Title: Reflections III: The Magic Beyond the Pain: The Journey, My Impact, Their Impact
Author: Dalia Vernikovsky
Publisher: GoldTouch Press
ISBN: 1953791360
Genre: Poetry
Pages: 186
Reviewed by: Leah Shepherd
Hollywood Book Reviews
Reflections III is a collection of poetry that will make you think about the meaning of your life and the purpose for your time on Earth. For Vernikovsky, love and family solidify to give purpose to her life. “Life is meaningless unless we love before we perish,” she states. Likewise, we shouldn’t get so busy that we fail to connect with moments of joy and wonder.
A common theme across the book is carpe diem, or making the most of the limited time that we have on this planet, since tomorrow is not guaranteed. The poetry expresses a restless ambition which yearns to be fulfilled before one’s short time on Earth is over. Vernikovsky laments the goals and dreams that she hasn’t achieved earlier. “I reflect on all the things I have yet to complete and know I would want my imperfections yet to beat,” she writes.
Another frequent motif in this book is age and the passage of time, marked by holidays and milestones. In “Someday Soon,” the poet longs to “Wallow in abundant time, be awash in all I desire.” Getting older doesn’t necessary represent a loss or a decline. In “Yom Kippur,” a poem about the Jewish day of atonement, the poet notes, “The year is fresh, my mind abounds with sounds to be sung, and I move with the rhythm of one feeling so young.” She acknowledges the darker aspects of life, but her outlook is highly optimistic and positive.
This poetry is keenly introspective, investigating and naming the poet’s personal quirks, faults, and doubts. The poems are consistently authentic and honest, not hiding painful moments or various feelings and instincts that are not pretty. In “Bruised Ties,” Vernikovsky writes, “The depth of my heart rages with emotion, overwhelming feeling that I may have failed in spite of my deep sense of devotion to both my own family, who I promised to cherish and watch, and to the concept of it.”
She reminds us that it’s important to dream and grow, no matter what your age is. It’s not just for young people to reach for freedom and cross scary bridges into a new phase of life. We can all do that; if we’re open and willing. Airplane travel serves as a reminder of our internal, spiritual journeys. The poems inspire us to get out of our own comfortable ruts and to stop being complacent.
These poems are usually rhymed in couplets. Vernikovsky also makes good use of internal rhymes, repetition, and meter. The writing flows well. “Reflections III” by Dalia Vernikovsky is an insightful and captivating collection of poems that stimulates the readers’ mind and soul.