Victor D. López's Blog: Victor D. Lopez, page 4

Unsung Heroes Part II Manuel (paternal grandfather) – Text and audio file link

They also came for you in the middle of the night,
But found that you had gone to Buenos Aires.
The Guardia Civil questioned your wife in her home,
Surrounded by your four young children, in loud but respectful tones.

They waved their machine guns about for a while,
But left no visible scars on your children,
Or on your young wife, whom you
Left behind to raise them alone.

You had been a big fish in a little pond,
A successful entrepreneur who made a very good living,
By buying cattle to be raised by thos...

Ode to Innocence (sonnet)

Oh half remembered, fleeting, happy time,
When nothing mattered more than love and play,
Imagination was then in its prime,
And life began anew with every day.

A flower was then a joy, a mystery,
And not a petal, root and simple stem,
And life was full of wondrous fantasy,
Untainted by the intellect of man.

That time is gone now; it cannot return,
The fruit’s been swallowed; its slow poison kills,
And yet my fallen heart will always yearn,
For that most happy time of unknown skills.

Oh false god, knowle...

Unsung Heroes Part I: Emilio (Maternal Grandfather) – Full text and podcast link

Unsung Heroes

Although I stand on the shoulders of giants,
I fail to see much farther than the bridge of my nose.
The fault in mine. The shame is mine.
For I am unworthy of you, my beloved dead.

Emilio (Maternal Grandfather)
Your crime was literacy,
And the possession of a social conscience,
That made you yearn to see your beloved Spain remain free,
And prevented you from suffering fascists lightly.

You did not bear arms,
For you abhorred all violence,
You did not incite rebellion, though you
Rebelle...

Redemption (complete speculative fiction short story)

You can hear me read my complete short story Redemption (one of the 13 short stories in my Echoes of the Mind’s Eye collection) in my Spotify podcast (link below). The print version of this short story is also available at https://storywrite.com/story/17341077-Redemption-by-Victor-D.-L%C3%B3pez for those who prefer to read rather than listen to fiction.

I Need a Reset Button for My Life (sonnet)

I need a reset button for my life,
A chance to chart a course on a blank slate,
Unplant the seeds that blossomed pain and strife,
And brought a bitter harvest to my plate.

I walked by open doors that closed behind,
With eyes fixed only forward on my course,
Trying to do what’s right, I’ve been unkind,
Attempts to avoid pain just made it worse.

I should have explored many other paths,
That led to orchards that would bear sweet fruit,
My solitary one has led to wrath,
The seeds I planted would themselves upr...

When Did I Forget and As I Grow Older (haikus)

When did I forget,
The joy felt by a toddler,
Dancing unafraid?

The older I get,
The more I daily wonder,
When will wisdom come?

My unabridged novel and SF book of short stories available for online reading (free)

Two of my books now complete on royal road in English and Spanish versions–read them free (no account needed)

On Death and Rebirth (linked haikus – text and poetry reading)

We are born dying,
Every step we take brings us,
Closer to the grave.

Death brings us release,
Freeing our souls to fly free,
To eternity.

Weep not for the dead,
Their souls now know only joy,
In the arms of God.

And the love you shared,
Ripples through the universe,
To outlive the stars.

Athena (sonnet) – text and podcast reading link

Goddess of wisdom, justice, inspiration, law,
Warrior goddess that is nobly so much more,
Than in what ages past held the known world in awe,
As the patron goddess of all heroic lore.

You sprang from Zeus’s head in armor, fully formed,
Grew to be among the gods his favorite child,
A warrior who as patron the arts transformed,
Fiercest defender of truth, enemy of guile.

You live today in every woman’s heart who knows,
The road to freedom is not paved with words of air,
In the fertile ashes of battles freed...

Hire Lernin’ (A Novel) – Chapter 7 (read by the author)

An unabridged reading of Chapter 7 from my novel, Hire Lernin’: An Idealist’s Quest though the Realm of for-Profit Education (C) 2021, 2024