Two poems from USA and Greece

VALENTINE

                               Teresinka Pereira - USA

Inside

there is a hurry

in my heart beat,

a great passion.

But poetry lives

in this labyrinth

with delicious words

and colorful chocolates.

In fact it is so easy to say:

I LOVE YOU!

                               THE FESTIVITY OF SNOW

                             Zacharoula Gaitanaki - Greece

The nature, like a little girl

takes part in the endless

festive atmosphere of snow,

all around, dressed in white

enchantingly, silently, frosty.

While the snow is falling around

I want to lie down

on its white veil

and up there I’ll become

a pure white lily.

As a lily I’ll send out surplus odor

in the fields, neighborhoods

and country chapels.

I take part in the endless

festive atmosphere  of snow.

ŻEWĠ POEŻIJI MILL- KAV. JOE M. ATTARD Victoria-Għawdex

 F’dan iż-żmien għażiż tas-sena

Żmien sabiħ qed jerġa’ magħna –

jiem għeżież tal-Ġimgħa l-Kbira

illi fihom aħna nagħmlu

tal-mewt il-Mulej tifkira!

’Il fuq minn elfejn sena ilu

Kristu ssallab għall-bnedmin,

ċarċar demmu, ħalla ħajtu,

biex le nibqgħu midinbin.

It-tbatija illi sofra

ma tfissirha bl-ebda kliem;

għuda tqila ġarr fuq spalltu

li wasslitu lejn it-tmiem.

Fuq salib safa mdendel

qisu l-aqwa kriminal;

lil Missieru minn hemm talab

biex jaħfrilhom dan l-iżball.

Għaddew, tgerbu das-snin kollha –

lill-Mulej għadna nwarrbuh,

u lil qalbu nfieru, inweġġgħu,

dispjaċir wisq kbir nagħtuh!

Tafu xejn li bl-aġir tagħna

mill-ġdid qegħdin insallbuh

u fuq l-għolja tal-Qorriegħa

qegħdin nerġgħu nwassluh!

Ejjew nidħlu fina nfusna

u naraw li jisgħobbina;

nibdlu r-rotta, lilu nwiegħdu,

li naħarbu t-triq ħażina.

Ħalli wkoll nitfgħu ħarsitna

fuq Marija Addolorata

li mxiet it-triq ma’ Binha

b’rieda soda daqs ta’ blata.

Iżda min jista’ ifisser

it-tbatija li batiet!

L-ebda pinna mhi ser tfisser

il-mumenti li sofriet.

F’dan iż-żmien qaddis tas-sena

inwegħduk, Mulej Divin,

illi lilek qatt ma nonqsu –

ma nħallukx bi dnubna tnin!

Aħfrilna, Mulej, ħtijietna

u fis-siegħa ta’ l-hemm tagħna,

Ħalli nħaddnu lil salibek

biex henjin dlonk int tarana!

L-Irtirata

Aħbar li ħasdet lid-dinja

Kienet dik ta’ nhar it-Tnejn *

Meta l-Papa Benedittu

Deher ħosbien u bejn ħaltejn

 

Iżda sod u ċar fi kliemu

Qara l-messaġġ bil-Latin –

Illi l-Katedra ta’ Pietru

Kien se jħalli fi ftit ħin!

Fit-tmienja ta’ fil-għaxija

Fl-aħħar jum tax-xahar ta’ Frar

Kien se jabdika mit-tron tiegħu

Li tant ġablu ferħ u mrar!

Ir-raġuni waħda w vera

Li wasslitu għal dal-pass

Kienet in-nuqqas ta’ saħħa

Li dan l-aħħar huwa ħass.

Għal madwar tmien snin hu mexxa

Saltnet Alla fuq din l-art;

U żar popli, bliet w irħula

F’maltemp, bnazzi, ksieħ u bard.

Bniedem twajjeb, umli, mistħi,

Żamm bogħod mix-‘show’ u ċ-ċapċip,

Iżda l-pinna ħaddem bosta,

Le ma ntilef fit-tpaċpiċ!

Għaddew, tgerbu bosta sekli

Mindu ġrat storja bħal din,

Iżda kollox jista’ jiġri

F’din id-dinja tal-bnedmin.

Il-Papa kien riesaq sewwa

Lejn is-sitta u tmenin,

U l-moħħ u l-ġisem tiegħu

Bdew iħossu l-piż tas-snin.

Hu kien jaf li t-Tron ta’ Pietru

Jeħtieġ ħafna enerġija,

W għalhekk naħseb li stqarr waħdu:

‘Dal-post m’għadux jgħodd għalija!’

W għalhekk wara illi ħaseb

U bla dubju talab sħiħ,

Iddeċieda li t-tmun jgħaddi

Lil xi ħadd żgur inqas xiħ.

Issa huwa d-dmir tagħna

Li nitolbu lill-Mulej

Biex lil Knisja Huwa jagħti

Ragħaj għal qalbu għal li ġej!

*11 ta’ Frar 2013

A new book by Dr. Adolf Shvedchikov

About 2500 years after Pythagoras suggested that the Earth was round, 2320 years after Aristotle, following the teachings of the Pythagoreans, had asserted the same, and had declared that the great Asiatic Empire could be reached by sailing westwardly, 1940 after Seneca confirmed this view, and affirmed that India could be reached in this way, and 501 years after the Italian, born in Genoa, Christopher Columbus discovered America, a Russian, the well-regarded poet Dr. Shvedchikov, rediscovers America, in the same year, 1993, when the Pentium microprocessor for computers is produced, the World Wide Web is created, the light emitting diodes were invented, Space Shuttle Endeavour mission to repair an optical flaw in the Hubble Space Telescope takes place, and the US and Russia sign the Start II treaty calling for bilateral reduction of strategic nuclear weapons.

This book is based on Dr. Shvedchikov’s collection of notes about his first travel in the US, and on their translation in Russian. It must be mentioned that Barbara DeKovner-Mayer and Godfrey Harris had a key role in organizing and supporting this travel.

This captivating book, with very inspired and humoristic descriptions of his travels, will certainly have, together with his six poetry books, a visible place in the English and Russian literary space, and will also remind us of Seneca’s aphorism:

Si vis amari, ama (If you want to be loved, love).