Zywa: Poems

14h · 87

Zywa 14h

Of course I'm the cook,

although we like to keep that --

negotiable.

Performance "Stroman & Trawanten" ("Straw man & Hendymen", 1983, Freek de Jonge)

Collection "Loves Tricks Gains Pains in the 80s and 90s"

#loverelationship #marriage #divisionoflabour

14h · 41

[ You love me, you do ]

Zywa 14h

[ You love me, you do ]

You love me, you do

know what love is, and that is --

why I know now too.

Song "Jij", performance "De Mars" (Song "You", performance "The March", 1981, Freek de Jonge, music Henny Vrienten)

Collection "Loves Tricks Gains Pains in the 80s and 90s"

#love

1d · 49

[ Would the apple seeds ]

Zywa 1d

[ Would the apple seeds ]

Would the apple seeds

inside my belly sprout and --

start to take root there?

Concert "Het Oog in de Naald" ("The Eye in the Needle", 2023, Albert van Veenendaal), #5, "Apple Tree", performed on April 25th, 2025 in the Organpark, by Francisca Snip (speaking voice), Albert van Veenendaal (prepared piano), Rogier Hornman (cello) and Roosmarijn Tuenter (viola)

Collection "org anp ARK" #113

#imagination #fantasy #apple

1d · 39

[ Fairies are dancing ]

Zywa 1d

[ Fairies are dancing ]

Fairies are dancing

in the coral, its colours --

are fading, sadly.

Composition "Spel 1" from "Coral Speak" ("Play 1" from "Coral Speak" [of the Great Barrier Reef], 2016, Kate Moore), for vibraphone, coral instruments and stereo track, performed in the Organpark on February 14th, 2025 by Meiyi Lee of the Herz Ensemble

Collection "org anp ARK" #93

#coral

2d · 65

[ I threw my suitcase ]

Zywa 2d

[ I threw my suitcase ]

I threw my suitcase

into the hole and I jumped --

back into my youth.

Poem "Fakkel" ("Torch", 2018, Bart Chabot)

Collection "Being my own museum"

#childhood #memories

2d · 31

[ No one cares about ]

Zywa 2d

[ No one cares about ]

No one cares about

what I did wrong in the past --

yet it torments me.

Novel "An Artist of the Floating World" (1986, Kazuo Ishiguro), chapter 'November 1949'

Collection "Being my own museum"

#ethics #conscience

3d · 79

[ Car with a driver ]

Zywa 3d

[ Car with a driver ]

Car with a driver

waiting for me, it is just --

too big to be parked.

Collection "Local traffic"

#wealth #car #parking

3d · 50

[ The bedbugs are dead ]

Zywa 3d

[ The bedbugs are dead ]

The bedbugs are dead.

So we are not in danger --

Still I am itchy.

Because of armadillidiidae (pill-bugs) on the second floor of the holiday apartment building

Collection "Local traffic"

#imagination #bugs #itches #fantasy

4d · 31

[ All things are still lives ]

Zywa 4d

[ All things are still lives ]

All things are still lives

in themselves, unpretentious --

what they are there for.

Novel "Het Bureau - Meneer Beerta" ("The Office - Mister Beerta", 1996, Han Voskuil), 1957 (page 33)

Collection "Not too bad"

#possessions #things #objects

4d · 31

[ The new Office is ]

Zywa 4d

[ The new Office is ]

The new Office is

growing, in the rear garden --

of the Head Office.

Novel "Het Bureau - Meneer Beerta" ("The Office - Mister Beerta", 1996, Han Voskuil), 1957 (pages 9, 33, 758)

Collection "Not too bad"

#office

5d · 75

[ Is the snake rustling ]

Zywa 5d

[ Is the snake rustling ]

Is the snake rustling

behind me, that lay sleeping --

between the pine cones?

Poem "Beweging" - 1 ("Movement" - 1, 1992, Maria van Daalen)

Collection "Unseen"

#snake #danger #awareness

5d · 44

[ So many taboos ]

Zywa 5d

[ So many taboos ]

So many taboos

there are, in modern countries --

people call them laws.

Column "Laat sommige taboes maar fijn bestaan" ("Let some taboos just remain", 2024, Josette Daemen), in the NRC of November 23rd, 2024

Collection "Unseen"

#taboo #ethics #laws

6d · 99

[ The wind is humming ]

Zywa 6d

[ The wind is humming ]

The wind is humming

low in the deep cave, it sings --

itself less lonely.

Composition "Boete", part 3: "Stoek" ("Penance", part 3: "Trac", 2023, Jan-Bas Bollen), for HyperTheremin and two organs, performed by Jan-Bas Bollen in the Organpark on March 22nd, 2025

Collection "org anp ARK" #105

#alone #lonely #wind

6d · 66

[ Behind the rocks there ]

Zywa 6d

[ Behind the rocks there ]

Behind the rocks there

is something mysterious --

You'd better not look.

Composition "Erdia Da" ("Offering to Mother Earth"), #8 from the album "Pèkisyon Funebri" ("Funeral service", 2016, MMMD [Mohammad] = Ilios and Nikos Veliotis), performed in the Organpark on April 12th, 2025 by Ilios Veliotis (oscillators), Nikos Veliotis (electronic cello), and Alex Mastichiadis ('ALEM', *****)

Collection "org anp ARK" #108

#death #funeral #motherearth

7d · 53

[ We humans can want ]

Zywa 7d

[ We humans can want ]

We humans can want

a lot, but of our will we --

are not the master.

Arthur Schopenhauer on human will, in short from a passage in 'Die beiden Grundprobleme der Ethik' (1841): 'Der Mensch kann wohl [/zwar] tun, was er will, aber [er kann] nicht wollen, was er will' ('A man can do what he wants, but not want what he wants')

Collection "Willegos"

#will #subconsciousness

7d · 119

[The real special thing ]

Zywa 7d

[The real special thing ]

The real special thing

about people is: special --

is each one of them.

Novel "Atlas shrugged" (1957, Ayn Rand), part 3 'A is A', chapter 2 'The Utopia of Greed'

Collection "Willegos"

#identity #special #beingdifferent

Apr 21 · 39

[ That we cannot tell ]

Zywa Apr 21

[ That we cannot tell ]

That we cannot tell

everything is the darkness --

that separates us.

Novel "Het duister dat ons scheidt" (2003, "The darkness that separates us", Renate Dorrestein), part 2, 'Twaalf' ('Twelve' years old), chapter 'R is een rompertje' ('R is a rompertje [onesie]')

Collection "Old sore"

#reserve #contact #communication

Apr 21 · 51

[ Never eavesdrop on ]

Zywa Apr 21

[ Never eavesdrop on ]

Never eavesdrop on

anyone, you might hear some-

thing that upsets you.

Novel "Het duister dat ons scheidt" (2003, "The darkness that separates us", Renate Dorrestein), part 2, 'Twaalf' ('Twelve' years old), chapter 'S is een spin' ('S is a spider')

Collection "Old sore"

#eavesdrop #secrets #privacy

Apr 20 · 61

[ Our nature to keep ]

Zywa Apr 20

[ Our nature to keep ]

Our nature to keep

our world safe makes us afraid --

of foreign people.

Poem "Évian" (2017, Ghayath Almadhoun)

Évian Conference in 1938 (32 countries) on the Jewish refugees from Germany and Austria, after which the Völkischer Beobachter writes on July 13th: "Keiner will sie haben" ("Nobody wants to have them")

#foreign #safety #insecurity

Apr 20 · 61

[ Let each other live ]

Zywa Apr 20

[ Let each other live ]

Let each other live,

forced integration turns out --

wrong for everyone.

Personal essay "Galmende geschiedenissen" ("Echoing histories", 2025, Sinan Çankaya)

Live and let live

The mentality that minorities should adapt in cultural matters, as if integration comes down to that, is colonialist; the point of living together is living according to the rule of law, with respect for everyone's cultural customs

Collection "Truder"

#integration #liveandletlive #society

Apr 19 · 82

[ Friends, enemies, you ]

Zywa Apr 19

[ Friends, enemies, you ]

Friends, enemies, you

know them, but who is what, and --

how many are they?

Novel "De vergaderzaal" ("The conference room", 1974, Albert Alberts)

Collection "Wean Di"

#people #friends #foes

Apr 19 · 36

[ Ordinary men ]

Zywa Apr 19

[ Ordinary men ]

Ordinary men.

When naked, it's striking: thin --

muscular bundles.

Story "De dingen de baas" ("The things are the boss", 1950, Belcampo)

Collection "Wean Di"

#men #bodies #muscles

Apr 18 · 62

[ The rich people feed ]

Zywa Apr 18

[ The rich people feed ]

The rich people feed

each other, so the hungry --

have to do the same.

Bertolt Brecht, quoted in the poem "Die hiefel en die fiefel" ("Ole and Axel", 2006, Antjie Krog)

Collection "Wean Di"

#poverty #wealth #richpeople

Apr 18 · 203

[ Family needs to ]

Zywa Apr 18

[ Family needs to ]

Family needs to

be lovely: each other's crown

witness, a party!

Column "Geef je familie nog één kans" ("Give your family one more chance", 2016, Ellen de Bruin, with a quote from Else-Marie van den Eerenbeemt), in the nrc.next of December 21st, 2016

Collection "Wean Di"

#family #siblings

Apr 17 · 47

[ I wanna go, come ]

Zywa Apr 17

[ I wanna go, come ]

I wanna go, come

up with the ruse I could have --

invented myself.

Comic strip #51 - "Heer Bommel en Vriend Vijand" ("Sir Bumble and Friend Foe", 1952-1953, Marten Toonder), tier 1794

Collection "**** & Lord"

#pride #conceit

Apr 17 · 47

[ Just one road, nameless ]

Zywa Apr 17

[ Just one road, nameless ]

Just one road, nameless

on the map, that one of course --

am I following!

Comic strip #70 - "Tom Poes en De Giegelgak ("Tom **** and The Gigglecackler", 1956, Marten Toonder), tier 2828

Collection "**** & Lord"

#life #courseoflife #ontheway

Apr 16 · 57

[ Deeds can't be undone ]

Zywa Apr 16

[ Deeds can't be undone ]

Deeds can't be undone,

doing them over you'll bear --

the burden double.

Comic strip #78 - "Heer Bommel gaat Het Overdoen" ("Sir Bumble is going To Do It Over", 1957-1958, Marten Toonder), tier 3291

Collection "**** & Lord"

#deeds #mistakes #undo #redo

Apr 16 · 54

[ If you lack wishes ]

Zywa Apr 16

[ If you lack wishes ]

If you lack wishes,

you will be trudging through life --

as through a desert.

Comic strip #80 - "Tom Poes en De Kwanten" ("Tom **** and The Quants", 1958, Marten Toonder), tier 3441

Collection "**** & Lord"

#wishes

Apr 15 · 76

[ People's wishes can ]

Zywa Apr 15

[ People's wishes can ]

People's wishes can

quite easily lead to a --

major short-circuit.

Comic strip #80 - "Tom Poes en De Kwanten" ("Tom **** and The Quants", 1958, Marten Toonder), tier 3443

Collection "**** & Lord"

#wishes #society

Apr 15 · 118

[ Modern construction ]

Zywa Apr 15

[ Modern construction ]

Modern Construction

regards doors as a problem --

and reinvents them.

Comic strip #81 - "Tom Poes en De beunhaas" ("Tom **** and The Fidler", 1958, Marten Toonder), tier 3463

Collection "**** & Lord"

#building #construction #doors

Apr 14 · 53

[ People who want all ]

Zywa Apr 14

[ People who want all ]

People who want all,

should be expecting problems --

with their digestion.

Ghazal 323 / Ode 323, "The moon smiles upon you" (13th century, Muhammad Jalal al-Dīn Balkhi Rumi)

Collection "Willegos"

#gluttony

Apr 14 · 50

[ Well, I've become who ]

Zywa Apr 14

[ Well, I've become who ]

Well, I've become who

I didn't want to be, and she --

is okay with it.

Theatre programme "Gut" ("Gosh", 2016-2017, Sanne Wallis de Vries)

Collection "Willegos"

#identity #life #personalgrowth

Apr 13 · 72

[ The Great Superboss ]

Zywa Apr 13

[ The Great Superboss ]

The Great Superboss

funes the stock markets: a crash --

of bulk moneyballs.

Comic strip #104 - "Heer Bommel en De Bovenbazen" ("Sir Bumble and The Superbosses", 1963, Marten Toonder)

Stock market manipulation by United States President Trump on April 4th, 2025

Collection "**** & Lord"

#capitalism #politics #insideroffence

Apr 13 · 95

[ Embittered by dregs ]

Zywa Apr 13

[ Embittered by dregs ]

Embittered by dregs

of liquorice, black and white --

speak with a black tongue.

Comic strip #96 - "Het boze oog" ("The Evil Eye", 1961, Marten Toonder), tier 4462

Collection "**** & Lord"

#gossip #intolerance #discrimination

Apr 12 · 129

[ Mirroring yourself ]

Zywa Apr 12

[ Mirroring yourself ]

Mirroring yourself

without ego on others:

a soft reflection.

Comic strip #58 - "Tom Poes en De Spiegelaar" ("The Mirrorer", 1953-1954, Marten Toonder), tier 2107

The saying 'wie zich aan een ander spiegelt, spiegelt zich zacht' means: 'one man's fault is another man's lesson'

Collection "**** & Lord"

#mirror #identity #ego

Apr 12 · 80

[ Apart from science ]

Zywa Apr 12

[ Apart from science ]

Apart from science

it is not allowed by law --

to tell the whole truth.

Comic strip #61 - "Tom Poes en De Waarzegger" ("Tom **** and The Truth Teller", 1954, Marten Toonder), tier 2310

Collection "**** & Lord"

#truth #society #discretion

Apr 11 · 43

[ Mama's don't believe ]

Zywa Apr 11

[ Mama's don't believe ]

Mama's don't believe

you, 'yeah yeah', they often say --

'but in the meantime!'

Novel "Het duister dat ons scheidt" (2003, "The darkness that separates us", Renate Dorrestein), part 1, 'Zes' ('Six' years old), chapter 'C is een crisis' ('C is a crisis')

Collection "Old sore"

#motherhood

Apr 11 · 64

[ We keep playing. When ]

Zywa Apr 11

[ We keep playing. When ]

We keep playing. When

mama's are acting up that's --

the best thing to do.

Novel "Het duister dat ons scheidt" (2003, "The darkness that separates us", Renate Dorrestein), part 1, 'Zes' ('Six' years old), chapter 'B is een brandnetel' ('B is a brandnetel [stinging nettle]')

Collection "Old sore"

#childhood

Apr 10 · 59

[ Behind man's success ]

Zywa Apr 10

[ Behind man's success ]

Behind man's success

there is a woman watching --

it in amazement!

Novel "Zonder genade" (2001, "Without mercy", 2004, Renate Dorrestein), part 1, 'In De Put' ('In The Dumps'), chapter 'Wat Jem altijd zei' ('What Jem always said')

Collection "Old sore"

#success

Apr 10 · 59

[ I'd like to invent ]

Zywa Apr 10

[ I'd like to invent ]

I'd like to invent

a board game with bad luck points --

if you were to lose.

Novel "Zonder genade" (2001, "Without mercy", 2004, Renate Dorrestein), part 3, 'Ga Terug Naar Af' ('Back To Square One'), chapter 'Wat Phinus bereikt' ('What Phinus achieves')

Collection "Old sore"

#game #justice

Apr 9 · 69

[ An unwanted guest ]

Zywa Apr 9

[ An unwanted guest ]

An unwanted guest:

that happens to Lords only --

in a scary dream.

Comic strip #48 - "Tom Poes en Het Wroeg-Wezen" ("Tom **** and The Remorse-being", 1952, Marten Toonder), tier 1608

Collection "**** & Lord"

#hospitality

Apr 9 · 40

[ Register in tri- ]

Zywa Apr 9

[ Register in tri- ]

Register in tri-

plicate please! the beadles plead:

your name and shoe size!

Comic strip #42 - "Tom Poes en Eh… dinges" ("Tom **** and Eh… whatever", 1950-1951, Marten Toonder), tier 1222

Collection "**** & Lord"

#order

Apr 8 · 124

[ I arch my shoulder ]

Zywa Apr 8

[ I arch my shoulder ]

I arch my shoulder

in fright, and zoom, away flies --

my guardian angel.

Novel "Ontaarde moeders" (1992, "Unnatural mothers", 1994, Renate Dorrestein), chapter 4, 'Veilig bij Moeder op schoot' ('Safe on Mother's lap')

Collection "Old sore"

#fear #menace #angel

Apr 8 · 78

[ There's a smell of food ]

Zywa Apr 8

[ There's a smell of food ]

There's a smell of food

in the hallways, it's Monday --

meat wrapped sausage day.

Novel "Ontaarde moeders" (1992, "Unnatural mothers", 1994, Renate Dorrestein), chapter 4, 'Veilig bij Moeder op schoot' ('Safe on Mother's lap') - Bacon-wrapped ground meat: in Belgium and the Netherlands called 'slavink'

Collection "Old sore"

#smell #routine #weeks #order

Apr 7 · 187

[ I sometimes receive ]

Zywa Apr 7

[ I sometimes receive ]

I sometimes receive

mail with no meaning attached:

an exchange parcel.

Comic strip #173 - "Heer Ollie en Een Bommelding" ("Sir Oliver and A Bomble-thing", 1983, Marten Toonder), tier 1387

Collection "**** & Lord"

#communication #post

Apr 7 · 91

[ My mind is made up ]

Zywa Apr 7

[ My mind is made up ]

My mind is made up:

I throw away all my lies!

Beware of the bang!

Comic strip #171 "Heer Bommel en De Antiloog" ("Sir Bumble and The Antiliar", 1982, Marten Toonder), tier 01167

Collection "**** & Lord"

#goodwill #lies #ethics

Apr 6 · 121

[ Let us sing of life ]

Zywa Apr 6

[ Let us sing of life ]

Let us sing of life

and of sorrow, let us toast --

to comfort ourselves.

Old Chinese poem: "The drinking song of earth's sorrow", 1908, Gustav Mahler, based on the free version by Hans Bethge from 1907, after "Bei gexing" by Li Bai [701-762], in a 1705 collection

Collection "Thinkles Lusionless"

#comfort #life #together #social

Apr 6 · 67

[ Will it start soon? Or ]

Zywa Apr 6

[ Will it start soon? Or ]

Will it start soon? Or

has it already started?

Is it war right now?

Novella "Tralievader" (1991, "Nightfather", 1994, Carl Friedman), chapter 'Greuelmärchen' (Atrocity story)

Collection "Thinkles Lusionless"

#war #thinking

Apr 5 · 180

[ Evening, I'm alone ]