The Mandelbrot Set by Irina Moga

August 31, 2023
Poem title: The Mandelbrot Set Poet name: Irina Moga Poem: I dreamt I was at my grandparents’ house once more — in the Danube plain. An invisible hand knocked on the kitchen window. The kitchen was crowded with cousins and neighbors; a stove was at the forefront of the action, with boiling pans and painted wooden spoons. An orange cat was always on the prowl. On a corner of the dining table, tarragon sprigs were laid out to dry. The hand knocked again. Zn+1 = Zn2 + C, the hand wrote on the windowpane. The Mandelbrot set: letters and numbers that make up the fractal formula – z is closer to lemon rind n is evasive c is industrious 1 is curious and smart 2 is oh so elegant White curtains fluttered briefly. “Someone close the door,” they said. “It’s getting drafty in here.” This was when I awoke — inside the fractal, in another time. End of poem. Credits and bio: Copyright © Irina Moga Previously published in The Birdseed - Issue 3, December 2021. Ontario-based Irina Moga is the author of five poetry volumes and is a member of The Writers’ Union of Canada. Her book, Sea Glass Circe (Leaside Books, 2019) was selected for an official launch as part of Toronto LitUp!, Toronto International Festival of Authors in 2020. Variations sans palais (Éditions L’Harmattan, Paris, 2020) won the international literary prize “Dina Sahyouni” (France) in 2022. Irina’s poems have appeared in literary journals in North America and France and have been nominated for the SFPA Rhysling Award, Pushcart Prize and the 2023 Best of the Net. www.irinamoga.com.