— Haruki Murakami, Norwegian Woods

Charles Baudelaire, The Albatross

— Haruki Murakami, Norwegian Wood

Tony Kushner, Angels in America

Witches, Erica Jong

A poem, an exercise in omitting letters.

by Thomas Penny

my absolute favourite poem

Mary Elizabeth Frye, 1932

The Poet Speaks of Praise, Rainer Maria Rilke

my favorite words 💐

reading poetry in different languages: aesthetic impressions

Spanish: juice dripping from your mouth as you bite into fresh fruit; honeyed skin incessantly kissed by the sun; long laughter and shadows of summer; a red rose on a bedside table in a white room, where a single petal falls; the silhouettes of lovers sitting at the end of a dock, everything the deepest blue.

French: a river running smooth as silk; pale mornings, watching cigarette smoke slip away like a scarf in the wind; a drink which singes your throat as it slips down into your core and warms you; hot tears stinging your face, then the cold water that washes them away; the agony of orgasm.

German: storm clouds rolling in; the fear of god in the eyes of painted sinners; a long black coat for hiding every secret; shoes clacking on a wooden floor; purple veins on eyelids; the dial tone ringing and ringing when no one is taking your call; an uncapped pen which has bled all over the page.

Irish Gaelic: a whip of raven black hair; lying awake with only the moon to console you; high sand dunes punctuated with brushstrokes of green, green grass; how a first kiss feels so bright, like walking on air; the crash of the ocean, always running into the soft limitless arms of the shore.

Pashto: pomegranates, always and always, and the way they open endlessly; a woman blossoming in front of herself; a purple sunset over mountaintops; children singing songs together under the shade of a fruit tree; a bucket splashing water over your feet; whispers in the dark, a taunting dialogue.

Arabic: olive trees swaying in the wind; a grandmother ticks at her hand painted prayer beads; the bloodied martyr; an intimate, warm orange; a shepherd stretched out in the shade; between buildings, lovers steal a glance; an embroidered robe; minarets touch the sky; bare feet on scorching sand. 

Urdu: rain glistening on a lonely street, the eyes of a hurt dog, the smell of warm wood and old cherished books; the velvety touch of rose petals, kulfi in your mouth, heavy silver at your wrists; open windows, a room lit by moonlight; handing your father a glass of tea, caressing your lover’s neck, hearing your name included in your loved one’s morning prayer.

Bangla: the scent of earth wet by rain; the green watery rice fields; the rumbling dark rain clouds; the cold wind blowing on my wet skin; singeing through my wet clothes; the vast mighty rivers; the smell of chamomile flowers; the cotton sarees; the smell of old books; creeking old Mahogany furniture; my mother’s comforting hand caressing me.

Sindhi: a lion’s roar heard from miles away; ripples of water surmounted by the hot summer rain; the sound of bangles clanking together; a grandparent’s sigh of contentment; a slice of watermelon generously sprinkled with masala; fresh milk delivered from the cattle, warmed on the stove; the smell of henna and perfume and incense.

Polish: the whispers of falling leaves; the tale of bloodied fingers and bitten lips; not begging for freedom/ fighting for it; the scent of gasoline; burning in [me]; being reborn after another fire / ashes that created holy empire; world that is torn in half/ but it’s ours/ another spring has come / another spirit that didn’t die

dee’s A-Z books rec

Alice in Wonderland, Carroll  the Book Thief, Zusak  Carol, Highsmith  Divina Commedia, Alighieri  l’Élégance du herisson, Barbery  Fahrenheit 451, Bradbury  il Giardino dei Finzi-Contini, Bassani  the Handmaid’s Tale, Atwood  Ivanhoe, Scott  Jonathan Livingston Seagull, Bach  the Kite Runner, Hosseini  the Lord of the Rings, Tolkien  Mémoires d’une jeune fille rangée, Beauvoir  la Nuit, Wiesel  Oceano Mare, Baricco  Paula, Allende  Queste Oscure Materie (His Dark Matters), Pullman  the Republic, Plato  Stardust, Gaiman  To Kill a Mockingbird, Lee  Utopia, More  Vita di Galileo (Leben des Galilei), Brecht  Who Rules the World, Chomsky  XY: On Masculine Identity, Badinter  the Years of Rice and Salt, Robinson  la Coscienza di Zeno, Svevo 

This one’s an older poem titled “Gaze.”