at a meeting
exploring options
talk swiftly changes
when business cards are exchanged
it’s that last name
bells ring
suddenly a call is made
across seas an ocean
seven hours away
and names faces
a world reappears
what was new
is now familiar
a small world
isn’t it
getting smaller every day
and suddenly
you are who you were
who you always
have been
other writing
on kindness: in conversation with Chuck
acts of kindness
are so rare
but rarer still
are those that appreciate them
eating Chinese food in Istanbul: for Rita Wu
so far
it’s pretty far
from what I call
Chinese food
and Rita,
if you think take-out in NY
is junk Chinese food
wait till you try what’s here
it’s almost as bad
as that place outside Denver
remember?
the Silk Road started
or ended here
depending on one’s perspective
but Chinese food
has yet to arrive
on the shore 3
hopscotch and football
barbecues on miniature grills
wood smoke in the eyes
kebab in the air
a young man dives into the water
drums beat out a rhythm
hands clap
a young girl dances
simits and cay
and I get the last bench left
in the shade
a whole neighborhood is here
along with portable toilets
spring on parade
in ancient Balat
these words I write
these words I write
in my illegible scrawl
on wisps of clouds
scribbled on the wind
float by in the air
a message to read
a prayer to answer
along the shore
boats drift by on the sea
cats scamper among the rocks
sharpshooters pop balloons
cries on simit in the air
a paper cup of cay
cotton candy on a stick
it’s Saturday in Kadiköy
Istanbul along the shore
time passing
Chuck says
when we were younger
it was sort of a whimsy
to think of time passing
before we shrugged it off
and moved on with our day
now it’s a reality
fleeting has a new meaning
and each day
each moment
a new significance
there is nothing quite like
these Saturday morning conversations
to remind one
of things one cannot overlook
anymore
so it’s Judy Collins
on the stereo
which prompted that comment
and wine this early
in the morning
and the hell with time
let it pass
there’s laundry to do
some food shopping
buy a steak to eat
with eggs for breakfast
tomorrow morning
and dare that specter
to try anything funny
with me today
nighttime in kadiköy
pide and wine
a guitar a singer
dark eyes on my mind
there’ll be no sleep
this night
in kadiköy
why one does what one does: for RU & NB
there is that light
in the eyes
that wasn’t there
some weeks before
a phrase maybe
a look a smile
the way you danced down the aisle
a certain stress of an unfamilar word
an analogy used
it could be anything
or everything
but it was something
you did
that changed a little corner
of this world
your job
you think
done
yes, your job
who you are in this world
God’s angels
with your passion
spreading hope
one day at a time
noises in the night
I hear the night
the cat’s trough hums
the candle hisses
someone walks across the floor upstairs
a baby cries
a dog barks
and from inside my chest
there is a crack
then silence fills the air
Leonard Durso 