the tins of tea
the cakes cookies
that occasional smile
old pictures
letters once sent
are appreciated
but the conversations
are what I miss
longing
like the gulls
like the gulls
I cry
for the memory
of the sea
from the Book of Songs (Odes): 91
Blue blue your collar,
sad sad my heart:
though I do not go to you,
why don’t you send word?
Blue blue your belt-stone,
sad sad my thoughts:
though I do not go to you,
why don’t you come?
Restless, heedless,
I walk the gate tower.
One day not seeing you
is three months long.
translated by Burton Watson
the heart a contradiction
the heart
a contradiction
always longing
for what lies
beyond
5000 miles
away
Easter Sunday in Maltese: March 27, 2016
drinking coffee
spiked with Bailey’s
on the balcony
the morning chill
in my bones
watching the sun
light the islands
out at sea
gulls call forth
the morning
as I drift
in my mind
across an ocean
where I long
to be
I Did Not Know Before by Sowol Kim
I did not know before
that the moon rises every night.
I did not know before
that I would miss you so much.
I did not know before
how to watch the brightest moon.
I did not know before
how the moon would be my sorrow.
translated by Jaihiun Kim & Ronald B. Hatch
gazing west
eyes drawn
over land
over sea
gazing west
heart beats
away
this thirst
no matter
how much
water
I drink
my throat
cries out
for more
this thirst
this thirst
will not
be quenched
to one unnamed: after Li Shang-yin
a breeze blows
the curtains
Emmylou sings
of walking
a thousand miles
my mind drifts
a tea cup
a smile
a laugh
a heart
in limbo
on this side
of the world
no respite
sleep
when it comes
is no respite
from thoughts
of you
Leonard Durso 