Summer sea whirled white
Barracuda hunting tuna
Fingers cover eyes
Bent knee at sunset
Hot tears as you slowly walk
Farewell, love, goodbye
Early snow this year
My head against your shoulder
Our last breath a sigh
Poetry?
other hemispheres
in my head in my heart in my hands
my words are heat
on the page on the screen
they fade to cool
take them in, breathe them in
the heat of the sun
of my head of my heart of my hands
will come to you
will heat you through
white-haired fisherman
white-haired fisherman
tattooed divers rock his float
playing, surviving
Boys diving at Acquaviva
Sharp silhouette diving
Split second swift wing curving
Needle straight into the deep
Wimbledon odours
Sweat. Grass. Lemon squash.
Coconut suncream. Champagne.
Hope. Disappointment.
Zeta is leaving
Zeta is leaving
He calls once then… then… again
Life’s early winter
Full moon rises red
Full moon rises red above the crescent river
Skewed angle opposite the fallen sun
A reluctant breeze breathes the scent of fresh-crushed thyme
Flowers dried too soon on stem, roots anchored in white rock
Beyond the darkness deep down in the ravine
The wild boar root red-eyed and snuffle
For now they stay in shadows, out of earshot
but still we know of their hot blood’s existence
and, in that knowledge, know our own
For Maurizio, Mariella and Michele
Matera 10 July 2017
Rossa la luna piena sorge
Rossa la luna piena sorge sulla curva del torrente
Appena uno scarto nel suo stare di fronte al sole caduto
Una brezza riluttante respira il profumo del timo dal tocco liberato
I fiori appassiti sugli steli, le radici ancorate nella bianca roccia
Dietro l’oscurità in basso giù nella gravina
I cinghiali con occhi rossi scavano e annusano
Per ora sono fermi nelle ombre, celati al nostro ascolto
eppure sappiamo dell’esistenza del loro sangue caldo
e, in questo sapere, sappiamo di essere
Traduzione di Maurizio, Mariella, Michele e Karen
Cherry blossom clouds
Cherry blossom clouds
I close my eyes and you dream
The east wind wakes us
There it is again
There it is again
That flame of pain inside my lower lip
Every time I sip cold water
Or think of you
It is never gone
The love tattoo lingers on my tongue
where my filed tooth has caught the skin
Every time I think of you
Independence
You hid the hope in cloudy crystal,
like a mosquito in the amber.
You shaped the jewels and clipped them on their chains.
One you put around your neck and one, hard-handed, round mine.
Your hope is independence, I thought you said.
It broke my heart to leave you but now I’m strong.
