[portunhol surenho)
O asado,
el uso de la maca,
la sherba mate,
unas pocas palavras
como "gurí", *
estos son os restos
da cultura indígena.
A pessá de sus miles
de ferramentas esparcidas
ao longo da costa,
non se ve ninguém.
Tenemo que lembrá-nos
que somo la causa
da ausencia d'eles
de acá.
Remnants
The barbecue,
the use of the hammock,
the ma-te herb,
a few words
like "gurí," *
these are the remnants
of the indigenous culture.
In spite of their thousands
of tools scattered
along the coast,
we see no one.
We have to remember
that we are the cause
of their absence
from here.
* gurí = crianza, child
Friday, August 4, 2017
Hot Ashes
Naked, shoveling hot ashes
from the fireplace
into a metal bucket,
I prepare
for another day
of magic.
from the fireplace
into a metal bucket,
I prepare
for another day
of magic.
Thursday, August 3, 2017
The Muse - II
The Muse is a powerful distraction.
She does not keep your feet
on the ground--
but she keeps them close
to the fire.
She does not keep your feet
on the ground--
but she keeps them close
to the fire.
Brillo y contraste
Brillo y contraste
son los ajustes que hago.
Luz, sombra, y forma--
¿qué más hay?
Brightness and contrast
are the adjustments that I make.
Light, shadow, and form--
what else is there?
son los ajustes que hago.
Luz, sombra, y forma--
¿qué más hay?
Brightness and contrast
are the adjustments that I make.
Light, shadow, and form--
what else is there?
Tuesday, August 1, 2017
Robbed
The neighborhood I grew up in
has been taken over by crack dealers.
The religion I was raised in
has been taken over by pedophiles.
The city I was born in
has felt foreign for fifty years.
The country I was born in
is a mockery of itself,
though it is trying to survive.
I am here, in another hemisphere,
in a gracious and welcoming country,
but the truth is that
I have no home.
I have been robbed,
slowly, for many years,
until now I am like
Candide, watching as a heretic
is burnt at the stake.
in the "best
of all possible
worlds."
Do you think
that you
are different?
has been taken over by crack dealers.
The religion I was raised in
has been taken over by pedophiles.
The city I was born in
has felt foreign for fifty years.
The country I was born in
is a mockery of itself,
though it is trying to survive.
I am here, in another hemisphere,
in a gracious and welcoming country,
but the truth is that
I have no home.
I have been robbed,
slowly, for many years,
until now I am like
Candide, watching as a heretic
is burnt at the stake.
in the "best
of all possible
worlds."
Do you think
that you
are different?
Sunday, July 30, 2017
The Whale Does Not Remember
The whale does not remember
that it was once a land animal.
We do not remember roaming naked
in the forests of Africa.
Will we go beyond
and then forget
fossil fuels,
climate change,
and a cruel and violent
patriarchy?
The whale does not remember
its ungainly wading in the river.
that it was once a land animal.
We do not remember roaming naked
in the forests of Africa.
Will we go beyond
and then forget
fossil fuels,
climate change,
and a cruel and violent
patriarchy?
The whale does not remember
its ungainly wading in the river.
Saturday, July 29, 2017
The Song of Life
I.
From the fortress of my nakedness
I go forth,
singer of songs,
speaker of dreams.
My voice is the sea,
reaching out to the life
that it has spawned.
My voice is the wind,
whispering in your ear.
I speak for them,
to a world grown deaf,
I speak for the earth,
I speak for time,
I speak for what was before time,
I speak for what still is,
and for what, singing,
shall yet be.
II.
I speak for the dream,
and for what is behind the dream,
I speak for waking,
I speak for the sun
and all its creatures,
for other suns
and other creatures
born of other light.
I speak for the light
and also for the darkness,
for the starry void
from which all this
has come.
III.
I speak from the heart of fire,
my words are tongues
that devour and purify.
I speak from the abiding silence of earth,
giving life and receiving it.
I speak from the movement of air,
informing all with life and thought.
I speak from the world of water,
birthing all life.
I speak from spirit,
from the breath of life,
moving this world and all worlds,
from a place before and beyond,
from a time that simply is.
IV.
I speak from the southwest of the cosmos
to its north, and its southeast,
to its northwest, its northeast,
and then back again,
from what is above,
and what is below,
from what there is to know
and from what there is to dream.
V.
I speak for the beginning and the end
that never were,
for him and her
that are the same,
a vibration
echoing through
the universe.
VI.
In the purity of the elements,
life will return
to the parched corn
of many colors.
From the fortress of my nakedness
I go forth,
singer of songs,
speaker of dreams.
My voice is the sea,
reaching out to the life
that it has spawned.
My voice is the wind,
whispering in your ear.
I speak for them,
to a world grown deaf,
I speak for the earth,
I speak for time,
I speak for what was before time,
I speak for what still is,
and for what, singing,
shall yet be.
II.
I speak for the dream,
and for what is behind the dream,
I speak for waking,
I speak for the sun
and all its creatures,
for other suns
and other creatures
born of other light.
I speak for the light
and also for the darkness,
for the starry void
from which all this
has come.
III.
I speak from the heart of fire,
my words are tongues
that devour and purify.
I speak from the abiding silence of earth,
giving life and receiving it.
I speak from the movement of air,
informing all with life and thought.
I speak from the world of water,
birthing all life.
I speak from spirit,
from the breath of life,
moving this world and all worlds,
from a place before and beyond,
from a time that simply is.
IV.
I speak from the southwest of the cosmos
to its north, and its southeast,
to its northwest, its northeast,
and then back again,
from what is above,
and what is below,
from what there is to know
and from what there is to dream.
V.
I speak for the beginning and the end
that never were,
for him and her
that are the same,
a vibration
echoing through
the universe.
VI.
In the purity of the elements,
life will return
to the parched corn
of many colors.