there you are
that black hair
that touches your waist
swaying as you walk
side to side to side
the guy though
by your side
here in Izmir
lacks the swagger
of a youthful me
no long hair
blowing in the breeze
or Fu Manchu
framing the grin
so he’s not me
she’s not you
just a lookalike
four decades later
and thousands of miles
on the other side of loss
a lifetime ago
what love is by Rumi
Love is the water of eternal life, cures every woe;
Gardens where lovers reunite drive away all sorrow.
They say there is a window that opens from heart to heart;
If there are no walls, there is no need for any window.
translated by Talat S. Halman
that ongoing carnival
the mind
alive
restlessly searching
the past the present
here there
everywhere
a Beatles’ song
all that overdubbing
until the image sought
lost
in that ongoing carnival
of memories
parading through
my mind
in the Turkish Kitchen at the airport having breakfast, Istanbul, Sept. 29, 2016
she leans in
to see the phone
his thumbs command
the keypad
there are no words
spoken
between them
just eyes glued
on the screen
not once
on each other
Shadow by Fazıl Hüsnü Dağlarca
The person we love
Is the shadow
Of our face
In the future
translated by Talat S. Halman
Is by Fazıl Hüsnü Dağlarca
telling fortunes: for Altynai
there’s a horse
and hearts
a wedding dress
a bird
possibly a stork
an open road
power love travel
all possibilities
this that
here there
you me
wishes granted
in a coffee cup
and life
for a minute or so
maybe even forever
different
than before
