Reflections of Ink - Riflessi D'inchiostro
by Rocco Giancarlo Racco

---

Dear reader, Reflections of Ink unfolds as a work steeped in quiet bitterness, yet brushed by delicate traces of sweetness. It evokes sorrow, though never without the faint shimmer of hope, and reveals a fragile vulnerability beneath its harsh, disciplined language. The first section contemplates the many facets of human experience, touching upon love, beauty, hope, triumph and defeat, dream and imagination. The second part ventures into the depths of existential complexity, exploring the poet’s inner life—his struggle with language and the creative act itself and it turns toward the darker contours of being, confronting themes of survival, victimization, suicide, and death. Guiding the reader through an emotional and meditative journey, the work unveils profound truths with both restraint and intensity. Vivid imagery and visionary language draw us into intimate and unsettling inner landscapes. Its apocalyptic tones and intense invocations generate a charged tension where unease, solitude, and the yearning for freedom intertwine. Inspired by the poem Creativity, which forms its thematic and stylistic nucleus, Reflections of Ink is born of an intense, troubled interior experience. Within the seclusion of writing, the poet wrestles with the ceaseless current of thought. In the silence of creative solitude, disorder becomes art: moments of lucidity alternate with confusion as emotions and reflections take shape in words, and words become fragments of a restless search for meaning. Life itself may be seen as an inner pilgrimage, and poetry as its privileged vessel of revelation. The reader is invited to journey alongside the author through nineteen compositions, each charged with raw emotion: sighs and tremors, layers of shadow, muffled cries, tears, and nostalgia. Through this encounter, reading becomes a life-changing experience—an exploration of the depths of existence, and a space of reflection, catharsis, and possible deliverance for those willing to listen.

---

Reflections of Ink Where ink mirrors the soul, and words illuminate the void Riflessi D'inchiostro Dove l’inchiostro rispecchia l’anima e le parole illuminano il vuoto

---

Born and raised in Canada to Italian parents, Rocco Giancarlo Racco is an author and English teacher. He has a master’s in education from the University of Toronto with a focus in Writing and Literature and a master’s in Italian Studies with a focus in Literature and Language. He has edited, co-edited and co-translated literary works including the Martyrdom of Patience, The Consul’s List, The Newly Persecuted, and Celebration: 32 Inspirational Women of Italian Canadian Origin. He is also the author of Beneath the Roman Sky. Rocco’s emotionally driven short stories which focus on identity, family and resilience, have been presented on Life Rattle Radio, published in Bare Elements: A Collective Approach to Narrative Nonfiction and presented annually in a Toronto-based Writer’s Festival. He is presently working on another adult novel The Sailor’s Adulterated Canvas. He lives in Toronto, Canada, with his wife, Sonia and their three children, Alyssa, Adrienne and Joseph. About the Translator: Biagio Aulino Biagio Aulino is a Canadian and Italian citizen. He has a Master of Arts in Italian Studies and a Doctor of Education in Second Language Education. Biagio is a Research Assistant at the Department of Language Studies at the University of Toronto Mississauga and a Senior Lecturer at Niagara University in Ontario. He is also a Core French, French Immersion, Italian and Spanish teacher at the secondary level. Biagio has co-authored many scholarly articles dealing with learning and teaching of English as a Second Language at the tertiary level and Italian. He has co- edited The Consul’s List and The Newly Persecuted for Ave Maria Center of Peace. Riflessi D'Inchiostro (Reflections of Ink) is his debut poetic translation. He enjoys traveling and attending conferences. Biagio lives in Toronto, Canada with his wife Angela and his three children Giuseppe, Giancarlo and Giulia.

---

Contributors

Author

Rocco Giancarlo Racco

Translator

Biagio Aulino