Saturday, 15 May 2010

Frantic verses (written like an assault, all at once, almost without knowing)






I see the future,

it’s empty.

And I can draw on it

whatever I desire.



I don’t feel my heart beating.

It’s so quiet.

Resting in me

like a baby deeply asleep

I can feel its breath,

warm and almost whispering.

I can hear that it’s dreaming

of the empty future.

I can see it smile.

Like a baby,

my heart dreams with shuteyes

and dreams

and dreams

in absolute silence.


He said

that I am not of this world.

That above the surface

there is no place for my dreams

for all is cluttered in the busy-ness of life.

He said that I should dive in and breathe deeply

deep, below the line.


There, there is no air, there is no water,

just a silent heart.


It’s beckoning me  to go inside.

I sink in quietness as it invites me

to walk and find the path

where I will never  run out of breath,

where I will never crave in thirst for rain

as long as I stay inside and hold to its kindness

as I reach  and touch everything that is transparent

and invisible to my eyes.

So he said.



There is no surface
nor underneath

and 

I 

am


not 

falling.


The mountains and the oceans,

they all live in me.

I can see them rise

and hold storms.

In the midst of chaos,

they make my voice.

And I speak of no fear.

For I am the midst,

the centre of all that surrounds me

from within.


How many times did I not feel the strength of my muscles,
nor felt the posture of my bones?

How many times did I not feel and fell in silence,
forgetting to hear its voice? 

How many times my love for you was shouting, 
screaming to be heard and touched?


[[[[[ This imprisoned silence never felt so bloody LOUD ]]]]]
 

I screamed, eyes wide open.

The nightmare had just escaped.

And he held me:

Ssshhh  sssshhh ssshhh

“It’s only a bad dream”.  He said.

I believed him.  
But I could not go back to sleep.


He spoke to me every night after.

He said bedtime stories

were the best remedy for bad dreams.

He read for me, he told me white lies.

And I was never cold in my sleep.


Today even the furthest unknown

seems to make sense.

I like the feel of the wet grass

against my bare soles

as I walk

without direction.


They say that if you draw anything,

your heart will bring it to life

So I drew, and drew

and hoped and hoped.


I see shapes I can’t describe

for these words aren't still invented.

They belong to another language

but yet, they don’t speak.

And I hum.

And they bend.

Just like the shape I thought of 

when I was humming.


You see?

Today is not on the calendar.

You could be 100 years, or 1 year-old.

In any case, still a lot to love and live.


What would you do if a child gave you a rock and asked you to tell a story?


The flowers in the vase are fading,

but I can still smell them,

wishing I never had to bin them farewell



Someone once told me

that I was too tragic.

That I should never cry

when beauty abandons life

because something else

will come its in place.

And that I might adore dearly it too


 One of my friend's usual quotes:

“You never know, it might be a blessing in disguise”

And I thought it was SO spiritual to say so.


You want sex.

I want to hug.

Let's see what happens later

when the hug develops.


But you just don't get it.


I like to feel sober.

I like to feel high.

It doesn’t  make much of a difference to me.

My head is always flying.


If I would speak to the shrink just now

he would say that I am “in that state”

because I cannot stop writing poems.

“Many famous artists are just like you, it’s part of your disorder”

Thank you and FUCK OFF.


My friend said her 8-year old is a dreamer.

And I said he might be an artist.

She said she doesn’t mind if he just makes it

to the next school year

as long as he’s happy.


Don't forgive me.

I know I go on and on and on

but there must be some sense about it.

Even when you ask me to stop

I will continue and by no means

will take that stupid pill.



He must be asleep.

I promised I would be in bed soon

and that was a while ago.

Now I have to write

my own bed-time story:

“He was angry at the sight of the empty pillow

and she knew that, sooner or later, 

she will have to leave him for good”.


“and they did not live happily ever after”

To her relief.


Now, read this words:

Do I make sense to you?


Now, speak to me FOR REAL.

Forget I am not here

and give me a fucking honest answer.


I am going to pretend

that your words traveled

through a sound wave

unknown to my ears.

But I’ll listen,

and say nothing in return.


Like a ventriloquist

I imagine I speak through someone else.

Let's say, you (yes, you).

And I hear my own voice

coming out of some wooden doll

with jaws always, always smiling.

You laugh, and your nose grows long

but I don’t think it’s funny.

At all.


I wish I were me.

And most of the time

when I wish I were me

I am the nicest person

I’ve ever met.


When I see a dot,

I don’t see a spot.

I see everything around it,

expanding.

And sometimes I cry hard.

And sometimes I laugh out loud.

And sometimes I want justice.

And sometimes I am ready to die for you.

And sometimes I wish it was just a spot.

And that I could see it just for what it is:

deceptive and self-contained.


Once I wrote:

“I feel too much.”

“I am too much”.

“who wants that much?”


You embrace me

and you say that I am  beautiful.

And I, naively, 

believe you.

Again.


You see?

It doesn’t take that much

to be in silence.

And write, and write

and write

frantically.

(I wonder what the shrink would say)


Am I talented?

According to you what is talent?

And in your version,

Does it mean any courage?

And you, are you talented?



Yes, yes, I will listen.

Someone like you could just reveal

all that I did not know before

which I knew would leave me in awe,
gasping for more.

Only if someone like you ever told me
that I would meet you one day.


You see my love,

sometimes heart and mind

seem to bear no difference.

In those moments,

there are more revelations

than questions

And after all that,  

you are still here.

And I won’t leave 

until I finally find you

in my love, in your truth.


Friday, 14 May 2010

Zonder titel | Sin título (ver traducción abajo)

Van de lente  

wil ik me niets meer herinneren.

Van de vleugels van je lippen

die zacht verdwenen

zoals de zijdeachtige kleuren

van een vlinder vastgehouden

tussen kinderachtige en onschuldige vingers,

wil ik niets meer, niets meer weten.

Van de lente, liefje, van je lente

wil ik nooit, nooit,

meer herinneringen.

Ook niet van je woorden, van je kussen

die als kroonbladen

een voor een langzaam glijden

als bloeddruppels langs mijn trieste wangen

als gebroken warme zuchten

die zomaar, zomaar, naar de zomer,

zonder excuus,

plotseling vertrekken.

En ik, ik tril, ik huil, om de lente, om jou,

van angst en kou, ik tril, liefje, ik huil

als ik jou, zoals elk seizoen,

in volledige stilte zie verdwijnen,

zonder één keer,

niet eens één keer, liefje,

naar mij te zwaaien of om te kijken

terwijl ik daar nog sta.

Op dezelfde plek als toen

waar stervende bloemen smeken

om eeuwigheid, om zoete regen,

daar, daar, waar alles,

op een lentedag,

als een schitterend sprookje

zonder twijfel, zonder 'ja maar', daar waar

alles ooit is geboren.

Daar, liefje, daar,

sta ik nog.

Ook in stilte.

Nog steeds. Nog steeds.

 Photo by Amapola Blooming 2010



De la primavera

no quiero recordarme m
ás nada.

De las alas de tus labios

que suavemente desaparacen

como los sedosos colores

de una mariposa atrapada

entre infantiles e inocentes dedos

no quiero m
ás, no quiero saber más nada.

De la primavera, amor, de tu primavera

nunca quiero, nunca

m
ás recuerdos.

Tampoco de tus palabras, de tus besos

que como p
étalos

uno a uno se deslizan

como gotas de sangre por mis tristes mejillas

como tibios y quebrados suspiros

que simplemente, simplemente, hacia el verano

sin excusa

repentinamente, se marchan.

Y yo, yo tiemblo, lloro, por la primavera, por ti

de miedo y de fr
ío, tiemblo, amor, lloro

cuando, como en cada estaci
ón

en total silencio, te veo desaparecer

sin una vez

sin ni siquiera una sola vez, amor

decirme adi
ós o voltear tu cara

mientras a
ún de pie, allí permanezco.

En el mismo lugar de entonces

donde moribundas flores imploran

eternidad, dulce lluvia

all
í, allí, donde todo,

en un d
ía primaveral

como una espl
éndida fábula

sin duda, sin 's
í, pero'

todo, alguna vez naci
ó.

All
í, amor, allí

a
ún de pie.

Tambi
én en silencio.

Todav
ía. Todavía.

Saturday, 8 May 2010

Semejanzas (para ti)

Semejanzas, tuyas y mías
yo en tu lenguaje, tu en mi lengua
tu en mi nuca, yo en tus besos
semejanzas, espejos, deseos 
en cada palabra, 
en cada intento de recobrar el aliento

Semejanzas, dulces semejanzas
tuyas y mías, mías y tuyas
en los lirios robados a la primavera
en la sed de néctar y de infancia
en los cometas aún por volar
en nuestro pirata afán de amar sin prisa

Semejanzas, gemelas semejanzas
en el amor por las mariposas
en los portones abiertos a la luz
en la suave isla soñada de caribe sol
en tu hambre y mis ansias de abrazos
en nuestra promesa de no saciar

Semejanzas, siempre semejanzas
en tu borracho deseo y el mío
ondulando en barquitos de papel
columpiándose en mimosas mecedoras
balanceándoce hasta el amanecer
después de soñar que ya no somos niños

Semejanzas, simples semejanzas
al encontrarnos al despertar
en tu espejo y mi espejo
en tu adorable reflejo 
y mis soñolientos besos
siempre, sin pudor, sin dudas

Semejanzas,  acurrucadas semejanzas
Semejanzas, tuyas y mías
yo en tí, tu en mí,
en cada jadeante canto mañanero
que nos ve volver a nacer y renacer
y desnudamente, sin reparos, nos revela














Amapola (by Juan Luis Guerra) - Thank you K.M. for discovering this for me

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0AS_jiknEJw&feature=related 
Abre las hojas del viento,
mi vida,
ponle una montura al río,
cabalga, y si te da frío,
te arropas
con la piel de las estrellas.
De almohada la luna llena
y de sueño el amor mío.
Y una amapola me lo dijo ayer,
que te voy a ver,
que te voy a ver,
y un arcoiris me pintó la piel
para amanecer contigo.
Cierra la noche y el día,
para que todo sea nuestro
y una gran fuga de besos
se pone sobre tu boca,
y que el trinar de las rosas
te diga cuánto te quiero.
Y una amapola me lo dijo ayer,
que te voy a ver,
que te voy a ver,
y un arcoiris me pintó la piel
para amanecer contigo.

Wednesday, 5 May 2010

My love for you (inspired in you, whom I still need to find)

My love for you 
was born before I knew 
my own flesh, my own voice 
or the soft womb that brought me
to this spot, to this only now 

My love for you 
cried and crawled out to life 
far before the genesis
far before dust was named star 
or mother earth our only goddess 

My love for you is older 
than all the ancient things 
we can recall but not count 
It is larger than the glorious sun 
and bolder than all his companions   

My love for you 
is greater than mind or matter 
yet humble, yet grand, 
yet flawed, for i attempt to name it 
with miniature words of childhood  

My love for you is beyond my eyes 
a landscape of crystal horizons, 
a prism of light and dark, yet no shadows
as I dare to reach out,  far out, 
musingly, in amazement

My love for you is placeless,
nameless, divine, never reckless
It is made of wind, of wholeness
of soothing emptiness, and you, 

your touch, your breath, sculpt all it is





My love for you rises high
as we travel forward to its origin
like playful kites, like newborn comets
like floating angel-eagles 
with shut eyes and wide open wings 

April 2008 | 5 May 2010

LIPS

i lost my mind
i lost my sight
all for a kiss
which left me blind
with bleeding lips
full of desire


2003 (photo taken at the MET in NYC)

Friday, 29 January 2010

Underneath Haiti

There is no verb that can help explain the magnitude of the tragedy in Haiti...  It all seems so irrational, that it's difficult to describe it without struggling to make sense.  I pray for Haiti, may it raise like the Phoenix and be free of suffering.

The blood, the despair, the loss | Brother, sister, father, mother | Limbs in pieces |  The home, the school, the church, the playground  | A mass grave | The tents, the stench, the dirt, the street hospital | If any, a plate of food, a gallon of water, a pair of crutches | The heat, the flies, a wrinkled beggar | Another mattress on the pavement, a pregnant widow | A funeral, a new-born child | The song, the touch, the love, the tear, the faith, the fear, the prayer | A puzzle of dreams, pain, courage and hope | Underneath Haiti, from within the ashes | a ray of light, a rising sun |



















Thursday, 28 January 2010

In stillness, now, forever, I give you all of me (or Prelude to the saddest farewell )

The liquid glow
of blue voices
inside your eyes
speaks to me

in stillness,

a drop of rain falls
on my cheek
and I know
you're leaving me

now, forever

just before the sun
is back to bright
just before heaven
opens its doors

I give you all of me

Maan | Moon | Luna


psst psst mijn naam is maan
en ik ben er ieder nacht
naast je, als je zacht slaapt


psst psst my name is moon
and I am there every night
next to you, as you softly sleep


psst psst mi nombre es luna
y estoy ahí cada noche
junto a ti, mientras duermes
suavemente

Para Jo, porque tu espíritu es una lección de renovación y por eso y otras tantas cosas, te quiero.

(Image from www.desktoprating.com)

Hay que aprender a soltar
en plena consciencia 
 aunque el abismo
nos engulla sin reparos
repentinamente
hasta que el viento
nos cobije 
y en su silente arrullo
nos convierta
en tierna pluma alada
enseñándonos a volar
suave y ligero
sin temor a caer
una vez más
sobre ancianos
y agudos arrecifes
de desencanto.



Thursday, 31 December 2009

Happy new year! (haiku of hope)






boom boom sparkling glow
love armies fire up in joy
no weapons this time!









(photo: by Amapola Blooming 01.01.10, fireworks in my neighbourhood)

Sunday, 27 December 2009

Morning through the corridor window


The soothing green
a wishes-come-true pond
above, cotton clouds
higher up, the rising sun

The snow melts
into sparkling emerald
and the dry grass turns
into glowing gold

Blessings, promises
of a winter truly in love
as I kiss the morning
through the corridor window

as I open its doors


(Photo: by Amapola Blooming, in Damme, Belgium - 27 Dec 09)

Impermanence


Hoera, hoela hoep with me
she runs to the fields
Hoera, hoela hoep with me
I'll meet my friend the snowman
who will dance with me
with my hoela hoep
we will laugh and sing

Little she knew
it could happen that fast
when she ran to her friend
and sobbed at her surprise
to only find a carrot,

a broom
and a wet woolen hat

(Hoera, hoela hoep with me
wake up my friend, she cried

and cried)






(Photo: Morning through the living room window, by Amapola Blooming, Damme - Belgium 27 Dec 09)

Thursday, 24 December 2009

Tuesday, 1 December 2009

Hope

a little bird came to me today and sat on my shoulder... and he whispered... "life is a gift of hope"

Thursday, 26 November 2009

That I loved you

That I loved you | for all the things | that others choose for | not loving you | for your moody fixations | for your childish irritations | for your fistful monologues | and the joke repeated for a thousand time | like the endless rambling | about the girl who sounds dumb | when she talks incessantly | with no direction | or when you complained too much | about the man who complains | that is all too much | or when you laughed | and I laughed | yet not knowing why | I loved you | I just loved you | for all the things about you | I too could not understand | like when you said forgive me | and walked away | another | and another time | That I loved you | for all the other things | that make you | a beautiful imperfection | makes me now sad | but ever grateful to have had | bits of you | here | and | there | once upon a time.




Sunday, 8 November 2009

Mourir un peu

After seeing la Compañía Nacional de Danza (from Spain) perform Arenal and Herrumbre at the Lucent Dance Theater of The Hague and meeting some of its dancers.

Breaking as the orchestra plays,
stamping, tiptoeing, smoothly floating,
with solid muscles, on music carpets
the dancers dance,
the dancers dance.

Bodies turning and twirling,
one piece less and then another,
the dancers dance until they climax
and disappear
behind black curtains.

And as we raise in effusive awe
to a
forte farewell, to a bold applause
one more time, and then another,
the dancers bow, the dancers bow
with tearful eyes.





Winter in the eyes of a blind man

These words belong to Abdhul, from Uganda, who came to study to The Netherlands and will be the first blind man to hold a PhD in his country.

When I first arrived
people were friendly,
always willing to help

But as the winter approaches
they too, feel as cold
and their pace feels faster

They seem to be rushing
and unlike before,
they are not so nice anymore

(and then he smiles widely, rolling his white eyes)