“‘In The Shadow of Rainbows: A Collection of Songs of Presence’ – A Review by Barbara Leonhard”

A Stunning Cover!!!

Selma Martin’s debut poetry collection transmutes misery into mesmerizing beauty. Not only is each poem masterful in form, but it is lined with spiritual truth much like a golden-lined cloud shimmering in the brilliance of a rainbow after a storm.

How do we recognize the brilliance? From the shafts of darkness. We cannot have one without the other. Light illuminates the way into the mystery as we ask, “Why me?”

“Why me?” I asked when I miscarried many years ago. Martin explores a near tragedy in “Little Vessel”. Her two-year-old son went missing for 15 days and was feared dead. Imagine the horror. Fortunately, he was found alive. Still, I couldn’t help but recall my baby, who miscarried. My only child and someone I have missed terribly.

Certainly, everyone experiences shadows. The poet’s songs ring from a wounded soul. She isn’t alone. We all experience trauma at some point in our lives. It seems like disasters strike us daily – personally, socially, politically, environmentally, and so on. Every aspect of our being suffers physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.

As the poet states in “Something’s Broken”, we sense the dysfunction and malaise. Everything is out of tune. Screeching. Our hearts moan raspy strains of pain.

Something’s Broken

That scraping, maddening  sound,
that creaking and groaning I hear–
like iron on iron
that rises with the wind
and is followed by the loud bark
of a neighbor’s dog
     if that dog hears it,
     everyone in this sleepy coastal town does

But what is it?

Anything could make such a mad sound,
the swinging of a gate,
halyards slapping on the mast of sailboats,
metal dragging on cement
mattress springs;
faulty wheels on a pram,
whale calls, or
marriage-vows renounced

The dogs are anxious tonight
yes, halyards clang; mine are frapped tight.
     Something scrapes that shouldn’t scrape
     something’s stuck that shouldn’t be
     something promised to last ends
– something’s broken

That moaning and rasping strains
heavy on the wind tonight.
Do you hear it too?

Those who stuff the suffering under the skin and bones and feign happiness may face a cataclysm one day. Carl Jung said that what we repress we may express as anger, which only causes a cyclic dynamic of harm.  

How can we break this cycle of suffering? The spiritual masters teach the art of “presence”. Through our sensual awareness of trauma, we can heal. Martin shows us the way out of the shadows to the truth, the rainbows of discernment (self-awareness), and songs of hope.

Suffering is not something we bind up in a box and leave in the attic. A puzzle for a new tenant to solve. Healing from suffering is a process that involves an analysis of the harm and self-examination. One cannot take these steps without the presence of mind. In the book prologue, Martin explains that she “lived a reality that was felt” and that “left an imprint” on her brain. That tells me she was fully present to her suffering.

The poet shows us to observe, feel, and even engage with the trauma. Martin shares some of her traumas with the reader. As a child, she felt scolded for actions that she felt were innocent. She felt a great deal of compassion for others, but still, her interactions were misunderstood. She recalls shedding many tears which became storms that revealed rainbows.

She writes, “But always, through wet eyelashes and learning to stand under the sun just so, I marveled at the rainbows that settled on my watery eyes….And I cried often. Hearing of people’s hardships brought out tears, literally and figuratively, I saw rainbows. Always.”

Her experiences, I feel, were mystical, a spiritual revelation that years later led to this collection of poetry. As she writes, “I want to contribute a verse in a book of poetry that celebrates people….to write poems of discovery and growth rooted in awareness and presence. I plan to use poetry as a springboard to the sacred (even for those not looking for it).”

To get to the light, one must walk through the shadows and with one’s own shadow, whom we befriend. Our shadow actually knows us the best and never abandons us in shady places.

My Shadow  

My legs walk me to places  
I really want to visit  
but often show refusal  
explicitly resists it.

When others zoom by past me
I turn to my dear shadow  
who follows me forever  
even when alleys narrow.

My legs don’t seem to know me  
as well as shadow does  
she stops whenever I stop
or picks up speed and runs.

My anima’s familiar  
with my many moods and ways,
needs no code or preamble  
least of all, scat song to sway:  

She’d soon slide off a full moon
if legs dared walk me there  
and hold my hand, enraptured  
to land us fair and square.

And at bedtime, at lights out  
when legs cannot be bothered  
she’ll be standing by the door  
before the switch is triggered:

Penumbra that outlines my soul—
you’re by far the best
come near, loyal companion
lay your head upon my chest.

When I first opened the PDF she sent me for this review, I was curious about how the shadows related to the sacred. She explains that shadows are not literal monsters. They are the things we grapple with. The parts of our soul that we face off with so that we might grow. The grief that needs to be “seen” and thus resolved. The discordant mysterious chords which show that we need to be re-attuned to the sacred, the rainbows that signify redemption.

As Martin states, “My poetry might not change lives or even help to save anyone from their monsters. Still, I will attempt to show that redemption is possible in awareness of presence in ordinary life and, at best, offer awareness that poetry can heal if we stop for a moment to think it could help, and let poetry wash over us. I think we all have some healing to do.”

The journey into the shadows can take us to rainbows, especially if we find love and forgiveness along the way, especially if we see ourselves in the shadows, especially if we fully witness the pain, especially if this recognition makes us kinder to ourselves and others.

Review Copyright © 2023 Barbara Harris Leonhard

All Rights Reserved

In the Shadow of Rainbows: A Collection of Songs of Presence

Copyright © 2023 Selma Martin

All Rights Reserved

The Kindle version of In The Shadow of Rainbows: A Collection of Songs of Presence is on preorder on Amazon at this time. In The Shadow of Rainbows: A Collection of Songs of Presence.

The paperback version launches on July 15, 2023. 

You can follow Selma Writes, https://wordpress.com/read/blogs/135545397/posts/23510 ,and EIF- Experiments in Fiction, https://experimentsinfiction.com/2023/07/05/in-the-shadow-of-rainbows-now-available-for-pre-order/, for updates.

Selma is a retired English teacher with 20 years of teaching children ESL. She believes in people’s goodness and in finding balance in simple living. She lives in Japan with her husband. In 2018, Selma participated in a networking course whose final lesson was to publish a story on Amazon. After many failed attempts, she completed the course and self-published her short story, Wanted: Husband/Handyman, in 2019. Later, collaborating with peers from that course, she published Wanted: Husband/Handyman in an anthology, Once Upon A Story: A Short Fiction Anthology. Since then, she has published stories in MasticadoresUSA, (for which she is is a Treasured Contributor), The Poetorium At Starlight, Short Fiction Break, and Spillwords. After her first NaPoWriMo 2021, Selma writes poetry on her website selmamartin.com, and her debut poetry book is due out soon. Read Barbara Leonhard’s Interview with Selma about her debut poetry book here. You can find Selma, selmawrites, on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. 

Editor: Barbara Harris Leonhard 

@BarbaraLeonhar4

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Amazon Best-Selling Author, Three-Penny Memories: A Poetic Memoir (EIF-Experiments in Fiction, 2022); Pushcart Nominee; Facebook: Barbara Harris Leonhard /barbara.leonhard; Instagram: @meelosmom123

Divider Image: by GDJ on Pixabay