my mom and dad and sister

my mom is very good not for hellos or good byes (but for taking care of me).

Mom and Dad

in her arms
is always warm,
in her eyes
a ray of sun
just for me,
always for me
because she
is my mom
and I am her son

his arms
will always try
to lift me up
his voice
will always cheer
for my team
as long as I play fair
I know he'll be there
and if I am wrong
he'll steer me strong
show me a way
that I can take,
things I can do
to make him proud
I know he's glad
to be my Dad.

the morning after

After the darkest night
the sun still raises
to shine its light
upon us and it amazes
to realize the earth still spins
the center of the universe has moved
outside us from within us
somewhere where the tears have dried.
off balance for a while we've been
the world was shaken for a moment
under fear but it has reached agreement
with itself that it must spin, spin, spin.

black day

there are some days no one expects
and everybody hopes could be sent back
when the deep values one respects
are violated and the day turns black

the sky is bleak, there is hardly any light
that one can see but the faint shadows
of white pigeons raising through the clouds
amids the flurries dancing in the night

the box of colors has been emptied
the jukebox does not dare to play a song
the only feeling one can bring along
is grief for many young souls will be missed.

if none of us has such a power to revert
to previous days when things were right
then all of us somehow should fight
for a gun free life, to keep the kids unhurt.
(a gun-less fight, to keep the kids unhurt)

simple additions

music adds
rhythm to my day
speed to my steps
joy to my brain

colors add
ideas to brighten my day
mess on my pad
but they sure make me gay

the words I read
add wisdom to my thoughts
the means to connect with a friend
and to life goals

what you add
is something I did not know I miss
what you add to my life
is pure bliss.

the owner of a corner grocery store

he build confidence in the city
in his small way - trusting the people
letting them touch and choose
fresh vegetables and fruits

since he opened the corner grocery store
many years passed, and dust sat
on the shelves; people almost forgot
that he was the first to show such trust

then the storm came over his white head
it took off the roof, but left the walls up
to stand witness to its passage, not let us forget.
but we learned to accept.

and then he decided, and he quietly went
after the stormed passed
and we had learned to accept
what happened happened and what is left is to stand.

the flood washed away many things
and many paths of the past did not last
but he has left his mark
on the heart of the city

even though we know very well that he's gone
and they teared down the walls of the grocery store
there is still a fresh smell in that corner
and one wonders, perhaps he's still there

coffee time

photo credits Vassilis Caravitis

photo credits Michele Berti



you should greet with respect these people
like the pebbles, the stones, and their canes
they seem to have always been there
the traffic is barely noticeable,
even negligeable because of its speed
which leads to short life despite of the noise

Once time passed slowly by and decided
to stop and look at their faces
playfully carve perhaps a few wrinkles
while they would eat their mezedes.
But they looked back to him so innocently
and so unafraid that he stayed to sip from their coffees.

quote of the day

To have a brother or a sister is to have a blessing.
It is to have somebody, somewhere for you, despite of all differences. It is perhaps the first presentation of the concept of "we" instead of "I". Strength and endearment. It means to have somebody with an incredible capacity of forgiveness for you. And love. for granted, from birth. It only needs so little care.Little drops adding to make an ocean.

come and go

come and go into my life
through the windows
that I have left open
but the winds that will bring you
I cannot control as much as
other knocks at the door

the door I cannot control
there is always somebody there
with a key and they won't give it to me
I do not know what they are guarding
and how but most time I do feel free
and most times they will let you come in to me;

I do not know who they are, and their rights
I guess they work for the landlords
and they want to decide when you have to go
and when you can come back
and you have to convince them
but I do not know of what.

feed my brain

photo credits Dennis Dixson

feed my brain with better thoughts,
show some emotion give me some time,
open your ears and hear that
which I say: I am yours and I
will touch your life
someday more than today.

but now is the day
when you can touch mine
when you're given the chance
to hand me a sun ray
to help me climb over the rainbow
perhaps we could tame its wild horses.

don't let my ears close
to the frequency of your voice
don't let my brain fill
simply with noise
sing me a song now
while you still can feed my brain.

(http://www.photo.net/photodb/user?user_id=97366

magic glue and pixie dust (2)

what kind of magic glue and pixie dust
did you throw in, and mixed with the words
before you tied them neatly in a row
threw them towards me where they touched me
and they stayed ever since stuck to my heart
shining incessantly, especially when it is dark?
but what, tell me what is stronger than words
and what is weaker than words
when there is a lot of thin air between us,
an old bumpy road and an ocean to cross?
what else can you do - other than talk
unless you decide to pick up your shoes,
finally get a sense of direction and walk ?

green friendship

there once was a child
who befriended a tree
who grew carelessly in front of his door;
But the tree started taking care of his limbs
just barely scratching his knees,
when he was not being gentle and kind;
the tree grew taller and straighter
with time, the child grew wiser
and one day he left home to go far;
when he let go of the tree
he hurt his arm, and got a scratch on his knee;
he took many steps on the road that he chose,
and he chose to walk many roads,
but the vertical path, and the need to grow up,
the joy to swing with the wind,
and the need to stay clean,
that he learned from his tree
these are lesson that stay with him.

memory

photo credits : judy ben joud
and I miss her sweet soul
and the flame in her voice
when she was defending the truth
and was doing her best to bring proof;

and I miss little gossips
about princes and artists;
around a coffee cup
and a plate with some cookies;


and I miss a good word
that she would launch
with positive energy
always meant to encourage and help me;

the knowledge, the style
the curious friends, and mysterious words
she was mumbling in French
when I, as a kid, was to not understand

If I go back and sit at her window
then as usually lean out (just a bit dangerously)
how would I know if the wind shaking the curtains
is not there to tell her hello?

rebellion

and why in the world
should I walk the same path
why would I want to be
nothing better than you,
who's only role might have been
to bring me up
in this world
(and you did not yet figure out
how it works)?
should I be grateful
should I be hateful
for the state of things?
should I take my guitar
and cry with its strings;
should I look for peers
when I feel in my heart
that there's nobody yet
thinking like me
or loving my art?
or should I run hard
to be the first in a race
ahead of the others
and leaving no time
to think of the past
(whether or not is for me
to understand).
leave me some time
to calm down
come back when I'll have
my own kids to talk to
perhaps then I'll buy your advice
with solid gold but for now,
leave the door closed
I will decide
when to come out
of my shell
for a hug.

One

Do I know one, or do I know many
sometimes dark and silent
often moody and windy,
at other times inviting and bright
apparently tame and so sunny
as only a mirror to the one
real sun can be?
by now you must know
that we talk of the sea
the many colors we see
beyond the foam that washes
from pebbles to sand and to dust.
host to the fish that are living
and dying and feeding a horde,
while she stays immutable,
feared and still loved
indispensable to all
the different, many faceted
uniquely invincible one

evening blue thoughts

for more see the Vincent van Gogh Gallery

at the end of the day
we hope that the stars will stay in their place
that we' ll get to see them again
even though we are constantly moving in space

we secretly hope that we'll never grow old
that our children will fill the day with their laughs
always in tune and always surprising for us,
while we manage to be bright, wise and somehow incredibly young

if the world is to be subject to changes
we hope it will despite everything be for the best.
with such dreams under our hats
we head up to bed for a well deserved rest.

quote of the day

"Be the ball!"

from here

wonderful world

this morning I walked out the door
my right foot first and ready to dance
on the ray of sun that usually takes me
from here to where I need to go in no time.

there was music on the radio
the car ride was smooth and the drivers almost polite
while we shared the road they crossed a few yellow lights
and but one crossed my path in a dangerous way.

I made it here ready to do my usual thing
start the morning with a coffee and then increase the tension
hour by hour till lunch break when I was unprepared
to learn that again the world was going to war

an airplane has failed to take off
schools are struggling here to keep up with the pace of
an increasing number of children; while somewhere else
incredibly far they were starving to death, or refused education.

My lunch break ready to end, I am going to return to my desk
and leave it to others to wonder on what us important to do with a day
shall we change the face of our politicians or is it a way
to deal with the world in our own time, with our own hands.

Are we ready to dance, are we ready to fight and protest
are we ready to go back to a normal day?
as if there was ever such thing as a normal day everywhere
for everybody in this wonderful world.

LA

villager in LA
almost drunk
from too much sun
and too much salt

the colors spin
from bougainvilleas
to a big screen
the eyes adjust

if only the asphalt
would not burn my shoe
if only the gray of the street
could be swallowed by the sky blue

I would stay here
on top of the hill
to wait for the day
when the poors get rich in LA.

the sea

she never stumbles
she always tries
till she shines
to burn your eyes