FemkuMag, 2026

Two poems, one haibun, and two collab rengay with Arinder

breakup point

the wild roses

not wild enough

*

stars after storm

mending the holes

in my dupatta

#FemkuMag Issue 42: Summer (July 2026)
https://femkumag.wixsite.com/home/current-issue

https://69b046c2-a7e1-4a9a-9a22-1c70986eaa24.filesusr.com/ugd/f4c0ea_6c235ac705b34134b3a8f9404a829038.pdf

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karo-kari—
in the abandoned field
hemlock blossoms

------

back home
after a long day
in the kitchen
her self-talk fades
into the clattering of pots

#FemkuMag, Issue 41: Spring 2026

https://69b046c2-a7e1-4a9a-9a22-1c70986eaa24.filesusr.com/ugd/f4c0ea_c401fb9ab1094bc58ed56dd13eef3973.pdf

FemkuMag, 2025

honour killing—
in the barren land
overgrown thistles

ragwort wind
silence creeps
through the family garden

cold snap—
aunt flips through
the mammogram report

#FemkuMag, Issue 40, Autumn/Winter 2025
Edited by Rowan Beckett Minor and Kelly Sargent

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overgrown reeds— 

she relinquishes her right

to inheritance  

 

fault line— 

the pronoun he uses 

to define me

#femkumag, issue 39 Summer 2025

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back home late —
his sleeptalk lasts
till dawn

#femkumag, issue 38 spring 2025

FemkuMag, 2024

autumn leaves rustle her broken glass bangles

waterfall mist her veil hanging on the wall

femkumag issue 36, Summer 2024

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midnight rain…
she whispers her dreams
to her daughter

----

midlife crisis—
mopping my reflection
from the floor

femkumag issue 35, Spring 2024

FemKuMag, 2022

apart from
the part of me…
(still)born

day moon…
she takes the blame
for miscarriage

ivy vine—
the way he portrays
a woman

peacock flower—
I still am a mother
of the unborn child

#FemKuMag issue 34

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late autumn drizzle
her childhood soliloquy
without any pause

------

kintsugi—
fixing all flaws
left by him

------

cucumber flower
he probes into
my loyalty


#FemkuMag Issue 33- April 2022

Against the Current - An anthology of Femkumag 2022

“low self esteem” #FemkuMag, Issue 6

“women’s day” #FemkuMag, Issue 10

“child bride” #FemkuMag, Issue 12

“gnarled roots” #FemkuMag, Issue 20

Against the Current Editor: Lori A Minor Cover Art: Lori A Minor First Published in 2022 by Moth Orchid Press Ohio, USA Copyright © 2022 by individual poets ISBN: 978-1-716-05527-0

Against the Current, edited by Lori A Minor, is a unique collection of over 150 Modern English Haiku and Senryu to celebrate the top thirty contributors of #FemkuMag, issues 1-30.

https://www.lulu.com/en/us/shop/lori-a-minor/against-the-current/paperback/product-k22p7k.html?page=1&pageSize=4

Femku Mag, 2022

lunar umbra
what if I tell
the whole truth

Femkumag January 2022, Issue 32

FemKuMag, 2021

the remains 

of some old bruises 

overripe peach

stillbirth—  

the loose petals 

of chrysanthemum 

voodoo doll— 

the way he sketches 

a feminist  

FemKuMag, issue#30, 2021

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child bride

cold snap buried the unfurled crocuses alive

her braided hair the labyrinth of family tradition

hoarfrost carved a budding rose her wedding gown

her nose pin a crescent moon in the hazy sky

cold wind chimes her bangles

dust out of cocoon the wingless butterfly

rouged cheeks of a teen girl tangerine sky

twilight murmuration summed up her freewill

her crimson silhouette on the aisle fallen rose petals

FemKuMag, issue#29, 2021

FemkuMag, 2020

calla lily — 

he sees it like 

his dream girl

#FemkuMag An e-zine of Womxn’s Haiku, October, 2020, issue 27

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ring of fire encircling my post-pandemic life

#FemkuMag An e-zine of Womxn’s Haiku, July 2020 issue 26

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couch potato...

my thoughts follow

a queue of ants

#FemkuMag An e-zine of Womxn’s Haiku, June 2020 issue 25

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petrichor 

through 

the orphanage window 

refreshing 

the fading memories 

of her mother’s lullabies 

***

mesmerizing 

the aroma 

of ammi’s jasmine tea

and we sing 

the songs of folklore 

on a starry night

#FemkuMag An e-zine of Womxn ’ s Haiku May 2020 issue 24 

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social distancing in the moonlight my scars

#FemkuMag, April 2020 issue 23  

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Is my body my choice? 

purple scar
like the moon eclipse
on her face
darkening the path
that leads to salvation

echoing through
the deep furrows
of her forehead
the identity she lost
by pleasing others

the tight fist
ruptures my heart
piece by piece
I hand him over
my body, my choice

broken strands
of her grey hair
ebb tides
that take her soul
back to the deep ocean

screaming out
her barren womb
in the midnight
she sleep walks around
the deep water well

on her way
to find a perfect rainbow
the acid rain
decolouring
her childhood dreams

FemkuMag, March 2020, issue 22

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first bite
of the red apple
leaves behind
an endless debate
over the broken promise

----------

deep pain

His fake smile and tight fists, I can remember both when I look at his photo. The words still resonate in my ears, make me go for a walk until the dust settles down within. On my way back, the evening breeze whispers in my ears, “How much time do you need to get over this broken relationship?”

running away
from my shadow
sleepless night

Femku Mag, issue #21, February 2020

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gnarled roots the racism left unattended

intermittent lightning her menopausal transition

fleeing night a bare oak cradles the moon


FemkuMag, January 2020 issue 20

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snow moon
hatching a dream
in the sleepless night

FemkuMag, December 2019, issue 19

FemkuMag, 2019

sobs into the abyss

(dedicated to Kashmiri women)


late twilight…
mom’s forehead sweat
glints in the firelight


palm tree shadow
the outstretched hand
of a female beggar


crimson horizon
a gaunt girl shrinks
into the pashmina shawl


tattered pheran
flapping on the washing line
evening rhapsody


invisible spectrum
her face smudged
with kajal and soot


neap tides
the first snow settles
on her grave


chinar leaves
desolating
her last cry


crocus buds
the echoes of her children
out of snow


blood moon
his shadowwolf stalking
her blues


street barricade
the tumbleweed
of her entangled hair 

Femku mag, Sept 2019

------------------------

nostalgia

I am sitting on a park bench that is a bit old and rusty now. I come here daily for the last seven months and find this place calm and soothing. The morning breeze plays with my rough and tangled hair, tickles my breath, and unfolds glimpses from the past. I close my eyes and imagine a time when we used to sit here for hours to think about our future, the future that reshaped our relationship, and reconnected us more deeply. Yes, I cherish all those memories that changed my life for good, and I cherish it as my glorified past. 

morning solitude 

the dappled light 

on my back

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baby’s breath the un(not)iced truth 

snow in sumMEr The cOnfessiOns  

metro train tracks outstretching her last cry 

FemkuMag,August 2019, issue 15

---------------

domestic violence 

the arc
of his fist
thunderbolt

cactus blossom
the way she paints
her love story

midnight rants
the heartbeat sound
after that

wiping
the spots off the glass
his last dinner

in between
the clink of dirty dishes
her self-talk

rare family dinner
the taste of red chili
burns the silence

home alone
mopping his footprints
he left behind

broken vase
the life I spent
piece by piece

window cracks
the jigsaw puzzle
of her marital life

FemkuMag, issue 14 (Femku Featured)

------------------------------


mammogram images overshadowing my self-identity


deep inside my purple bruises echoing rain


cold rain
taps on the window
after his departure
she feels a sharp pain
in her empty womb


the shards
of a dollhouse window
after war
she collects the remains
of her childhood


deep wrinkles
on her forehead
reshaping
the purple scars
of her hardship


FemkuMag, issue 13 (special edition)

------------------------------


child bride —
she insists on wearing
the daisy tiara


raven’s shadow all I have to surrender


preliminary diagnosis
the flying crows tattoo
on her back


FemkuMag, issue 12

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homeless child counting pink dots the pellet gun

moonless night...
deepens the darkness
a mother’s lullaby


chinar leaves her untold story in the empty street


FemkuMag, issue 11

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withered peony
her love story
after menopause

women’s day —
nothing has changed
except her Facebook status


women’s day light glints on every mirror

first crush the smile behind her silver braces

lunar eclipse the deep scars of self mutilation

FemkuMag, Issue 10 (Women's day special)

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birthmark —
the black mole becomes
my identity


FemkuMag, Issue 8

Femkumag, 2018

outdoor labour

 on her face 

countless scars 

femkumag, issue seven, December, 2018

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low self-esteem
the half-open camellia
ready to fall

femkumag issue six November 2018

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stained apron
all those feelings
she never shared

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Alzheimer’s –
my mother and I
in a new relationship

Femkumag, October 2018, Issue 5