World War II Archives - Aromatica Poetica

Centered within a wide white border is a black-and-white photograph of a devastated urban street framed tightly around an elderly man sitting on a wooden bench. He is bald and dressed in a dark suit, white shirt, and tie. His posture is slightly forward, with one hand resting on the bench and the other near the handle of a long cane that extends diagonally. Facing the camera, his expression is solemn and composed rather than overtly emotional. Immediately behind him stands a tracked construction vehicle, its heavy metal body filling much of the middle ground. The background consists of a ruined city street lined with bomb-damaged buildings. Rubble spills across sidewalks and into the roadway. On the right, the shell of a commercial building survives, the letters of its faded sign are difficult to decipher. Farther back, fragments of taller buildings and decorative towers punctuate the skyline, hinting at the neighborhood's former architectural richness. The overall effect is one of profound stillness: a solitary man quietly inhabiting a landscape of last days. (Public domain, from the author.)

“Last Days of Ambrogino” * Fiction * Peter J. Dellolio

aromatica poetica August 7, 2026

I was told that after the war a patrol of soldiers found me lying unconscious in an abandoned building in a town I could not remember. The soldiers brought me to a hospital where I was gradually revived and given medication for some wounds I had received. These were not gunshot wounds. When I awoke, I could not recall who I was or where I had come from. That is, I did not know if I belonged to this town, …

“Consolidated Women Workers” Assembling a wing section, Fort Worth, Texas, October 1942. By Howard R. Hollem, Library of Congress.

“1945” * Fiction * DC Diamondopolous

aromatica poetica September 2, 2019

I first saw Teresa out my kitchen window back in 1928. Her father, a widower, had moved into our neighborhood. I was kneading dough when I looked up and watched the child glide her sled down a snowbank and slam into a tree. I ran across the street. “Are you hurt?” She scowled. “Mind your own beeswax.” I ignored her sass and asked if she would like a nice piece of hot homemade bread. She rubbed her bump with a …

Grandma's cookbook opened to recipes for Mashed Potatoes and Tomato Sandwiches, by Alabaster Rhumb for Karo Caran at Aromatica Poetica.

Poetry and Short Prose by Karo Caran, Includes Recipes!

aromatica poetica May 8, 2019

*Aromatica Poetica is delighted to present Karo Caran’s food and family inspired prose and poetry, including a couple of Grandma’s recipes as part of our Blind Writers Project series sponsored by Awesome Foundation Disability* Salt Child of the earth In shades of pink and white — Noble dweller of rocks Of oceans’ endless sighs Guest of the body, Stardust of the ground — Noble dweller in tears Of joy and grief so profound Ever-present force, Course through life with care, …