BRASIL POEMS
Michael Greene,Professor (greenem@wit.edu)
Humanities, Social Sciences and Management Department
Now and Then
I can barely remember then,
Then was then and now,
I forget what I wanted then,
Except for you.
One day, now will be then,
And I won't remember then,
What I wanted now,
Except for you.
Except for you
Wanting is then,
and now.
Lily the Magician
She was quite a trick herself,
Could turn anything inside out,
Especially me.
She always told me
I would like her lovers.
"They would like you too,"
She would say.
This wasn’t true,
but still I always missed her.
When I think of her now
I imagine her telling some lover,
"You would like him."
This isn’t true,
But still I’ll always miss her.
This Is My Hymn
This is my hymn,
My song to Iemanjá,
Mother of the seas.
Desse céu,
Desse mar
You smiled for me
And then you were lost,
A floating image
from the carnival.
I have nowhere to live
And so I live on the beach.
Desse céu,
Desse mar
The Question Song
When do we get to the question?
When do we get to the well?
If we get to the answer,
How exactly do we tell?
Now that we’ve got to the answer,
How do we know it’s true?
How do I know you love me
How do you know I love you?
Esperar
Waiting:
table, spring & dread.
Waiting’s no good
Unless you’re moving
Hurts when you’re still
Holding in place,
Motionless, suspended
This is limbo,
A cement statue of desire.
Stationary anticipation.
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