanity from its roots). In contrast, "Fire" is dynamic, sometimes intensely dramatic, always changing, always transforming, constantly in the state of flux. It is the energy of change and growth. It is also destructive, demolishing  solid structures of the past to make room for the new. “Fire” means destruction and becoming. It is pure chaos. The Universe arises from the dance of these twin forces, like yin and yang, but neither is pure darkness, negative and “evil” and neither is pure light, positive, and “good.” Instead, they are the ageless vortex  of cosmic unity and chaos, of creation and destruction. There is no value assigned to this polarity, for such labels are limiting and deceptive. Both aspects are essential, each  cannot exist without its twin. Both are good AND evil, both are positive AND negative. ”Good and positive” when coupled with the other. “Evil and negative” when alone. These are the polar opposites of stagnation and decline—or constant movement and the total destruction of all life. The feminine elements of "earth" and "water" endlessly dance with the masculine elements of “air” and “fire.”

The Editor - Maja Trochimczyk 

Maja Trochimczyk is a poet, music historian, photographer and non-profit director born in Poland, educated in Canada (Ph.D., McGill University), and living in California. She published seven books of music studies, edited five poetry anthologies and published three books of poetry.  Her poetry and photography appear in numerous journals and anthologies. She was twice nominated for Pushcart Prizes (2021 and 2022) and serves as President of the California State Poetry Society and Managing Editor of the California Quarterly.  

The Artist - Ambika Talwar

Ambika Talwar, is an India-born author, wellness consultant, artist, and educator whose vision is to realize her sacred destiny and invite others to find their brilliance. She has authored Creative Resonance: Poetry—Elegant Play, Elegant Change, 4 Stars and 25 Roses (poems for her father) and My Greece: Mirrors & Metamorphoses about her travels
through Greece in 2002. It is a poetic-spiritual travelogue that seeks to discover our collective human purpose.  She is published in numerous journals and anthologies, and received many prizes, including two Pushcart Prize nominations, in 2018 and 2022. Also a wellness practitioner, Ambika practices IE:Intuition-Energetics™, a powerful fusion of modalities and creativity principles for speedy recovery from ailments so you can experience being whole again. Recent retiree as English professor at Cypress College, California, Ambika makes her home in Los Angeles and in New Delhi, India.