To Lesbia – Gaio Valerio Catullo

This poem was written by a latin poet, Gaio Valerio Catullo about 2000 years ago. I’m moved by the strong, deep feeling arising from this poem. How burning passion! How suggestive images! I think this is one of the most beautiful poem ever written about love. My advice is to read also the latin version, if you can.

“The while we live, to love let’s give

Each hour, my winsome dearie!
Hence, churlish rage of icy age!
Of love we’ll ne’er grow weary.

Bright Phoebus dies, again to rise;
Returns life’s brief light never;
When once ‘tis gone, we slumber on
For ever and for ever.

Then, charmer mine, with help divine!
Give me a thousand kisses;
A hundred then, then hundred ten
Then other hundred blisses.

Lip thousand o’er, sip hundreds more

With panting ardour breathing;

Fill to the brim love’s cup, its rim

With rosy blossoms wreathing.

We’ll mix them then, lest to our ken

Should come our store of blisses,

Or envious wight should know, and blight

So many honey’d kisses.”

(J. Cranstoun, Edimburgo, 1867)

“The Club” is open

I wrote this short tale some time ago for Migue’s blog. I don’t know why, today I feel a bit melanconic and I thought to post it again, here in my blog. I hope you’ll like it, and for those who already read it, I hope you won’t mind to read it again.

Rosa

It’s a Saturday night of a cold winter. Outside it’s rainy, the street lights light up the wet streets while some couples are going to enter in ”The Club”. The pale blue sign is already bright. A group of young guys are making din on the street. Two nice girls are talking and laughing before entering. Their boyfriends will come soon.
It’s the 1967. Tonight at the Club, Frank Sinatra is the special guest. Please, leave your overcoat at the wardrobe and take seat at your reserved table. The bar is open. They say you can taste the best “Manhattan” in town…

Money well spent! Frank did a great performance.
Who am I? My name is Nicola Manfredi, but everyone calls me “Nicky”. My club is the most popular in the city and the business are getting well. Many people of the “high class” are here tonight.I can see the mayor and his wife, the Senator Smith’s daughter with her boyfriend, Mr. Jenkins (the most important businessman in the city)and his lover…very good.
The club is crowded and the air smoky. Better to go and check how much liquors are at the bar.

Everything is ok tonight. The guys are working well and the girls are pouring drinks…

I need a cigarette. The moon is high in the sky and the city looks more beautiful at its light. But, tomorrow morning, the sunlight will show the same misery in the district…Well,it is time to enter. It is quite cold here and I need some whisky and…Daisy. Yes, that woman makes my blood boil in the veins!
Listen…the orchestra is playing her favourite song and she is just entered into the club. Look at her! She is like an angel…

Well it is almost 3 a.m.. The club is closed. Few people are still talking outside, in the street.

Well, baby, let’s go. I need you tonight.

Spring is in the air!

Slowly, without any noise,
Lady Spring is coming.
Her bright, fairy veils
are melting the cold
winter atmosphere.
I can feel her voice
in the birds singing melody,
her fresh perfume
in the morning breeze.
Welcome wonderful Lady!

Christmas has come!

Here we are again! It’s Christmas Time! And, as usual, I want to give you my best wishes of a Merry Christmas to all of you, to be spent with who you love the most.

Wherever you’ll be, whatever you’ll do please keep in your heart that  Light which warms up the special moments of our lives, that Light which represents a harbour in troubles. I wish you won’t put it out of your heart. This is the best wish I can give to you!

Rosa

Abilities

“The mind is not a vessel to be filled but a fire to be kindled.“
Plutarch

Intelligence, eloquence, strategy, diplomacy. In few words, human abilities. Each of us is a “singularity” in the universe as every person is unique for her assets and …difects. I strongly believe  that behind someone’s eyes there is a mistery, a complex world to be discovered. At the same time, it seems to me some people are sorrounded by an unpleasant, weird energy and I know that I can’t trust in who is in front of me… Someone call this “sensitivity” or “empathy”. Am I empathic? I really don’t know!

Abilities. Maybe the ability I admire the most is to play an instrument and write a melody. I’m basically unable to do it , even if (I admit) I haven’t tried seriuosly to learn how to play music. Nevertheless, I can say music is an important part of myself. Somedays, it seems to me to hear some music , while I’m smelling the countryside fresh air. I can hear music in my children’s laugh and in their eyes! Maybe our life is not perfect and full of problems, but there is always a reason to look forwad and fight. This is optimism… How wanderful invenction!

 

I strongly believe whatever is your ability,  you have to cherish it as it makes you the unique being you just are.

Rosa

A sunny day

...And what if our life was just a dream, and us just pictures in someone else dream? ….

Rosa

It was a sunny day. Sergio opened the door and the fresh air of the morning spread into his lungs and… into the kitchen. He smelled the air… it would have been another great day! For sure! He seated on his chair, in the shadow of his veranda and smelled the air. Again. And he felt fine. Relaxed.  The field, surrounding the small red cottage, was full of green grass and white flowers. He was sure nothing could ever disturb that new so promising  fantastic day!  He felt like he had never spent a such wonderful vacation in the last ten years. Then, he stood up and took his jogging shoes when his attention was caught up by a small pack, with a blue envelope and a narrow golden  ribbon. On it a card: “I have to inform you your vacations are ended. You are pleased to eat the candy on the table and you’ll be sweetly back home.” He looked at the colored candy hand-shaped on the table. For an instant, the remembrance of his parents and him in one of the suggestive, ancient market of the Central Europe of the 20th Century, rose to his memory. He kept on reading the card: ” I hope you enjoyed the services of the “More than reality, just dream! ltd.”

“I giorni” – The Days

Ludovico Einaudi is an Italian artist who composes a suggestive music. Evocative. Listen to the music, just close your eyes and let yourself go… “I giorni” makes me think how life flows quickly, like a river. Days chase one after and we have just to enjoy the travel, trying to do our best to realize our projects, our dreams. Don’t stop dreaming and don’t stop trying to achieve your goals as we have just one life. Enjoy the music and the Tagore’s poem.

Rosa

Endless Time

Time is endless in thy hands, my lord.
There is none to count thy minutes.

Days and nights pass and ages bloom and fade like flowers.
Thou knowest how to wait.Thy centuries follow each other perfecting a small wild flower.

We have no time to lose,
and having no time we must scramble for a chance.
We are too poor to be late.

And thus it is that time goes by
while I give it to every querulous man who claims it,
and thine altar is empty of all offerings to the last.

At the end of the day I hasten in fear lest thy gate be shut;
but I find that yet there is time.

Rabindranath Tagore

The value of a “Goodbye”

What is the meaning of a goodbye? You turn on your side, you give a last look to the person you love (a friend as like a beloved) and your heart breaks like glass on the floor. I can say that if there is one word that maybe I’ve said just once in my life,  is goodbye.  The sense of a goodbye is the sense of a decision, often a hard one, bringing troubles but sometimes necessary. I don’t like this word as it means a loss so, I prefer to say “see you one day”. Yesterday I listened to a Billie Holiday’s song and my pen started writing something I typed few lines below.

Rosa

Goodbye my love,

I’ll never see you again

I’ll never hear your voice

whispering at my ear.

And I’ll miss you.

I left you some minutes ago

and I already miss you..

our never-ending talks,

your nice smile,

your glance so meaningful

your way to look at me.

Maybe, I just dreamed of you

day by day, night by night.

I just wished to have you.

Once. And I pray to meet you

someday in this life or in another

just to say “hello my love”.

But now…Goodbye!

Goodbye my darling

Goodbye.

As I love Billie Holiday’s voice, here it is one of her most famous song written by George Gershwin…

Friendship

"It is not so much our friends' help that helps us as the confident knowledge that 
they will help us."
 - Epicurus (341 - 270 BC).

“Just you and me, my friend, as I just trust in you. You support me, you give me peace when I’m restless. Your heart is never closed to me. You feel my thoughts, you comfort me when I’m sad and you joy with me when I’m successful! As you are my friend…” These are the words coming to my mind if I think about my dearest friend… What would be humans without friendship? Maybe, human society wouldn’t exist! Have you realized that even husband and wife besides of being lovers, are friends? There have been lots of definition of friendship and friend. We could fill an entire library with all words said about those topics. I wrote few of them which seem to me really meaningful.

I liked a quote by Seneca, a Roman philosopher and statesman who, about 2000 years go, said:

"Consult your friend on all things, especially on those which respect yourself. 
His counsel may then be useful where your own self-love might impair your judgment."

As to say:”You are not perfect nor objective in your decision, so ask a friend (who is close to you but it is “not you”) for an advice”. I think this is an important point when we wander about friendship value.

Another ancient playwrite said:

"One loyal friend is worth ten thousand relatives." - (Euripides).

That is another point I agree with.  but I leave you just with a last quote, maybe one of the most significant:

"Friendship is the only cement that will ever hold the world together" - (Woodrow Wilson)

..we need a lot of Friendship in this world so sick! So…let’s spread some   good seeds of it everiday! Maybe our heirs will receive a better world!

Rosa

Patience

Patience

This is the link to a post I wrote for the Migue’s blog. Give a look and. please, let me know what you think. I’d like to have your opinion about this topic.

Rosa