Name and surname:	Flamur Foniqi
	Poem for the 4th and 5th round (Final / Grand Final): (TRANSLATION INTO BOSNIAN + ALBANIAN/ENGLISH LANGUAGE )	ostvarenje njene najveće želje kad je pala noć, nekoliko puta sam pročitao kratki vic i sjeo sasvim dovoljno da uvjerim svijet da za šetnje još nisam zreo… a ona je padala kao tuga na skipljene joj čardake ustajale oči u ratu za malo veličanstvenosti na putu od neba već su se kajale kad se riječ noći najzad čula bi to nešto kao tihi roman ruke ostavila na njenoj glavi da čitalac budeš i ti autonoman… a kad ti se zasmije… ti slušaj taj talas nemirnog mora postani mornar po svojoj duši i jedra ostavi bez pomora. skupi kožu mjeseca u noći i stavi je na to tijelo puno šarma buntovne zvijezde ti razgovori i mjesec se ljepše sa zemlje drma. izgubljen kad se osjetiš kao zrno prašine koje pada na zemlju sjeti se da i trenuci padaju ko vlas tvoja u krilo, tvom bezumlju. i malo čežnje kad se osjetiš da uzalud zemljom si lutao nek razbije ples i poljubac u čelo da smetneš koliko si odlutao! kad vidiš knjige ispod svijeća sjeti se vlasi što pade na papir što je noću spavala međ’ prstima pa postala poezija budna ko vampir! kad nebeski balkoni zaplove ne bacajte molitve u violinsko ulje nek tamo budu melodije žice njene koja se ne lomi u rukama rulje! a kad zvijezde pozlate… krila će ti izrasti ko u vraga u svakoj zvijezdi padalici voli je… to šeta do tebe, tvoja draga! Translated to Bosnian by Nermin Delić ……………………………………………….. ardhjen e saj kryedëshirë n’pak hera kur natë se binte i lexoja pak qeshje dhe rrija mjaftonte t’peshonte mbi botë mbi pak tokë t’ecjeve t’mia… binte si pikël ballkoneve ndenjur n’gjitha herat kur natë se sjellë tek niste në luftë pak madhështi sulur drejt hanës për pak qiell! kur fjalë e tyre të jetë dëgjuar mes buzësh ngjarë roman i qetë harro kokën mbështetur n’duar lexues i tyre bëhu përjetë… dhe kur ato qeshur të kenë… n’det të trazuar at’ valë dëgjo bëhu marinar n’shpirtin e tyre me dashje velat,shkatërro! lekurë të henës mbledhu netëve dhe hidhe n’trupin plot hijeshi yjeve rebelë kumtoja fjalën hëna në tokë më bukur rri! i humbur kur të jesh ndjerë si grimcë pluhuri rënë në tokë kujto çaste rënë mbi prehër dorë që shprishte flokun në kokë dhe pak mall kur të ndjesh kot mbi tokë kur të kesh bredhur kujto vallëzimin, t’puthuren n’ball ata pak hapa, gabim të hedhur! kur t’shohësh librat nën qirinj kujto një flok rënë në letër që natën flinte në mes gishtash e bëhej poezi e ditës tjetër! kur ballkoneve qiejt lundrojnë n’vaj violine t’mos hedhësh lutje lëri ato t’jenë melodi n’tel të saj që s’gjen këputje! dhe kur yjet t’kenë praruar… krahët të rrahë në erresirë n’çdo yll t’rënë duaje atë… ardhjen e saj, kryedëshirë!
	Something special about you!	Master në Mesimdhënie të Gjuhës dhe Letërsisë Shqipe. Lexues i rregullt, poet, estet e kritik letrar. Kërkues i pandalshëm mbi vargun që përmbush shpirtërisht, vetën dhe të tjerët. Synim jetësor, lënie e gjurmëve mbi letrat shqipe. Si dashës i poezisë së Lasgush Poradecit e Dritëro Agollit.
	What do you think is the main problem of peace in your country? Suggest solutions to us, and how to bring and preserve peace in your country with poetry?	Them që gjëja më shqetësuese tashmë është migrimi. Po mbetemi një vend që mbahet me njerëz të moshës së bardhë. Pamundësi e imponuar përditshëm dhe vrasje e çdoditshme e mundësive për ta manifestuar atdhedashurinë e potencialin kontributdhënës në atdhe.
	List of the published books:	Nuk kam botuar asgjë si autor i vetëm, mirëpo jam bashkëautor në një botim që titullohet “Epitaf”. Në të kam hedhur debutimet e para në poezinë shqipe.

You can vote and preview the video posted on Mili Dueli’s official Facebook page:

Mili Dueli 2023 – Peti krug (Veliko finale)

Objava Flamur Foniqi – Ostvarenje njene najveće želje (Mili Dueli 2023 – Grand Final) pojavila se prvi puta na Mili Dueli.

Objava Mili Dueli 2023 – Kosovo (Poetry and literary criticism) pojavila se prvi puta na Mili Dueli.

LITERARY CRITICISM OF JURY MEMBERS

Književna kritika (komentar) žirija na pročitane pjesme:

Nermin Delić: AJNE IBERHYSAJ – Drago mi je vidjeti ovu autoricu ponovo sa nama. Budući da je Najbolji plasman Kosova u prošloj sezoni, očekujem visoki rezultat i sada. Glavna sugestija je odustvo originalnih metafora. Na tome je potrebno poraditi, jer sve drugo ova autorica posjeduje.

FLAMUR FONIQI – Bilo mi je zadovoljstvo prevoditi ovu pjesmu. Odlična tematika.

SAHIT KADIĆ – Odlična pjesma! Naročite pohvale za tematiku i upotrebu originalnih metafora.

Gramatička greška: osmjehu – osmijehu.

AGIM DESKU – Jedina zamjerka je što je pjesma više prozaična nego poetična. Volio bih da je lišena suvišnih riječi i da je uneseno u nju više originalnih metafora. Na taj način bi bila spašena hermetičnosti u koju sada zazire.

SAFET ĆEMAN – Pjesma sa prelijepom porukom. Isuviše je jedonstavno pisana da bi oborila s nogu, a opet, prelijepo poentirana da bi ostavila čitaoce ravnodušnima.

Mislim da bi trebalo izvršiti konverziju riječi kako bi rečenica izgledala smislenije:

„I ona je veliki jedan znak pitanja“ – „I ona je jedan veliki znak pitanja“

„Dal’ čovjek stvarno zauvijek umire“ – „Da l’ čovjek stvarno zauvijek umire“

AG APOLLONI – Odlična minijatura. Volio bih da je više originalnih metafora upotrebljeno. Stil je savršen. Djeluje da se radi o zanimljivom autoru.

XHEVAT PREBREZA – Vrlo interesantna ljubavna pjesma. Sviđa mi se stil.

TYRAN SPAHIU – Odlična pjesma. Autor je sam radio prevod ili se radi o originalnom verziji pjesme gdje su uočene brojne gramatičke, ali mnogo više informatičke nepravilnosti. Obavezno poraditi na tome, jer kvari utisak ove originalne pjesme. Posljednji stih mi je pomalo nepotreban, jer objašnjava prethodno rečeno.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….AJNAJNE IBERHYSAJ – I am glad to see this author with us again. Since the best ranking of Kosovo she was in the last season, I expect a high result now as well. The main suggestion is the missing of original metaphors. It is necessary to work on that, because this author has everything else.

FLAMUR FONIQI – It was a pleasure to translate this poem. Excellent topic.

SAHIT KADIĆ – Great poem! Order praise for the subject matter and use of original metaphors.

Grammatical error: osmjehu – osmijehu.

AGIM DESKU – The only complaint is that the poem is more prosaic than poetic. I wish it was stripped of unnecessary words and that more original metaphors were introduced into it. In this way, it would be saved from the hermeticity it is now shying away from.

SAFET ĆEMAN – A poem with a beautiful message. It’s too simply written to knock you off your feet, yet beautifully punctuated to leave readers indifferent.

I think a word conversion should be done to make the sentence look more meaningful: (see original comment)

AG APOLLONI – Excellent miniature. I wish more original metaphors were used. The style is perfect. It seems to be an interesting author.

XHEVAT PREBREZA – A very interesting love poem. I like the style.

TYRAN SPAHIU – Great poem. The author did the translation himself, or is it the original version of the poem where numerous grammatical, but much more informational, irregularities were observed. Must work on that, because it spoils the impression of this original poem. The last verse is a bit unnecessary to me, because it explains what was said before.

Sarah Isufi: AJNE IBERHYSAJ: Through contrasts, this poem expresses a sense of longing, with a simple, yet effective language.

Good luck to you, Ajne!

FLAMUR FONIQI: This poem is a moving exploration of loneliness, alienation, and the human need for connection. The last strophe is particularly poignant, with explicit, but thrilling verses.

You’re on a good path, Flamur, keep it going!

SAHIT KADIĆ: Sahit, I understand a poet’s vital need for similes, but sometimes trying to attach the same meaning to many different elements is not the best choice. Here you use “orchid, wild pomegranate, fig tree, chestnut” within few verses, which spoils the emotion due to distraction. The poem has potential, otherwise.

Good luck!

AGIM DESKU: “Ajkuna, Titanic, Shakespeare, Otranto, Hamlet”, I just cannot read your poem to the end, Agim. I feel like I am repeating myself, but once again, FOR ALL THE AUTHORS: PLEASE, KEEP THE ELEMENTS VIVID, BUT NOT MESSY!

SAFET ĆEMAN:Lukewarm!

AG APOLLONI: Nice capture of metaphors, Ag. Good luck!

XHEVAT PREBREZA: Lukewarm!

TYRAN SPAHIU: Good topic!

Ljubica Petrović Kosor: Neću komentarisati pjesme pojedinačno. Samo ću reći: Bravo, Kosovo! Čestitam! Ove sezone ste me oduševili. To je razlog ovako visokih ocjena.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
I will not comment on the poems individually. I’ll just say: Well done, Kosovo! Congratulations! You have blown me away this season. That is the reason for such high ratings.

POETRY

Objava Mili Dueli 2023 – Kosovo (Poetry and literary criticism) pojavila se prvi puta na Mili Dueli.

Uvidom u video-snimak i pjesmu za finale koja je poslata, utvrđeno je da je Indira Avdyl Hoxha, finalistica ove sezone Milih Duela, poslala tuđu pjesmu.

– Nisam znala da postoji ovakva pjesma! – autorica se branila ovom izjavom.

Naime, radi se o staroj pjesmi kosovskog benda koju potpisuje Hektor Gjurgjiali. Pjesma je doslovice prepisana od riječi do riječi, dakle, nije poslužila kao inspiracija našoj autorici, već je kompletnu prepisala.

Pjesma neće biti predstavljena na ovogodišnjem finalu Mili Dueli, a organizator je donio odluku da i istoimena autorica ne bude dio finala, unatoč molbi autorice da učestvuje sa nekom drugom pjesmom.

– Ovakve pojave su, nažalost, česte i dešavaju se, ne samo kod nas, već i svugdje u svijetu. Baš zbog toga, Mili Dueli su razvili snažnu mrežu verifikacije svih prijava, u cilju osiguranja autentičnosti koju promovišu. Ovom prilikom žalimo za utrošenim vremenom na promovisanje ovakvih autora, te prijevod njihovih pjesama. I ovaj put je njena mentorica, albanska pjesnikinja Sarah Isufi višesatno prevodila pjesmu, što je rezultiralo ovakvim raspletom. Pišite svojom glavom, pa kako bude! – zaključio je organizator, Nermin Delić.

Pjesmu možete pogledati:

*Video-snimak sa identičnim tekstom pjesme nećemo emitovati, zbog poštivanja tuđih autorskih prava.

Mili Dueli

Objava Mili Dueli 2020/21: Indira Avdyl Hoxha izbačena iz finala! pojavila se prvi puta na Mili Dueli.

The contest is traditionally composed of 5 elimination rounds. In each round, the number of authors decreases, and in the last, Fifth round, the winner is decided by a voting system based on the Eurovision Song Contest scoring system. The main responsible person of the contest is Nermin Delić, the idea creator and organizer of the contest. For 8 years in a row, Mili Dueli have been gathering authors and spreading the influence of poetry in everyday life.

Nermin Delić

Briefly about the First Round: The selection of all received applications (739) was performed by Nermin Delić. The organizer selected 476 authors for presentation in the Second Round.

Briefly about the Second Round: After the selection in the First Round by the organizer of the contest, Nermin Delić, 476 authors were selected and presented in the Second Round. In the Second Round, the authors are classified in 12 duels, according to the countries they come from. Due to the number of participants, Bosnia and Herzegovina had 2 duels (DUEL 1, DUEL 2), and Serbia 3 (DUEL 3, DUEL 4, DUEL 5). Croatia, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Bulgaria had one duel each (DUEL 6, DUEL 7, DUEL 8, DUEL 9). Due to the small number of participants, authors from Albania, Greece, Kosovo, Romania and Slovenia were presented in one duel (DUEL 10). Poets with Balkan roots, but with current residence outside the Balkans, are grouped together in one duel (DUEL 11). In the end, all authors coming from non-Balkan countries are grouped into one duel (DUEL 12).

The beginning of the presentation of the duel on the official Facebook profile of Mili Dueli was on July 12, 2020. Duels are presented in order, every 2-3 or 4 days according to the scope of the duel. For the first 15 days from the presentation of the duel, the followers of Mili Dueli were able to vote in the comments by entering the author’s number below the picture where her/his poem is presented. In addition to the readers, the members of the jury, composed of 12 renowned and important for Mili Duel artists from the Balkans, also voted. They selected 90% of the authors to pass to the Third Round. The other 10% is intended for the votes of the readers, for those who were not selected by the jury, and who have the great support of their friends and companions Mili Dueli.

Briefly about the Third Round: In the third round, the selection of the best authors continued and only the TOP 100 best authors had the opportunity to continue.

Briefly about the Fourth Round: The fourth round is brought by the TOP 50 best authors who pass to the final, fifth round. It is composed of a total of 16 duels.

You can see more about the Fourth Round (how it is voted, how it is organized) here:

Mili Dueli 2020: Organization Of The Fourth Round

FOURTH ROUND (SEMI-FINALS)

RESULTS

First of all, an important announcement … In the fourth round, we were looking for the 50 best authors according to the procedure established by the organization of the competition. Looking at the results, as the Organizer, I realized that in certain duels, the authors were much more dominant, and that surely many more authors deserved to pass, at least according to the presentation in the semifinals. For that purpose, I decided that the number of authors who go directly further should be 36, and that a total of 34 authors should fight for the remaining 14 places. All those authors who did not go directly further will equally send the poem for the finals, but only 14 of them will be presented, based on the quality of the submitted poem and the accompanying video material that traditionally adorns our Finals. More about everything, certainly below …

DUEL 9 –  KOSOVO

WHAT’S NEXT? (PREPARATION FOR THE FINALS)

DARK BLUE. Authors who entered the TOP 50 directly! These authors are officially the finalists of this season, therefore, participants in the last round of Mili DuelI 2020/21. From this moment on, they need to contact their mentors and start preparing the poem for the Finals. All details related to the preparation and sending of the poem for the Finals will be received in a private message in the inbox. Please be patient!

LIGHT BLUE. – Authors who has chance to participate in the finals, the last round of Mili Duels 2020/21. These are authors who did not go directly to the final round, but due to the fantastic performance in the semifinals, the Organizer decided to give a new opportunity to promote their poetry. There are a total of 34 of them in such a situation, and 14 of them will be participants in the Finals. The decision will be made by the Organizer based on their application for the Finals. From this point on, they can also contact their mentors and start preparing a poem for the Finals.

TOP 100 – Authors who remained in the TOP 100 and did not make it to the Mili Dueli 2020 Finals. Their contribution to the spread of the project and poetry will be rewarded by receiving electronic recognition for their participation as they represented their countries in a bright light (TOP 100 from 739 registered !!!), and will accordingly receive recognition for the intercultural dialogue of the Balkan countries and the countries of the world in which they participated.

All the presented poems will be represented in a electronic collection which, apparently, will have its own printed edition (summer, 2021), when MILI DUELI BALKAN TOUR awaits us. More on that soon!

Also, all authors who are 2000 or younger will be presented at the MILI DUEL JUNIOR ONLINE POETRY CONTEST which will start a few days after the end of the eighth season of Mili Duels 2020 – Online Balkan Poetry Contest!

JURY COMMENTS

Organizer: NERMIN DELIĆ

Dear friends,

First of all, thank you for showing the greatest sense of loyalty to the whole project this season. The Corona-year prolonged the contest itself, and at the same time some of my private achievements happened (I finished university and started working), so the time spent on the project was reduced to a certain extent. Either way, our play through poetry continued, and so in these wonderful summer days we had the opportunity to read the 100 most representative authors we had so carefully selected.

In this, the fourth and at the same time penultimate round, we had the opportunity to enjoy the poetry of all Balkan countries, but also many countries around the world. Somewhere it turned out to be good that there was longer voting time than in previous seasons. Looking at the number of views of all the semi-final poems, with 328,492 views on Facebook, my mission was already fulfilled. Looking at the countries that read us, I could not stop, if I started to list … Almost 330,000 times we entered the everyday life of people on social media with poetry… I noticed at the beginning that there were two camps among the authors; one who enthusiastically welcomed the publication of their poem and those who did not promote their poetry even to their friends. The former shared the same with their friends, because for the first time, somewhere in our region, people can vote for poetry; for the first time it was important to point out that you have passed the selection of 739 authors and you are one step closer to the end, exclusively with your poetry. Because this was not an invitation to like the conquest of handbags, irons, shelves, etc., this was an invitation to the world of poetry in which each of these 100 great authors lives!. But probably everyone had their reasons for being one and not the other, and from that point of view it certainly can’t be a complaint. I rewarded some of the poems, even though they had poor readability, because they are masterful in themselves!

Just led by a mass of people who wrote me every day who they were voting for, shared your poems so beautifully and decorated their Facebook walls, I didn’t want to conflict my opinion with the opinion of the masses. But points always say it all. So in this case. I started to comment and went in order, all in order to write as good and clear comments as possible, WHY such points. But then I finally realized that in most cases the same mistake, the same comment, was written only in different words.

Therefore, I decided to point out in general the following …

When submitting a poem, to any contest, anywhere, even where you are already sure that the poem will be published, awarded, or generally given some recognition, please take note of the following:

1. LITERACY. There were so many mistakes that turned me away from some nice emotions I felt while reading your poems. If you’re a writer, that doesn’t mean you have to be computer-wise and orthographically perfect, but if you’re sending a poem somewhere, to someone, let it be viewed with other eyes as well; maybe someone who knows maybe less than you will know something more about certain things. It is this item that is crucial in depriving the spirit of amateurism that a writer can carry within himself. Four-dot in poems, spaces several times, unnecessary punctuation marks in the wrong places; all of which violates the RHYTHM and AESTHETIC VALUES and, ultimately, the GENERAL IMPRESSION of the poem. If you make me take a break in the wrong place with a comma, that thread that runs the poem will break, and I will remain confused. I have to admit that these mistakes were greatly reduced, as a team of mentors worked with the authors, but there were authors who submitted their poems without a mentor and where such mistakes were noticed.
2. WORK WITH A MENTOR. This item may be crucial, as it involves collaboration on the selection and / or correction of a semi-final poem. It’s not just a conversation about a poem, it’s a conversation of two cultures, often two peoples, and you were representatives of your own. The basis of any peace is acquaintance, cooperation and compromise.
   We did not take it as evil if an author, in the words of his mentor, still insisted on being “according to him”, but it is a completely wrong form not to respect the form of the contest that requires cooperation, therefore, not to contact his mentor at all, not to greet him.
   My impression is certainly complemented by the opinion of my colleagues, members of the jury, and your mentors, and in this regard we are looking for a person who will be a part of us in the next season of the contest.
3. OPINION OF READERS / YOUR FRIENDS. We should never primarily be guided by the number of likes and reviews that one author has achieved on the social network, because then the competition part would mean a struggle for numbers, and not for the quality of the poem. However, I am of the opinion that on this occasion as well, through the number of votes cast, you showed two things; first – how much you actually care about going through; the second – how much support you can actually collect for your poetry. I note that for the first time it is a vote for poetry, where free votes decide who will be the winner. In this regard, I rewarded all the authors who heartily presented their poem.
4. POETIC VALUE OF THE TEXT. Many of the texts in the verse that are sent are often not clarified as poetry, so it was necessary to point out to the authors what is poetic and what is not in their poems. Judging subjectively, the original metaphors and comparisons are something I admired the most, because they impress the most. The most common example I give to everyone is this: if it was written IT WAS COLD it has less poetic value than IT WAS ICE, where in the same sense, a metaphor is introduced. If someone writes IT WAS WHITE LIKE SNOW, which is expected, clichéd and outdated, it will certainly be less impressive than IT WAS WHITE LIKE A NEEDLE HOUSE.
   When it comes to rhyming poems, rhymes should not be surpassed and expected. Here, too, the use of new poetic words and their skillfully found rhymes was appreciated. Of course, no one should invent hot water, but every step out of everyday life was considered a success.
5. AESTHETIC VALUE OF THE TEXT. Applications submitted for the semifinals were to be complete. Any answer to the questions related to the biography and the general impression of the author about the contest was evaluated. Also, the poem itself was supposed to be completely computer-correct. It is extremely unnecessary to point out grammatical / spelling mistakes to someone in this round of the competition, because every such mistake is a sign of the author’s lack of dedication to the text and work with a mentor.
6. GENERAL IMPRESSION. The authors have sent poems in the previous three rounds, too. It is also, a significant factor that influenced the distribution of my points.

You can read poems by Kosovo authors here:

Mili Dueli 2020/21: Poezija kosovskih autora (Polufinale)

MILI DUELI 

Made in Bosnia and Herzegovina
by Nermin Delić

Europe / Balkan Peninsula
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Central Bosnia Canton
Jajce Town 70202

Sva prava zadržana. // All rights reserved.

Objava MILI DUELI 2020/21: Semi-final results – DUEL 9 – Kosovo pojavila se prvi puta na Mili Dueli.

More about organization of the Semi-Final round (4th Round):

Mili Dueli 2020: Organization Of The Fourth Round

Objava Mili Dueli 2020/21: Poezija kosovskih autora (Polufinale) pojavila se prvi puta na Mili Dueli.

The contest is traditionally composed of 5 elimination rounds. In each round, the number of authors decreases, and in the last, Fifth round, the winner is decided by a voting system based on the Eurovision Song Contest scoring system. The main responsible person of the contest is Nermin Delić, the idea creator and organizer of the contest. For 8 years in a row, Mili Dueli have been gathering authors and spreading the influence of poetry in everyday life.

Nermin Delić

Briefly about the First Round: The selection of all received applications (739) was performed by Nermin Delić. The organizer selected 476 authors for presentation in the Second Round.

Briefly about the Second Round: After the selection in the First Round by the organizer of the contest, Nermin Delić, 476 authors were selected and presented in the Second Round. In the Second Round, the authors are classified in 12 duels, according to the countries they come from. Due to the number of participants, Bosnia and Herzegovina had 2 duels (DUEL 1, DUEL 2), and Serbia 3 (DUEL 3, DUEL 4, DUEL 5). Croatia, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Bulgaria had one duel each (DUEL 6, DUEL 7, DUEL 8, DUEL 9). Due to the small number of participants, authors from Albania, Greece, Kosovo, Romania and Slovenia were presented in one duel (DUEL 10). Poets with Balkan roots, but with current residence outside the Balkans, are grouped together in one duel (DUEL 11). In the end, all authors coming from non-Balkan countries are grouped into one duel (DUEL 12).

The beginning of the presentation of the duel on the official Facebook profile of Mili Dueli was on July 12, 2020. Duels are presented in order, every 2-3 or 4 days according to the scope of the duel. For the first 15 days from the presentation of the duel, the followers of Mili Dueli were able to vote in the comments by entering the author’s number below the picture where her/his poem is presented. In addition to the readers, the members of the jury, composed of 12 renowned and important for Mili Duel artists from the Balkans, also voted. They selected 90% of the authors to pass to the Third Round. The other 10% is intended for the votes of the readers, for those who were not selected by the jury, and who have the great support of their friends and companions Mili Dueli.

THIRD ROUND

RESULTS

DUEL 8 – ALBANIA, GREECE, KOSOVO, ROMANIA AND SLOVENIA

How was the vote?

(1) Organizer: Nermin Delic
(2) President of the jury I: Sarah Isufi 
(3) President of the jury II: Lena Kyropoulos
(4) Additional member of the jury: Milčo Misoski
(5) Readers (number of votes received): 1074
(6) Common picture * (* The authors could achieve an additional grade of 5, if they send their picture with one of the participants of the 3rd round.)

VOTING RULES:

• In Duel 8, all authors from the rest of the Balkans who passed the previous selection are presented. The number of participants in Duel 8 is 25.
• How the votes were counted: The ratings of the additional member of the jury  (in this duel – he did not send us our votes) were added up to the average grade, and that with the grades of the President of the jury, and with the grades of the Readers and the grade of the Common Picture. The drawn average grade is summed with the grade of the Organizer and thus the final average grade is obtained on the basis of which the authors are ranked.
• The President of the jury  had the right to send one author directly to the Semifinals. The Presidents of the jury in this duel used that option and sent Mite Tabaku and Demetra Kintsaki directly to the next round.
• In this duel, no author passed directly based on the votes of the readers. Six authors with a large number of readers’ votes was awarded a grade of 5. (By the way, according to the rules of the 3rd round, Readers awarded the 3 authors with the highest number of votes in the Third Round – direct passage to the Semifinals, and another 22 authors received a grade of 5.)
• Common picture. The authors were entitled to an additional grade (5) if they sent a picture with some of the participants of the 3rd round of the Mili Dueli 2020. The goal of the pictures was to encourage social relations outside of online activities and socializing. None in this duel sent us that kind of pictures.

SO, WHAT ‘S THE NEXT?

TOP 100 – Authors who entered the TOP 100 went directly to the Semifinals Mili Dueli 2020. Each of them will be assigned a mentor at the discretion of the Organizer, and the names of their mentors will be announced later. The mentor can only be one of the members of the Mili DuelI 2020 jury. All the details related to the preparation and sending Semifinals poems (ROUND 4) will be received in a private message in the inbox. Please be patient!

TOP 120 – Authors who entered the TOP 120 did not go directly to the Semifinals of the Mili Dueli 2020. They will, after the announcement of the all results, be offered to the members of the jury to choose them to be their mentors. If none of the members of the jury expresses their will to be their mentor, the authors will not make it to the Semifinals. If one member of the jury responds, that member of the jury will automatically become a mentor. If more than 2 members of the jury apply, the Organizer will, in cooperation with the authors, select one of the offered members of the jury as a mentor to the author.

TOP 250 – Authors who remained in the TOP 250 did not make it to the Mili Dueli 2020 Semifinals. Their contribution to the spread of the project and poetry will be rewarded by receiving electronic recognition for their participation as they represented their countries in a bright light (TOP 250 from 739 registered !!!), and will accordingly receive recognition for the intercultural dialogue of the Balkan countries and the countries of the world in which they participated.

All the presented poems will be represented in a electronic collection which, apparently, will have its own printed edition (summer, 2021), when MILI DUELI BALKAN TOUR awaits us. More on that soon!

Also, all authors who are 2000 or younger will be presented at the MILI DUEL JUNIOR ONLINE POETRY CONTEST which will start a few days after the end of the eighth season of Mili Duels 2020 – Online Balkan Poetry Contest!

JURY COMMENTS

Organizer: NERMIN DELIĆ

Jury President I: SARAH ISUFI

ALBANIA:

MIMOZA REXHVELAJ:
“Fear overwhelms you, the end of existence.
With a gnashing of teeth, you wake up.
The sun shines on the wrinkled face, like masala after the party.
But tomorrow it will return normal again”
This is the best strophe of the poem, so I will call it a good, but passive poem. Talking about the exhausting routine of life, must have at least a bit revolte. I wish the whole poem was as good as that strophe was.

BESMIR HALITAJ: Using repeatedly rhymes in almost each verse, is boring somehow. But the poem is good. The first and last strophe give melody to the whole it.

ALBAN TUFA: Alban, it feels like a paragraph, took from a novel, because the style is too narrative for a poem. But I like it. The second part of it especially, is beautiful. Though, in this round I have to call you a narrator, not a poet.

FJODOR QORRI: In the previous round I suggested you to put order in your thoughts, and I’m glad you did. I see what inspires you is mostly the “female”, but I would like to read another theme in your poem as well. Though, “thee, the purple of my dawn”, is a pure beauty. Work on your talent and you’ll be amazing.

ZHANETA BARXHAJ: This poem is simple, Zhaneta. Everyone has cried at least once in his life. So, I’m not sure if this brings emotions. Though, your writings are pretty good.

MITE TABAKU: Mite, I really liked your dark tone in the previous round, but in this round I’m somewhere between:
“I don’t prefer/agree with inappropriate terms, when they can be replaced with other ones. At the end of the day art is subtle, and subtleness fits everything”

and

“Allen Ginsberg, a “Beat movement” poet, was so harshly judged on his book “Howl”, then due to social-normes breaking, it became accepted, even famous.”
So for one reason or another, I’ll choose the second. Your poem provokes, raises questions, evokes harshness, sadness, and subtle or not in my taste, or in someone else’s taste, the emotion and intensity is there…

ISABELA TAFILI: Original is your poem, good job, the first three strophes are perfection. But I suggest you not to jump from an area to another. You go from “small kitchen with small plates” to “sandstorm and desert”. It’s better to follow only one line. Otherwise you’re truly talented.

MATILDA MIRAKA: I expected much more from you. You have style, but you need to organize it.

FLOGERTA KRYPI: Flogerta, I’m happy about one thing. You know the rules, the discipline of art, and no matter your poem is more intense or less; more emotional or less, you still remain a poet…
“You are perfect,
especially because you will never be mine”, captured my attention a bit more.

KOSOVO:
INDIRA HOXHA: I hardly find a message in your poem.

AGIM DESKU: Here you go again with Titanic, Agim. Pirates, Europe, Albania, David, Kumrie Shala, Grabovic, Venetian…
For God’s sake, gimme a break…

AJNE IBERHYSAJ: What I did read was a mess, and I’m not sure if there’s a meaning.

ARIANA BYTYQI: I wasn’t disappointed by you, Ariana, in the previous round, and nor I am in this one. Good poem.

ROMANIA:
DANU FLORENTINA: Your “another mood” gave me a soft, quiet and peaceful mood, while reading it.

LAURA IONESCU: Unnecessary prolonged, but not bad!

GREECE:
ILIAS FOUKIS: The meaning of it is alright, but Antarctica, Sahara, Himalayan, and geography itself brings no emotions into a poem…

DEMETRA KINTSAKI: It’s a bit childish your poem, dear, but you’re too young. You will change the focus of your inspiration. Good luck on your journey.

Jury President II: LENA KYROPOULOS

As consider the Greek participants the winner for me is the young Lady Dimitra Kintsaki, because her lyrics
{Perhaps the world could be
Something more than black and white} <– that really shocked me and saw me how limited are our values like a human society..with the most simple way made me feel deeper and think sharper…If there is any translation about the other participants in English it will be more fair to vote…Thank you very much for the human connectivity ! HVALA MY FRIENDS

BEST REGARDS

LENA KYROPOULOS

Additional Jury Member: MILČO MISOSKI

A member of the jury did not vote until the end of the deadline for sending votes.

DUEL POEMS

You can watch the entire duel on the social network Facebook, where it is on the official profile Mili DuelI.

ALBANIA

1. MIMOZA REXHVELAJ 1981 ALB Shkoder
PONEKAD

Život ponekad zapne iza tebe
poput trnja, iza kose
a ne nestaje.

Neka, kad si došao na pogrešno mjesto!

Ja ne znam kako
niti zašto
život postavlja zamke,
zamke iz ničega.
Pasivni mišići tijela
odjednom, ožive
otkrivajući drugi ego,
žutu boju
koju topla sezona održi skrivenom.

Mišići vrata napinju se,
ovaj put ne nosim teg,
ali vidim jasno.
Perspektiva je iluzija,
to se drvo smanjilo desetine puta,
to je iluzija, pa to je i put,
mlin, sazvježđe svjetova koji čekaju da budu otkriveni …
Takav je i prst koji pokazuje na njih.

Strah te obuzima, kraj je postojanja.
Škrgućući zubima, budiš se.
Sunce sja na naboranom licu poput masale nakon zabave.
Ali sutra će sve biti normalno.

Život ide dalje u svojoj igri
Dan-noć, noć-dan,
sa uzastopnim, redovnim dupliciranjem na parketu koji nas priprema
za vrijeme bacanja,
ako taj trenutak ikad dođe…

SOMETIMES

Life gets stuck behind you sometimes
Like thorns, behind the hair
And do not disappear.

When you get in the wrong place!

I do not know how
neither why
Life sets traps for you,
Traps out of nothing.
Passive muscles of the body
Suddenly, come alive
Discovering another ego,
A yellow color
That warm season keeps it latent.

The neck muscles tense,
This time not to carry a weight,
But to see clearly.
Perspective is an illusion,
That tree decreased dozens of times,
It’s an illusion, so it is the road,
The mill, a constellation of worlds waiting to be discovered…
Such is the finger that points to it.

Fear overwhelms you, the end of existence.
With a gnashing of teeth, you wake up.
The sun shines on the wrinkled face like masala after the party.
But tomorrow it will return normal again.

Life goes on in its game
Day-night, night-day,
with successive, regular duplications on the parquet preparing us
for the time of throwing away,
if that moment ever comes….

Nganjëherë

Nganjëherë jeta ngec pas teje
Si ferra, pas flokëve
Dhe nuk të shqitet.

Hyre atje ku s’duhej!

Nuk e di se si
Dhe as se pse
Ajo të ngre kurthe,
Kurthe asgjëje.
Muskujt pasivë të trupit
Papritur, gjallërohen
Duke zbuluar një tjetër ego,
Një ngjyrë të verdhë
Që stina e ngrohtë e mban latente.

Muskujt e qafës tendosen,
Këtë herë jo për të mbajtur peshë,
Por,për të parë qartë.
Prespektiva është një iluzion,
Ajo pemë e zvogëluar dhjetëra herë,
Është një iluzion , po kështu rruga,
mulliri, një konstelacion botësh që presin të zbulohen …
I tillë është edhe gishti që i tregon .

Frika të pushton,fundi i egëzistencës.
Me një kërcitje dhëmbësh zgjohesh.
Dielli rezaton mbi fytyrën e zhubrosur si mësalla pas feste.
Por, neser do të kthehet sërish në vend.

Jeta vazhdon në lojen e saj
Ditë-natë, natë-ditë,
me dublime të njëpasnjëshme, të rregullta mbi parket duke na përgatitur
për momentin e gjuajtjes,
nëse ai moment vjen ndonjëherë …

2. BESMIR HALITAJ 1985 ALB Fushë-Krujë
* * * (Kako su bile poredane zvijezde)

* * *

Kako su bile poredane zvijezde
Spuštene kao inspiracija
Vatra koja uništava sve šume
I koja već gori.

Nebo mi je kapalo iz srca
Kapi ljubavne krvi
Imala si snage da vjeruješ u to
U ovaj užas ljepote

Takođe sam se dugo molio Bogu
Daj mi snage da se sjetim
Kako sam se otkinuo sa zemlje
Kad me njena vagina napala

Kako se vrijeme spljoštilo
Sve je bilo zujanje
Smrt-rođenje, bačeno u mene
Pakleni raj kao skok

Sve što se dogodilo zračilo je
Dalje me je opisao
Prosvijetlilo me i osvojilo
Kao što to čine zvijezde na nebesima

Srušio se u meni
Svako značenje je bilo slomljeno
Rob tvoje ruke
Rob koji je imao najviše spasa

Da mi više ne treba sloboda
Ne treba mi ništa više
Mene radi samo ljubav
Svjetlost iznad tame niče

Kako su bile raspoređene zvijezde
Sašla si kao božanstvo
Vatra koja pali sve šume
Vatra koja već gori

* * * (Se si u rregulluan yjet)

* * *

Se si u rregulluan yjet
Zbrite ti si frymëzim
Zjarr që zhduk të gjitha pyjet
Zjarr që vec i ndezur rri

Qielli zemrës më pikonte
Pika gjaku dashurie
Skish forcë mëndja ta besonte
Këtë llahtar bukurie

Edhe zotit gjatë ju luta
T’më japë forcë që të kujtoj
Si nga toka u shkëputa
Kur kurmi i saj më pushtoi

Se si koha u rrafshua
Gjithshka ishte një kumbim
Vdekje-lindje, cast në mua
Ferr-Parajsë si kapërcim

Gjithshka ndodhi rrezatonte
Më përshkronte tej për tej
Më ndriconte më pushtonte
Sic bëjnë yjet nëpër qiej

Brënda meje u rrëzua
U coptua cdo kuptim
Skllav i krahëve të tua
Skllav që skishte më shpëtim

Se smë duhet më liria
Skam ce dua krenarin
Më sundon vec dashuria
Dritë që përmbi terrin mbinë

Se si u rregulluan yjet
Zbrite ti si një hyjni
Zjarr që djeg të gjitha pyjet
Zjarr që vec i ndezur rri

3. ALBAN TUFA 1992 ALB Peshkopia
MOJ OTAC

I
Prije sam vjerovao da je moj otac div,
jedini čovjek kojem je svijet bio podložan,
nepravde su se neprestano slamale o njega.
Civilizacija se dizala i padala pod njegovom sjenom
koliko mi je puta pao na pamet u razgovorima sa prijateljima.
Otac sa snažnim mišićima podlaktice
tim istim rukama te diže u nebo
a sunce jednom rukom, ako želi, on pomjera.
Taj čovjek mi je želje ispunjavao poput duha
svaki put kad bi se vraćao iz Grčke,
sa tog drevnog mjesta mitova.
Laži poput bakinih priča,
dražile su moje fantazije
i nedostatke ljubavi u meni
nadopunile tankim nitima koje su dijelile dječiju virtualnost od stvarnog svijeta.
Moj otac se promijenio,
mišići nestaju, razgrađuju se svakodnevno
zajedno sa sjećanjem na bakine priče
nestaju i njegove natprirodne sposobnosti.
Više nije u stanju da mi ispuni želje.
Ne ide u Grčku,
galopirajućim potpeticama ne stiže mi
i više ne raspršuje silom vlastite mitove.
Zbog svega ovoga on se plaši
i tresući žestoke cigarete
njemu se dodaju godine i zemljište koje sije,
i sve je tako užurbanije
koliko svaki otkucaj njegove žile ukazuje na neslaganje sa sobom.
Sada mu sve budi uspomenu,
poslije svakog sjećanja slijedi vrlo duga priča.
U školjci on sada gradi svoju virtualnost,
da bi pobjegao od starenja.
I ja sam se promijenio.
Mitovi mi ništa ne znače,
imun sam na fantazije.
Moje želje su sve manje
pošto otac više ne može da me vodi
pod suncem koje nikada nije promijenilo svoj tok.
Znanje oca više me ne iznenađuje
nijedno me znanje više ne iznenađuje
i zato bih često da protestujem.
Pročitao sam knjigu svijeta koji mi ne pripada,
promijenjene su okolnosti i napisana je priča
sa subjektima koji se otimaju da ih pamtim:
ali glavni lik mog života je moj otac,
s tim da kraj uvijek ostaje kontroverzan.
Ovako vam ja gradim veliki kineski zid,
od svojih virtualnih svjetova.

II
Uvjeren sam da se demoni i anđeli kriju u promjeni
sa ili bez detalja,
u ovom svijetu isprepletenom stvarnošću
između sna i zvijezde,
pamćenja i želja,
nada i razočarenja
koji sadašnjost vežu poput snopova slame
kroz polja moga oca.

IM ATË
I
Dikur besoja që im atë ishte gjigant,
i vetmi burrë para të cilit nënshtrohej bota,
prajshëm thërrmoheshin padrejtësitë.
Qytetërimi ngrihej e shembej nën hijen tij
sa herë më tekej mua ndër biseda mes shokësh.
Babai me muskujt e parakrahut të fortë
që të çon hopa në qiell
dhe diellin me një dorë, po të dojë, e lëviz.
Im atë që plotësonte dëshirat si xhind
sa herë kthehej nga Greqia,
nga ai vend i lashtë mitesh.
Të tilla gënjeshtra si përrallat e gjysheve,
stimuj fantazie
a dashuri të mangëta
plotësojnë fijet e holla që ndajnë virtualitetin fëmijëror nga bota.
Tashmë im atë ka ndryshuar,
muskujt i shemben ngapak e përditë
së bashku me qytetërimet e hershme,
aftësitë e mbinatyshme.
S’është më në gjendje të plotësojë dëshirat.
Nuk shkon në Greqi,
takati i rend me galop për te sosja
duke i zhbërë mitet e veta me përdhunë.
Për të gjitha këto ai proteston
duke i dredhur çigaret më të ngjeshura
përvit duke i shtuar tokat që mbjell,
çiftelisë i bie më ngutshëm
sa çdo rrahjet teli dëfton mospajtimin me veten.
Tash çdo gjësend i ndjell një kujtim,
çdo kujtim pasohet nga në një histori shumë gjatë.
Me të tilla kelçka im atë e ndërton virtualitetin e vet,
që e shmang gjithë e më shumë nga plakja.
Edhe unë kam ndryshuar.
Nuk më shtojnë kurrgjë mitet,
këta situmuj fantazie në mendjen time tashetutje imune,
dëshirat i kam gjithë e më të cekëta
meqë s’ka bir nëne të më çojë hopa
nën diellin që s’e ndryshoi kurrë kursin e vet.
Dijet e tim eti nuk më befasojnë më
kurrfarë dijeje s’më befason
dhe për këtë protestoj.
Lexoj ndonjë libër të një bote që s’më përket,
ndryshoj rrethanat dhe shkruaj ndonjë tregim
me subjekte që ia vjedh kujtesës:
personazhi kryesor shumë herë im atë,
me fundin që mbetet përherë i diskutueshëm.
Kësisoj e ndërtoj atë murë të madh kinez,
të botëve të mia virtuale.

II
Bindem që djajtë dhe ëngjëjt fshihen te ndryshimi
me ose pa detaje,
në këtë botë me realitete të ndërthurura
mes ëndrrës dhe zhgjëndrës,
kujtesës dhe dëshirës,
shpresës dhe zhgënjimit
të cilat e tashmja i lidh të gjitha si duaj kashte
nëpër arat e tim eti.

4. FJODOR QORRI 1996 ALB Lushnjel
LJUBIČASTA ZORA MOJA

Ljubičasta zora istopila se zajedno s ljubičastom lavandom.
Baš kao što tvoje usne podsjećaju na nokte od ruža
Dok povremeno dodiruješ svoje lice.
Ti lučni nokti u obliku mladog mjeseca.
Te usne poput raspona krila ptice koja leti.

Tvoje tijelo je poput jutarnje plaže
Pješčane dine zasvođene povjetarcem
Moje ruke osjećaju tu glatku i svježu kožu.
Je li te veče dovelo k meni,
S onim vjetrovima koji kao da nadilaze snove,
Kada svijet šuti i čini se uronjenim u neko drugo vrijeme?
Ili su vam donijele svijetle boje zore, budući da se u njima možete sakriti i probiti granicu noći?
Tebe, ljubičastu zoru moju.

E PURPURTA E AGIMIT TIM

Vjollca e agimit u shkri bashke me te purpurten e livandove
Sikur buzet e tua ngjasojne me te trendafilten e thonjve
Kur prek here pas here fytyren tende,
Ata thonj te harkuar sikur hena e re.
Ato buze si krahehapja e nje zogu ne fluturim.

Trupi yt si plazh mengjesi,
duna rere te harkuara nga era.
Duart e mia ndjejne lekuren tende te lemuar e te fresket.
Te solli mbremja te une,me ato erera qe duket sikur vijne pertej endrrave,
Kur bota eshte ne heshtje dhe duket e zhytur ne nje tjeter kohe?
Apo te sollen ngjyrat e celta te agimit, meqenese ne to mund te fshiheshe dhe te depertoje ne kufirin e nates?
Ti , e purpurta e agimit tim.

THE PURPLE OF MY DAWN

The purple of the dawn melted along with the purple of the lavender
As your lips resemble with the pinky-rose of your nails
When you occasionally touch your face.
Those arched nails shaped like new moon.
Those lips like the wingspan of a flying bird.

Your body is like a morning beach
Sand dunes arched by the breezes
My hands feel your smooth and fresh skin.
Did the evening bring you to me,
with those winds that seem to come beyond dreams,
When the world is silent and seems immersed in another time?
Or the light colors of the dawn brought you, since in them you can hide and penetrate the border of the night?
Thee, the purple of my dawn.

5. ZHANETA BARXHAJ 1984 ALB Tirana
PLAKANJE

Jesi li imao potrebu za plakanjem,
sjedeć’ na prozoru, suočavajuć’ se s oblacima?
Ikad osjetio u sebi
zadovoljstvo kanute suze?
Iznenadno ispale iz očiju?
Dodirivao kožu mokrim otiscima?
Šta misliš o slanoj slasti
usana koje se ljube,
dok ti crtaš nos?
Simfonije globusa,
koje vadiš na otvorenom dlanu,
jesi li bio svjedok toga?
Jesi li pokušao zaplakati
nijemošću duše?
Ah! Moj dragi!
Želim da plačeš…

TE QASH

E ke provuar dëshirën të qash,
ulur buzë dritares me sytë në re?
Ke ndjerë së brendshmi,
kënaqësinë që të jep një kokërr lot në rënie?
Derdhjen e tij të beftë syve?
Prekjen e lëkurës me gjurmët e lagura?
Po ëmbësinë e kripur, kur të puthin buzët,
teksa ti rrufit hundët?
Po simfonin e pikave,
duke i numëruar mbi pëllëmbët e hapura,
e ke dëgjuar?
Ke provuar të qash nga qetësia e shpirtit?
Ah! I dashuri im!
Të uroj të qash…

CRYING

Have you tried the need to cry,
seating on the window facing the clouds?
Ever felt inside
the satisfaction of a dropping tear?
It’s sudden plunge from eyes?
Touching the skin with wet prints?
What about the salted sweetness
of lips being kissed,
while you draw the nose?
The symphony of globules,
while couting them in an open palm,
have you witnessed it?
Have you tried to weep
from the muteness of the soul?
Ah! My dear!
I wish you cry…

6. MITE TABAKU 1991 ALB Lushnje
ZBRINJAVANJE

ta
bezoblična jednačina
(u algebri nebesa),
duhovni fraktal
(u geometriji života),
haotični sistem
(prostor ničega),
razlomak s nazivnikom nula
(stanje smrti),
ta
(na trepavicama zaborava)
život
koji me prekida
udjelom mesa i kostiju,
ta
(u suznoj maternici)
fetus koji je začet umnožavanjem mojih stanica bez ičega…
ta
(grudi gubitka)
ono što mi je ostalo kad duša
moji snovi i nade padaju,
ta
(vagina moje duše),
zbir svih orgazama
da su moji bolovi stigli
do beskonačnosti.
uz krevet
od
a
svijet
slijepi penis
ta
jednostavna
matematička abeceda!…

“Asgjësim”

Jam
një ekuacion pa trajtë
(në algjebrën e qiejve),
një fraktal shpirtëror
(në gjeometrinë e jetës),
një sistem kaotik
(hapësirës së asgjësë),
një thysë me emërues zero
(shtatit të vdekjes),
Jam
(në qerpikët e harrimit)
jeta
që m’abortohet
nga përpjestim i mishit me kockat,
Jam
(në mitrën e lotit)
fetusi që ngjizet nga shumëzimi i qelizave t’mia me hiçin…
Jam
(gjinjve të humbjes)
ajo çka m’mbetet kur shpirtit
mi zbresin ëndrrat dhe shpresat,
Jam
(vaginës së shpirtit tim),
shuma e krejt orgazmave
që dhimbjet e mia kanë mbërrit
në infinit.
Shtratit
të
një
bote
penisqorr
jam
thjeshtë
një alfabet matematikor!…

7. ISABELA TAFILI 1994 ALB Tirana
MI SMO ZRNA PIJESKA

Mi smo mali ljudi,
Kuhamo u malim kuhinjama,
i jedemo u malim tanjurima,
dok glasni glasovi vrište kroz radio-prenose.

Mi smo mali ljudi,
zamotamo hranu kuhanu preksinoć,
sa jučerašnjim novinama,
tamo gdje kaplje ustajalo mastilo političkih govora.

Mi smo mali ljudi,
Spavamo u jednostavnim krevetima,
na jastucima koji mirišu na jeftini deterdžent,
i sanjamo o beskrajnim snovima,
iz kojih se budimo sve nezainteresovaniji.

Mi smo mali ljudi,
I imamo žuljeve na rukama,
I imamo ožiljke u duši,
I leđa nas bole od težine riječi koje nam stavljaju na jezik,
Oni urezuju na našim zidovima,
Zatvaraju nam vrata,
Riječi koje pronalaze put kroz naše rupe na ključaonicama,
i odjekuju u našim domovima.

Mi smo mali ljudi
I svijet se nikada neće prestati vrtjeti bez nas,
Mi smo plodovi velikog drveta koje ubiru strane ruke,
Mi smo milioni zrna pijeska pod nogama onih koji hodaju po nama,
Ništa se nije promenilo vijekovima,
ni sutra promjena neće doći.

Ali ako jedne večeri zapečatimo ključaonice,
Bojimo zidove, ne čitajmo novine,
I svoje snove donosimo iz tame,
neka hodaju u svjetlosti, pod njihovim pogledom,
Sjetit će se da su pješčane oluje možda samo čestice koje su pronašle krila za letenje,
ali koliko je samo carstava pustinja progutala.

WE ARE THE GRAINS OF SAND

We are the little people,
We cook in small kitchens,
and eat in small plates,
while loud voices scream through the radio transmissions.

We are the little people,
we wrap up the food cooked the night before,
with yesterday’s newspapers,
where the stale ink of political speeches drips.

We are the little people,
We sleep in simple beds,
on pillows that smell like cheap detergent,
and we dream of endless dreams,
From which we wake up increasingly disinterested.

We are the little people,
And we have calluses on our hands,
And we have scars in our souls,
And our backs ache from the weight of the words They place on our tongues,
They carve on our walls,
They seal over our doors,
Words that find their way through our key holes,
and echo inside our homes.

We are the little people They tell us,
And the world will never stop spinning without us,
We are the fruits of a great tree that is harvested by foreign hands,
We are millions of grains of sand under the feet of those who walk upon us,
Nothing has changed in centuries,
neither tomorrow a change will pass.

But if one evening we seal the keyholes,
Paint the walls, do not read the newspapers,
And we bring our dreams out of the darkness,
and let them walk in the light, under Their gaze,
They will remember that sandstorms might be just particles that found wings to fly,
but how many empires the desert has consumed.

2. The original poem in Albanian below:

Ne jemi njerëz të vegjël,
Gatuajmë në kuzhina të vogla,
dhe hamë në pjata të vogla,
kur në radio bucasin zëra të mëdhenj

Ne jemi njerëz të vegjël,
mbështjellim ushqimet e gatuara një mbrëmje më parë me gazetat e së djeshmes,
ku pikon boja bajate e fjalimeve politike

Ne jemi njerëz të vegjël,
që flemë në shtretër të thjeshtë,
mbi jastëk që kundermojnë sapun të lirë,
dhe ënderrojmë ënderra të gjata,
Nga ku zgjohemi gjithnjë më të mpirë.

Ne jemi njerëz të vegjël,
Dhe duart i kemi me kallo,
Dhe zemrat i kemi me vraja,
Dhe shpina na dhemb nga pesha e fjalëve që na i vendosin mbi gjuhë,
na i gdhendin në mure,
na i vulosin në dyer,
gjejnë rrugën poshtë vrimave të çelësave,
dhe na i buçasin nëpër shtëpi.

Ne jemi njerëz të vegjël na thonë,
Dhe bota sdo ndalojë të rrotullohet pa ne,
Jemi kokrra të një peme të madhe që vilet nga duar të huaja,
Ne jemi miliona grimca rëre nën këmbët e atyre qe ecin mbi ne,
Në shekuj asgjë ska ndryshuar,
as nesër sdo ndryshoje, ska përse .

Po sikur një mbremje ti vulosim vrimat e çelësave,
Ti lyejmë muret, mos ti i lexojmë gazetat,
Dhe ti nxjerrim ëndërrat nga errësira,
Ti shëtisim në dritë, nën vështrimin e tyre,
Do të kujtohen se stuhitë e rërës jane veç grimca që gjejnë krahë të fluturojnë,
por sa perandori ka therrmuar shkretetira.

8. MATILDA MIRAKA 1995 ALB Elbasan
ĆELAVA DUŠA

Tamo u praznini…!
Tamo sam ostavila dušu sa košuljom!
Tamo sam ostavila plamen svojih snova
Zajedno sa žarom ljubavi
Tamo, gdje je moja mladost nestala
Tamo u mirisu uvelih ruža
među klicama koje su mrtve prije nego što se rode
usred žestine mladosti
Tamo, gdje oči više nemaju funkciju
Tamo gdje srce vozi kao ludo
Tamo gdje su pletene pletenice bezdlake duše
a kosa mog muškarca je nečešljana …!

A SOUL WITH NO HAIR!

There in the emptiness…!
There i left my soul with its shirt!
There i left the flame of my own dreams,together
With the embers of love
There,where my youth faded away
There in the smell of withered roses
among sprouts that are dead before they are born
amid the vehemence of youth
There,where the eyes have anothere function
There wherethe heart is driving like a mad
There where the braids of hairless soul are woven
and my man’s hair is uncombed…!

9. FLOGERTA KRYPI 1993 ALB Tirana
28 matematičkih savršenih otkucaja srca

Kiša je počivala na starom klaviru
Tipke su dodirnute istim zvukom
28 matematički savršenih otkucaja srca
Ta grafika baca nad dugom.
Oblaci su gluhi
Duša je prazna
I pod istim zvijezdama
Netaknuti zagrljaji ispunjavaju mi dah.
28 matematički savršenih otkucaja srca
Ples sa mjesecom
Ne postoji pantegram koji ih može zadržati
Pisma nisu dovoljna za opisivanje
Magija ovih savršenih brojeva.
28 zbogom
28 nisu dobili poljupce
28 bezopasnih zagrljaja
To je sve što imam od našeg oproštaja
To je sve što mi treba za preživljavanje.
Ti si savršen
Pogotovo zato što nikad nećeš biti moj.

28 mathematical perfect heartbeats

The rain rested on the old piano

The keys were touched from the same sound

28 Mathematical perfect heartbeats

That drow graphics over the rainbow.

The clouds are deaf

The soul is empty

And under the same stars

Untouched hugs fulfill my breath.

28 mathematical perfect heartbeats

Dance with the moon

There is no pantegram that can hold them

Letters are not enough to describe

The magic of these perfect numbers.

28 goodbyes

28 not given kisses

28 harmless hugs

That’s all I have from our farewell

That’s all I need to survive.

You are perfect

Especially because you will never be mine.

KOSOVO

1. INDIRA HOXHA 1974 KOS Peje / Peć
MOJE JUTARNJE PISANJE

S tugom sam gledala svoje priče
Smanjile su se, ide na gore
To su samo moje misli
Počela sam ih čitati puna suza i tuge
Napisane su mojom olovkom.

Pisma čak i poredana
I povezana riječ po riječ
Nemam snage da ih čitam
Da ti pokažem te opojne rečenice.

Boje su se promijenile
Snagom ljepote
Takođe su mi ostale pošasti boje
Da, isti odsjaj

Beznadno rangiranje
Istraženo je u pisanoj formi
Stajao si prekriženih nogu u meni
Već mjesecima.

U mojoj sobi
Smirenost se čuje tokom čitanja
Provukli smo se kroz led
I u duši smo koja gori.

Në mëngjez shkrimet e mija

Me pikëllim pash tregimet e mija
Rrinin tkurrur më keq
Se mendimet e mija
Filloja ti lexoj përplot lot e pikëllim
Ishin të shkruara mu nga lapsi im.

Shkronjat edhe kur vargoheshin
E lidhnin fjalë në fjalë
Prapë nuk kisha forcë
Ti shifja fjalët dehëse të fjalisë së shkruar.

Ngjyrat ndryshonin
Me fuqinë e së bukurës
Mbetesha edhe me hallin e ngjyrës
Po të njetës shfaqje.

Një renditje e pa shpresë
Hetohej në shkrim
Rrinte këmbëkryq në mua
Tash e sa muaj.

Në dhomën time
Qetësi duke lexuar
Rrëshqisnin nëpër akull
E në shpirt e përvëluar.

In the morning my writings

With sadness I saw my stories
They shrank worse
That my thoughts
I started reading it full of tears and sorrow
They were written right from my pencil.

The letters even when lined up
They linked it word for word
I still had no strength
You saw the intoxicating words of the written sentence.

The colors changed
With the power of beauty
I was also left with the scourge of color
Yes the same show.

A hopeless ranking
It was investigated in writing
He stood cross-legged in me
For months now.

In my room
Calmness while reading
They slipped through the ice
And in a burning soul.

2. AGIM DESKU 1957 KOS Peje / Peć
ŽIVOTNA PUTOVANJA

Jučer sam započeo putovanje oko života
Putujem s riječima zbog kojih rastem
Čak i kad sam u mraku, pronađem svjetlost

Zastajem u blizini pobunjenih morskih valova
Sjećam se da sam plakao za svrgavanjem Titanika
Onda kad bih se morao boriti s nekim gusarima
Ne zaboravljajući mamuta, čudovište koje nas okružuje svakog trenutka

Tražim formulu krštenja u gorju ako neko ostane tamo
U potrazi za Bulevarima jadne Evrope
Tamo gdje naš čovjek baca znoj i naziva ga crnom sjenom

Vjerujem majčinom vremenu jer me David odgojio u kolijevci sa zvijezdom
Ja sam u ratu sa zlim vijekovima koji godinama zauzimaju moje ime
Zašto sam bio jedini kralj na svojoj zemlji

Živjeli smo sa cvijećem i za cvijeće
Ipak za božure ratnici su spremni na žrtvu
Što se tiče zemlje u kojoj su svi žrtvovani svetom božanstvu

Na svom putu crven i slobodan
Postoji li išta ljepše od susreta s osloboditeljem Grabovca Bellagians
Ratnik koji je svom bratu oprostio svetom Albanijom
Mnogo sam naučio od osloboditeljice Kumrie Shala
O zarobljeništvu, tragedijama, izbjeglicama, ratu
Dvadeset godina nakon rata sa zakulisnim scenama
Za siromaha bez politike koji je s nestrpljenjem iščekivao ovaj slobodan dan
Naučio sam toliko da mu roman ne smeta
I nešto što mi se svidjelo kad je rekao – Ljubav mu je oprostila djelićem ujedinjene domovine.

I putovanje nastavljam sa maštom
Pitam se zaslužuju li moji dobri ljudi Nobelovu nagradu za mir
Pet vijekova zatočeništva uvijek podijeljeni i prokleti i ubijani
A danas u očima Evrope ne možemo vidjeti dalje od Kosova
Ni moje putovanje nema snage ni slobode da letim oko svijeta
Ono ostaje kod kuće i tješi se s nekoliko suza

Na ovaj poseban dan za sunce
Htio sam isti proslaviti u blizini Titanika
Da se iz dubokog sna probude venecijanske ljubavi koje nikad ne umiru.
JOURNEYS OF LIFE

I started a journey around life yesterday
I travel with the words that make me grow
Even when in the dark I find the light

I stop near the rebellious sea waves
I cried for the overthrow of the Titanic
If I had to fight some pirates
Without forgetting the mammoth,monster that surround us every moment

I look for the formula of Baptism in the Highlands if anyone is left there
In said seek the Boulevards of miserable Europe
Where our man there sheds sweat and called black shadow

I believe my mother’s time when David raised me in the cradle with a star
I am at war with the evil centuries that have occupied my name for years
Why I was the only king on my land

We lived with flowers and for flowers
Still for the peonies the warriors are ready to sacrifice
As for the land where everyone is sacrificed to the holy deity

On my journey blushing and free
Is there anything more beautiful than meeting the liberator of the Grabovc Bellagians
A warrior who forgave his brother to holy Albania
I learned a lot from the liberator Kumrie Shala
About captivity, tragedies, refugees, war
Twenty years after the war with behind-the-scenes scenes
For the poor man without politics who has eagerly awaited this free day
I learned so much that a novel does not bother him
And something I liked when he said- Love forgave him apart from the united homeland.

And I continue the journey with my imagination
I wonder if my good people deserve the Nobel Peace Prize
For five centuries of captivity always divided and cursed and killed
And today in the eyes of Europe we can not see farther than Kosovo
Neither my journey has the power nor the freedom to fly around the world
She stays at home and is comforted with a few tears

On this special day for the sun
I wanted to celebrate it near the Titanic
To awaken from deep sleep the Venetian loves that never die.

3. AJNE IBERHYSAJ 1973 KOS Decan / Dečani
TI DJELIĆI PAPIRA

Život liči na
komad papira
Dođe trenutak
i slomi srce
Uništi sve
snove
Ako možeš baciti
i sebe
U tim djelićima
od ljubavi
koji ti se čine
da imaju malu vrijednost
Oni samo liče na
izgubljena srca
Pokrivena
tihim poljupcima

Ti djelići papira
Mijenjaju te
noć grobova
I za sve vas
izgledaju beskorisno
Ispunjeni s puno
gorčina
Ali ne zaboravite
To si u njima
samo ti
Mi se mijenjamo i mijenjamo se
kao godišnja doba
Ima sunca, ali ima i
kiša i oluja
Život ne bi imao
značenje
Bez kapi gorčine

Kako možeš razdvojiti
dan
Često ste se smijali
dok sunce sja
Otvorenih ruku
temeljito
Pooštrili ste
proljeće
Poput vojnika kojeg ste se odrekli
zakleti životom
Poslije snova koje imaš
trči
Očima straha neki od vas
su zagrlili sunce

Ne skrivaj se među njima
kao krivično djelo
Ni uvrede i padovi
Oni nisu
rješenje
Takav je život
Liči na
Majicu koju
nosiš
Snovi nikad
nemaju kraj
Trebao bi se osjećati dobro sa
svojim snom
Ti si sjaj
radost
Tamo gdje su suze
i bolovi
Tamo postoji ljubav
Tu su i mržnje
Da, postoji prezir
Takav je život
Umotan biserima
Okružen draguljima
Ironično

THOSE LITTLE PARTICLES OF PAPER

Life resembles to
a piece of paper
A moment comes
and breaks the heart
It ruins all
dreams
If you can throw away
even yourself
In those particles
of love
Which to you seem
to be of little value
They resemble on
the wasted heart
Covered with
silent kisses

Those little particles of paper
Do change also
the night of the grave
And for you all
seems to be valueless
Filled in with full of
bitterness
Don’t forget
That inside them its
only You
We do change and so do change
the seasons
There is sun but there is also
rain and storm
Life wouldn’t have
meaning
Without some drops of bitterness

How can you tear apart
the days
Often you laughed at
the sun shines
Opened the arms
thoroughly
You tightened
the spring
Like a soldier You gave up
to the life
After the dreams you have
run
With the eyes of fear you
have embraced the sun

Don’t hide
the offences
Nor the insults and putdowns
This is not a
solution
Such is the life
It resembles to
The shirt you
are wearing
Dreams never
end
You should feel good with
your dream
You are a sparkle of
joy
Where there are tears
and pains
There is love
There is mope and hatred
There is contempt
Such is the life
Wrapped with
pearls
Surrounded by gems of
Irony

ATO PAK GRIMCA LETRE

Jeta i ngjanë
një cope letre
Vjen një çast
e zemrën e çjerrë
I rrënon të gjitha
ëndrrat
Nëse mundesh flake
edhe veten
Në ato grimca
dashurie
Që ty të duken me
pak vlerë
Ato ngjajnë me
zemrën e tretur
Të mbuluar me
puthje të heshtura

Ato pak grimca letre
E ndryshojnë edhe
natën e varrit
E ty të gjitha të
duken pa vlerë
Të mbushura me plot
hidhësi
Mos harro
Se brenda tyre je
vetëm Ti
Ndryshojmë ne e ndryshojnë
stinët
Ka diell po ka edhe
shi e stuhi
Jeta s’do kishte
kuptim
Pa do pika hidhësi

Si mund t’i grisësh
ditët
Shpesh me rrezet ke
qeshur
Krahët i ke hapur
tejpërtej
Ke shtrënguar
pranverën
Si ushtar i je
dorëzuar jetës
Pas ëndrrave ke
vrapuar
Me sytë e frikës
diellin ke përqafuar

Mos i fsheh
ofendimet
As fyerjet e injorimet
Kjo nuk është
zgjidhje
E tillë është jeta
Ngjanë si me
këmishën që ke
veshur
Ëndrrat nuk
mbarojnë kurrë
Ti ndjehu mirë me
ëndrrën tënde
Ti je shkëndijë e
gëzimit
Aty ku ka lot e
dhimbje
Ka dashuri
Ka trishtim e urrejtje
Ka mospërfillje
E tillë është jeta
E mbështjellë me
margaritarë
E rrethuar me perla
Ironie

4. NEZIR PROKSHI 1945 KOS Prishtinë / Priština
(Author did not send his application for the Third Round).

5. ARIANA BYTYQI 1985 KOS Lipjan
INTOKSIKACIJA

Međ’ hiljadu snova, kao u svijetu bajki
Otišla sam ostrvu koje je čekalo na hodočašće
Tamo gdje se zapliću želje, za životom, za snom
Gdje dani sviću pozlaćeni – jutra.

Tamo, gdje i posljednja čaša, prevrnuta moli ukradena
Drhtavo tijelo gdje se iznenada otme
Preko hiljadu riječi rađe se uz nadzor noćnog vida
Gorućom požudom, prekriveni vriskom

Ni kap vina nije ostala na rubu kipuće žeđi
I poderana pjesma, duša je koja probada
Osim razbijenog stakla i ubijene duše – ništa nema
A vrijeme golica i na zidovima visi

Tamo gdje je duša zapaljena, strašno patimo
Neka neko ugasi žeđ vatrom sa ruba čaše
Zadnja kapljica vina u čaši čeka
Pusti me, pusti me da se popijem, mali je svijet

Nije ostalo ništa, čak ni riječi ogrebane na kartama
U noćnoj jeci, u vjetru koji zviždi
Opet mi dođe, pijem se pijana u zlatnoj čaši
Gutam vrućinu, istim žarom.

Intoxication

A thousand dreams, as in the world of fairy tales
I went to the waiting island for the only pilgrimage
Where we knit desires, for life, dreams
The days dawned gilded, the mornings dawned

There, where the last glass, the theft of it was overturned
And the trembling body, was suddenly abducted
Over a thousand words when writing the night vision
Over burning lust, covered in screams

Not a drop of wine remained on the brink of boiling thirst
And a torn song, the soul that pierces
Except broken glass, and a murdered soul
And the time that tickles on the walls hangs

Where the soul is kindled, terribly suffer
Extinguish the thirst with fire on the edge
With the last drop of wine in the glass
Let me, let me decompose, to that world

There was nothing left, not even words scratched on the cards
In the night echo, in the wind whistling
It comes to me again, I drink it drunk with golden cups
To swallow the heat, with that scorching.

Dehje

Njëmijë ëndrrave, si në botën e përrallave
U treta ishullit të pritjes për të vetmin shtegtim
Ku thurnim dëshirat, për jetën, andrrallave
E ditët zbardhnin praruar, mëngjeseve me agim

Atje, ku gotë e fundit, përmbysej rrëmbim
Dhe trupi drithmash, rrëmbehej papritmas
Mbi njëmijë fjalë kur shkruhej nata vegim
Mbi epshe ndezur, mbuluar mes britmash

Asnjë pikë verë, s’mbeti buzë etjes që vlon
Dhe një këngë e grisur, shpirtin që shpon
Veç qelqe të thyera, dhe një shpirt i vrarë
E koha që përpëlit tik-taket mbi mure varë

Ku shpirti të ndizet, frikshëm të vuaj
Etjen me zjarr mbi buzë të ta shuaj
Me pikën e fundit të verës në gotë
Lermë, lermë të tretem, tek ajo botë

Nuk mbeti asgjë, as fjalë gërvishtur mbi karta
Në jehonë nate, në t’erës fërshëllimë
Rishtas më vjen, dehjen ta pi me kupa të arta
Ta përpijë vapën, me atë përcëllimë.

6. MERSIJA OMEROVIĆ 1971 KOS Planjane
NOĆAS

Noćas bih da čujem
neku lepu nežnu reč,
od tuge i bola
duša mi umorna već.
Noćas bih da zaboravim
na sve,
nek miruju na srcu
sve bolne rane,
nek bar noćas
duša zaboravi
na sve,teške minule dane.
Nek mi noćas misli,
plove lađama sreće
nek po tome upamtim
ovo tiho,mirno veće.

GREECE
1. RANIA ANGELAKOUDI 1967 GRE Thessaloniki
SVEŠTENICA

Svijeću koju sam zapalila na tvom oltaru
O sveštenice usijana!
Omotana poput tebe u sjaju tvoje boginje
Borim se očima
protiv sjaja tvoje svjetlosti…
To me zasljepljuje!
Moje poštovanje….
Moje strahopoštovanje…
Moje dostojanstvo….
I sva bogatstva mog bića
Ponizno sam klekla pred tvoje noge
Dok stojiš visoka
Visoko… Veličanstveno … Obožavano
Moja sveštenica… .Život je nepredvidljiv!
Moje tijelo i dušu si osvojila
i sva bogatstva mog bića
tebi sam zavještala
i sva bogatstva mog bića
tebi ću zavještati
i ustrajat ću
i podržavat ću svoje vrijednosti
tako da se tvoje vrijednosti konvergiraju
i postanu ideali
za tebe i mene!
Moja obožavana sveštenice,
Život je tako voljen, a opet tako jadan.

PRIESTESS

A candle I lit in your altar
O Priestess incandescent!
Enveloped as your are in the glow of your goddess
I struggle my eyes to keep open
against the splendor of your light…
It dazzles me!
My respect….
My awe…
My dignity….
And all the riches of my being
I humbly lay at your feet
As you stand tall
Towering…Majestic…Adored
My priestess….Life unpredictable!
My body and soul you have conquered
and all the riches of my being
to you I have bequeathed
and all the riches of my being
to you I shall bequeath
and I shall persevere
and I shall uphold my values
so that with your values they converge
to become ideals
for you and me!
My adored Priestess
Life so beloved and yet so wretched.

2. ILIAS FOUKIS 1969 GRE Athens
SAMIT

U smrznutom otpadu Antarktika
jedino što nedostaje
bješe Sunce…
koja je na kraju pronađeno u višku
ali u pustinji Sahari.

U vrućini i suhoći Sahare
nedostajala je samo…
oaza
koja je pronađena u višku
ali u amazonskim kišnim šumama.

Uronjen u amazonskoj oazi
jedino što nedostaje
bješe samit …
koja je pronađen u višku
ali na himalajskim planinama.

Sad kad sam stigao do najvišeg vrha
na Himalajima
Vidim da ne možeš sanjati
ništa više od toga…

Na samitu
sigurnost i spokoj
su tako umirujući i nesmetani
da sam mogao doslovno
umrijeti od samoće …

Iz tog razloga…
budući da želim živjeti
jedino rješenje je silazak…

THE SUMMIT

In the frozen wastes of Antarctica
the only thing lacking
was the Sun…
which was found in excess
only in the Sahara Desert.

In the heat and aridity of the Sahara
the only thing lacking was…
an Oasis
which was found in excess
only in the Amazon rain-forests.

Immersed in the Amazon Oasis
the only thing lacking
was the Summit…
which was found in excess
only in the Himalayan Mountains.

Now that I’ve reached the highest summit
in the Himalayas
I see that you can’t dream of
anything higher than this…

On the Summit
the security and serenity
are so soothing and undisturbed
that I could literally
die of Loneliness…

So for that reason..
since I want to live
the only solution is descent..

3. DEMETRA KINTSAKI 2003 GRE Thessaloniki
NA KRAJU UŽETA

Za vas koji vrijedite
Nikada nećete znati,
Za vas čiji će ožiljci rasti
Svaki put kad se vraćate kući.

Možda bi svijet mogao biti
Nešto više od crno-bijelog.
Možda postoji razlog
Vjerovati da će sve biti dobro.

Svaka kap vaše krvi,
Svaka teška, gorka suza,
Nikad, nikada, neće ukazati
Da biste trebali nestati.

Vrišti glasno u prazno
Nikad se nemojte zaustaviti, nikad se nemojte uplašiti,
Neko će dotrčati
Vaš glas će se čuti.

Svijet ljudi još uvijek postoji
Ne plači, jer nije nestao.
Uredu je ako ga još ne vidite.
Uvijek je najtamnije pred zoru.

Njihov svijet može biti lijep
Njihovo nebesko plavo, širom otvoreno.
Možda nisu uspjeli više puta
Nego što ste ikad probali.

Nastavi, stani na noge.
Malo duže, samo malo,
Jer strpljenje može biti gorko,
Ali to je voće slatko.

Neka svi pucaju,
Udarit će te sa svime što imaju.
Jer je njihov inat besmrtan.
Nikad ne zaboravi, ti nisi.

Svako bi vas mogao srušiti,
I uredu je raspasti se.
Jer uvijek možeš ustati,
Svaki put je novi početak.

Kad na kraju svog užeta
Zavežite čvor i čvrsto se držite.
Ovo putovanje je samo divlja vožnja
Nazovimo je životom.

At the end of the rope

For you, whose value
You will never know,
For you whose scars will grow
Every time you will go home.

Perhaps the world could be
Something more than black and white.
Maybe there’s a reason
To believe you’ll be alright.

Each drop of your blood,
Every heavy, bitter tear,
Will never, ever, indicate
That you should disappear.

Scream loudly into the void
Never stop, never in dread,
Someone will come running
Your voice will be heard.

The people’s world’s still there
Do not weep, for it’s not gone.
It’s okay if you don’t see it yet.
It’s always darkest before the dawn.

Their world can be beautiful
Their sky blue, open wide.
Maybe they have failed more times
Than you have ever tried.

So keep on going, get on your feet.
A little longer, just a bit,
For patience may be bitter,
But its fruit is sweet.

Let them all fire away,
Hit you with all they’ve got.
Cause their spite is immortal.
Never forget, you’re not.

Anyone could tear you down,
And it’s okay to fall apart.
Cause you can always rise again,
Each time a new start.

When at the end of your rope
Tie a knot and hold on tight.
This journey is a wild ride
We shall call it life.

ROMANIA
1. CAMELIA MONICA CORNEA 1967 ROM Timișoara
HLADAN TUŠ NA OTVORENO SRCE

Apsurdno crveno
kapa iz srca
trn ljubomore ga je ubo
zanemarujuć’ nijanse
ti ne dozvoli mu da leži u tebi
ludi buntovnik
ugrabit će ti dio duše
kidati te
a ljubav ne boli
jer kad se duše dodiruju
s nebesa kiša plače
hladan tuš
oprat će lavu koja kaplje
iz otvorenog srca
tako se anestezira tanki zglob
crva.

Cold shower on an open heart

An absurd red
dripping from the heart
the thorn of jealousy had stung her
disregarding the shades
don’t let her lie on you
crazy rebel
she will grab parts of your soul
tearing you up
love does not hurt
when the souls touch one other
from heavens the rain cries
a cold shower
will wash the dripping lava
from the open heart
anesthetizing the thin ankle
of the worm.

Duş rece pe cord deschis

Un roşu absurd
picură din inimă
ghimpele geloziei o înţepase
fără să-i pese de nuanţe
n-o lăsa să te mintă
nebunule rebelule
îţi va lua părţi din suflet
sfâşiindu-te
iubirea nu doare
când sufletele se ating
din ceruri ploaia plânge
duş rece
va spăla lava prelinsă
din cordul deschis
anesteziind glezna subţire
a viermelui.

2. MARIANA EFTIMIE KABBOUT 1973 ROM Galati
SUZA

Šta ti kaže moja suza, dragi moj?
Laže li ili govori da je jesen uzdah
Jesi ti žar u kaminu, samo bezbroj,
A ja, uz čašu vina, samo okusa dah?

Šta mi može reći kap rose, želim pitati
Jer nikad nisi razmijenio ni riječ ni poziv?
I kako sad dušu ko zadatke podijeliti
Kad ti tijelo nema osjeta saziv?

Čuvaj ono što je ostalo da se nađe i spasi u meni!
Praznina koja izgleda tako usko zavarena u prorez,
Odzvanja tajnim odjecima, vidi u ženi
Koju si otjerao, a koju ne dijeli oprez.

Jesen je… Ponovno je jesen, moja riječ!
Sastavite me iz svih dijelova od kojih sam napravljena
I na kristalnom poslužavniku, svjetlost Gospodnju ko mliječ,
Donesite jer je želi, oh, za njom čezne žena sluđena!

Neće biti više bune kod izvora,
Puls mi neće posustajati i nositi me…
Za moju ljubav više nema govora
Spremna sam za svijet snova, ajme!

LACRIMĂ

Ce-ţi spune astăzi lacrima, iubite?
Te minte că e toamna un suspin,
În care tu eşti jar la gura sobei
Iar eu aromă de gutui şi vin?

Ce-ţi mai șoptește un crâmpei de rouă
Când n-a ştiut vreodată a grăi?
Şi cum împarte sufletul în două,
Pe-altarul unei lumi scăldate-n gri?

Să mai păstrezi ce crezi că poţi din mine…
În vidul ce-n fisuri pare sudat
Rămas-au doar ecouri clandestine
Pe care le-am gonit, dar n-au plecat.

E toamnă iar… E toamnă, bat-o vina!
Adună-mă din toate câte sunt…
Pe-o tavă de cleştar adu-mi lumina
De care-mi este dor! O, ce dor crunt!

Și n-or mai fi izvoare răzvrătite,
Un ceas nu va mai bate indecis…
Şi numai eu voi şti de ce, iubite…
Iubitul meu dintre real şi vis…

TEAR

What does my tear say to you, my dear?
It lies and says that autumn is a sigh
When you are embers in the fireplace, so near,
And me, a quincy flavor by a glass of wine?

What could a dewdrop tell you, I may ask
When it has never made a word or call?
And how can it divide the soul for the task
So your body could nothing feel at all?

Save now what’s left to find and be saved in me!
The void that seems so closely welded in the slit,
Resounds with surreptitious echoes, see
Which I’ve chased away, but they refused to split.

It’s autumn… It’s autumn again, my word!
Put me together from all the parts I’m made of
And on a crystal tray, bring me the light of Lord,
I so desire, oh, how much I long for love!

There will be no more rebellious springs,
My pulse will be no longer faltering and hurled…
As I’m the one to know what my love brings,
My sweetheart, poised between reality and dreamworld…

3. DANU FLORENTINA 1971 ROM Braşov
DRUGO RASPOLOŽENJE

Počela sam se savijati
Pod pritiskom proteklih godina
Oči su mi vlažne jadikovke
U bolu od blaga izgubljenih koraka…

Počela sam se saginjati.
Sa svakim padajućim lišćem
Utapam se u djetelini svoje nade
I u vjerovanju u budući život.

Počela sam se klanjati
I ruke su mi utrnule
Moja duša nosi krunu blagog bola
Zaspala sam … izgubila se iz vida, podlegla.

ANOTHER MOOD

I’ve started getting bent
Under the past years’ pressure
My eyes are wet lament
In pain of lost steps’ treasure…

I’ve started bending over.
With every falling leaf
I drown in my hope’s clover
And future life belief.

I’ve started bowing down
And my hands are numb
My soul bears mild pain’s crown
Asleep… lose sight, succumb.

O ALTĂ STARE

Am început să mă-ncovoi
Sub apăsarea anilor trecuţi
Mi-s ochii umezi de nevoi
Şi simt durerea paşilor pierduţi…

Am început să mă aplec
Cu fiecare frunză căzătoare
În propria-mi speranţă mă înec
Şi simt chemarea vieţii viitoare.

Am început să mă înclin
Iar mâinile mi-s amorţite
Sufletu-mi adoarme la cel mai dulce chin
Şi simt cum lumea începe să mă uite.

4. LAURA IONESCU 2003 ROM Bucurest
NAUČILA SAM IH DA SE OSJEĆAJU ŽIVI

Pokazala sam im kako da čuvaju taj osjećaj zavisti,
kako se hraniti praznim zrakom; pretvarajući bol u izlivenu rijeku “ludog”.
Rekla sam “pustite suze da teku”, jer kad ih ne mognete kontrolisati
neće vam se znati otkotrljati niz obraze i mogle bi vas zadaviti.
Rekla sam “sa komadom papira sagradite brod od papira”,
jer kad vas izdaju ruke i noge
još uvijek možete gledati sebe kako plovite u daljinu.
Pokazala sam im kako se penju ne najstrmijom kosinom već najravnijom;
jer samo kad se nema gdje popeti, morate znati kako to učiniti –
jer je gaženje po zraku teže nego po vodi
i kad vas svi napuste
morate znati kako pobjeći iz te praznine.
Rekla sam “odsjecite krila” – nema potrebe učiti kako letjeti
vaše tijelo je ovdje zarobljeno, morate naučiti kako otvoriti svoj um,
iskoristite svoju maštu jer je to dar kreacije –
način da se oslobodimo ove simulacije.
Rekao sam “pogledajte dolje”; naučite gledati u svoja stopala
jer bi mogli pješačiti kilometrima, ali trčat će samo ako vi znate kako.

Naučila sam ih kako da umru.
Sada govorite “da”, “uredu”, “hoću”, “moram”
Ne zalažete se za ono što znate da je istina,
i ako suza padne iz vašeg skrivenog okeana,
nasmiješite se… i natjerajte lažove da vole vašu municiju.

I TAUGHT THEM HOW TO FEEL ALIVE

I showed them how to treasure that sentiment of envy,
how to feed on empty air; turning the pain into an overflowing river of ‘crazy’.
I said “let the tears flow”, for when you won’t be able to control them
they won’t know how to roll off your cheeks and they might choke you.
I said “with a scrap piece of paper build a paper boat”,
for when your hands and legs betray you
you can still watch yourself sailing into the distance.
I showed them how to climb not the steepest slope but the flattest;
for only when there is nowhere to climb you must know how to do so –
because treading on air is harder than on water
and when everyone deserts you
you need to know how to escape that void.
I said “cut your wings off” – there’s no need to learn how to fly
your body is trapped here, you must learn how to open your mind,
use your imagination for it’s a gift of a creation –
a way to break free of this simulation.
I said “look down”; learn to look at your feet
for they might walk for miles but they’ll only run if YOU know how.

I taught them how to die.
You now say “yes”, “okay”, “I will”, “I do”
You don’t stand up for what you know is true,
and if a tear drops from your hidden ocean,
smile — and make fake love your ammunition.

SLOVENIA
1. VESNA ŠARE 1961 SLO Koper
JESI LI JE POLJUBIO (preveo Jure Drljepan)

jesi li je poljubio
letimični ljubimče jutarnjih šliceva
jesi li je poljubio
dok je padajućih ušiju
posrćuća starica
puzala kroz bijelo odijelo
vrišteći
da ne bi čula
kuckanje tvojih koraka
u dan
mjesec
godinu
ptica koje melju blizinu

jesi li je poljubio
zapade zimskih cvjetova
jesi li je poljubio
dok je kao dijete tekla u ženu
i izlila se po tvojim prsima
hladnim i dremovnim
kao ledena staza
bez kape i kaputa

nisi je poljubio
jadni siroti ubojico
zašivenih ruku i slamnatih ležaja
trgao si mozaike
zlorabljenih dodira
i gazio kroz bujice
podivljale krvi
da bi u crno-bijeloj ribi
na dnu mrtvoga mora
prezrele usnice skrio

ALI SI JO POLJUBIL

ali si jo poljubil
bežni ljubimec jutranjih razporkov
ali si jo poljubil
ko se je padajočih ušes
plazila skozi belo obleko
opletajoča starka
kriče
da ne bi slišala
pritrkavanja tvojih korakov
v dan
mesec
leto
ptic ki meljejo bližino

ali si jo poljubil
zahod zimskih cvetov
ali si jo poljubil
ko je kot otrok tekla v žensko
in se iztekla na tvojih prsih
mrzlih in zaspanih
kot ledena steza
brez plašča in kape

nisi je poljubil
ubogi revni morilec
zašitih rok in slamnatih ležišč
si trgal mozaike
zlorabljenih dotikov
in bredel skozi hudournike
podivjane krvi
da bi v črno beli ribi
na dnu mrtvega morja
skril prezrele ustnice

2. TANJA OCELIČ 1969 SLO Nova Gorica (Bilje)
IZGORJELI IZNUTRA

Izuzimamo, Izuzetke
Istrošeni
Izopćeni
Iznemogli

Izigrani

Izlazimo Iz Izmišljenih Inicijativa
Izgovaramo Imena

Izazovima
Izazivamo
Iz Izvora Ideja

Impotencijom
Imitacijom Izgovora

Izostali
Izbačeni
Izgorjeli

Ističemo, Iskon

3. INGRID PEINKICHER 1969 SLO Radovljica
BROJ 5
(PIROMANKA SRCA – naslov pesničke zbirke, izdane u Sloveniji,
1999)

Kako ljubav prema tebi može umrijeti,
ako ne želi, ako ne može, ako ne zna?
Znam da nigdje drugdje ne mogu naći tvoje oči,
Ne mogu da nađem tvoje dlanove na dlanovima drugih ljudi,
samo je tvoj osmijeh najslađi,
tvoj dodir poput dodira nježnog cvijeta
na ranjenom licu.

Moram se vratiti u tvoje naručje,
jer ne znam nigdje drugdje i ne želim više nikamo ići.
Bez tebe je život pakao.

See more about the organization of the Third Round here:

Mili Dueli 2020: Third Round Organization

MILI DUELI 

Made in Bosnia and Herzegovina
by Nermin Delić

Europe / Balkan Peninsula
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Central Bosnia Canton
Jajce Town 70202

Sva prava zadržana. // All rights reserved.

Objava MILI DUELI 2020: Third round results – DUEL 8 – Albania, Greece, Kosovo, Romania and Slovenia pojavila se prvi puta na Mili Dueli.

The contest is traditionally composed of 5 elimination rounds. In each round, the number of authors decreases, and in the last, Fifth round, the winner is decided by a voting system based on the Eurovision Song Contest scoring system. The main responsible person of the contest is Nermin Delic, the idea creator and organizer of the contest. For 8 years in a row, Mili Dueli have been gathering authors and spreading the influence of poetry in everyday life.

Briefly about the First Round: The selection of all received applications (739) was performed by Nermin Delić. The organizer selected 476 authors for presentation in the Second Round.

Briefly about the Second Round: After the selection in the First Round by the organizer of the contest, Nermin Delić, 476 authors were selected and presented in the Second Round. In the Second Round, the authors are classified in 12 duels, according to the countries they come from. Due to the number of participants, Bosnia and Herzegovina had 2 duels (DUEL 1, DUEL 2), and Serbia 3 (DUEL 3, DUEL 4, DUEL 5). Croatia, Montenegro, Northern Macedonia and Bulgaria had one duel each (DUEL 6, DUEL 7, DUEL 8, DUEL 9). Due to the small number of participants, authors from Albania, Greece, Kosovo, Romania and Slovenia were presented in one duel (DUEL 10). Poets with Balkan roots, but with current residence outside the Balkans, are grouped together in one duel (DUEL 11). In the end, all other authors coming from non-Balkan countries are grouped into one duel (DUEL 12).

The beginning of the presentation of the duel on the official Facebook profile of Milih Duel was on July 12, 2020. Duels are presented in order, every 2-3 or 4 days according to the scope of the duel. For the first 15 days from the presentation of the duel, the followers of Mili Dueli were able to vote in the comments by entering the author’s number below the picture where his/her poem is presented in the description. In addition to the readers, members of the jury, composed of 12 renowned and important for Mili Dueli Balkan artists, also voted. They selected 90% of the authors to pass to the Third Round. The other 10% is intended for the votes of the readers, for those who were not selected by the jury, and who have the great support of their friends and companions Mili Dueli.

RESULTS

DUEL 10
ALBANIA
GREECE
KOSOVO
ROMANIA
SLOVENIA

DUEL RULES: In Duel 10, all selected authors from Albania, Greece, Kosovo, Romania and Slovenia are presented. The number of participants in Duel 10 is 33. Duel 10 of The rest of Balkan authors after the Second Round has 25 authors. The national principle was applied here. None of the participating countries could lose more than 50% of the authors after the Second Round.

How about voting? The initial selection was made by the Additional Members of the Jury (2, 3). They have made a list of authors they think should go in the Third round, and authors they choose come from their speaking areas (Greek and Albanian). Having that in his mind, the President of the Jury (1) voted and apply national principle to make it all be equally.  After that, the votes of the Readers (4) were reviewed for the authors who did not pass that selection either, and according to the decision of the readers who followed the voting rules, an additional 10% of the authors were selected, as many contest rules as required.

Additional members of the jury sent their suggestions who should go in the Third Round. They could only vote in the speaking areas where they come from. Sarah Isufi reviewed the poems in Albanian and Lena Kyropoulos in Greek. After that, the President of the Jury, using the national principle, completed the other places in the Third Round.

(1) President of the jury: Nermin Delić
(2) Additional member of the jury: Sarah Isufi 
(3) Additional member of the jury: Lena Kyropoulos
(4) Readers (number of votes / comments received): 2771

Readers voted in the comments below 5 posted pictures in which a total of 33 poems of this duel were presented. The organizer reviewed all the comments, on all pictures of this duel and according to the rules selected 2 authors with the highest number of valid votes.

WHAT NOW?

AUTHORS WHO PASSED to the next round of Mili Dueli will be informed on Facebook by a private message in the inbox about sending a new poem for the Third Round.

The third round will start in September, and the exact date with the rules of further selection of poems will be announced by the Organizer in the next few days. Please be patient!

AUTHORS WHO DID NOT PASS THE NEXT ROUND OF THE MILI DUELI, who remained in the TOP 500, will receive electronic recognition for their participation as they represented their countries, and will accordingly receive recognition for intercultural dialogue between the Balkans and the world.

All the presented poems will be represented in a electronic poetry collection which, apparently, will have its own printed edition (summer, 2021), when MILI DUELI BALKAN TOUR awaits us.

Also, all authors who are 2000 or younger will be presented at the MILI DUELI JUNIOR ONLINE POETRY CONTEST which will start a few days after the end of the eighth season of Mili Duels 2020 – Online Balkan Poetry Contest!

JURY COMMENTS

Jury President: NERMIN DELIĆ

Dear authors,
First of all, congratulations to everyone on participating. I did not choose any of you for no reason, but in an extensive selection from the First Round (739 authors), I just wanted to cooperate and socialize with you. And really, I don’t regret the time I spent reading and presenting your poems, because each one taught me something.

Since poetry is subject to criticism, which makes it timeless, I am glad that I have founded the best possible team that will work on its selection. In this duel, the selection of poems was primarily done by the Montenegrin poet who is one of the best literary critic on the Balkans.

Reading your poems, I tried to find the originality that I always insist on, because only it can change everything. In this round, the President of the Jury certainly has the primacy in the selection of authors, and I asked her to present methodology of author selection. In this round I awarded two groups of authors: those who stood out in their poems with the originality of the expression and those who sent poetically mature poems but were very socially active when it comes to online communication in Mili Dueli.

I wrote a commentary for each author individually, in my notebook, and my practice has always been to address each author directly in the comments, but due to private obligations (about defending my dissertation at the faculty), I was not able to type it for you. But from the next round, there are definitely regular comments, the way I always do.

Congratulations to all on your trust … More than 23,000 comments have arrived in this round … for POETRY … for US. <3

Additional Jury member: SARAH ISUFI 

ORIADA DAJKO: The first two verses are beautiful and worthy to be the opening of a great poem, but the continuation is too short, to specify a certain meaning.

MATILDA MIRAKA: Good poem, lively metaphors.

ISABELA TAFILI: I like the way you pass the meaning of the whole poem, from one verse to another. Nice.

FLOGERTA KRYPI: Pointing social aspects in one poem, while protecting the needful softness, adds some witty flavor to the whole it. Good one.

ALBAN TUFA: Mixing the irony with a bit of sweetness, is a good strategy of writing, though. Keep it going.

MIMOZA REXHVELAJ: Some verses are alright, but the poem itself is old fashion a bit.

ZHANETA BARXHAJ: There’s some dark tone and personal vibe in your poem, which is always interesting to be read.

BESMIR HALITAJ: Your writing has almost the narrative style of a prose, which hardly classify it as a poem.

FJODOR QORRI: Organise your verses a bit more orderly, because the talent is there.

BARDHYL MALIQI: This is hardly even a poem. Good luck.

ELONA TABAKU: Nice dedication, but not everything that rhyme is a poem. Good luck.

MITE TABAKU: The dark tone, yet, represents your poem well. Good one.

AGIM DESKU: I like what you really want to say through his poem, but not the way you’re actually saying it. “Eden Garden”, “Ithaca”, “Titanic”, “Dante”, “Doruntina”, “Prometheus”, “Beethoven”, inside the same poem, is just too much to find the relation. Good luck.

NEZIR PROKSHI: This sounds like a grandfather’s story, you can enjoy close to the fire place, with a cup of tea. I like the historical vibe, mixed with clarity and emotions. Good job!

ARIANA BYTYQI: Well composed verses, attached to your soft hearted poem. Good luck!

Additional Jury member: LENA KYROPOULOS

“She combines with a very unique way the words…She liberate the meaning behind them…and during reading this I felt the shoulder which dancing in the rain with flame ,passion and expectations to provoke the deniable NO….”

THIS DUEL POEMS

You can look the entire duel on the social network Facebook, where it is presented on the official profile of Mili Dueli through several pictures:

See more about the organization of the Second Round here:

Mili Dueli 2020: Organization of the Second Round!

MILI DUELI 

Made in Bosnia and Herzegovina
by Nermin Delić

Europe / Balkan Peninsula
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Central Bosnia Canton
Jajce Town 70202

Sva prava zadržana. // All rights reserved.

Objava MILI DUELI 2020: Second Round Results – DUEL 10 – Albania, Greece, Kosovo, Romania and Slovenia pojavila se prvi puta na Mili Dueli.