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580 · Sep 2024
[ We were here before ]
Zywa Sep 2024
We were here before;

then, like blind people, we didn't --


notice each other.
Short story "September in the Rain" (2024, Marijke Schermer), in the NRC of September 5th, 2024

Collection "Loves Tricks Gains Pains in the 20s"
580 · Dec 2021
Bow waves
Zywa Dec 2021
My world doesn't have to be bigger
than as far as my eyes reach
yet they see a new horizon
when I look around over there

.....Give me your hand, wait
.....a while with going and come
.....with me, together
.....we can be at home

I will always stand still
on street corners
looking where the sun is
where the clouds go

.....Take off your jacket, your fear
.....be happy here
.....take a bath
.....I'll give you a massage

Indefinite scents
blow over the beach
my feet push
bow waves in the sand
Man and woman

Collection "The migration"
579 · Apr 2021
Space Oddity
Zywa Apr 2021
I take a bath in salt water
where gravity does not exist
On the shelf, there is a new set
of the same clothes laid out

There is no concert hall here
and no outside for walking
only a greenhouse
where I like to sniff scents

free of human traces
the skin creams and soap
with which we, counted acquaintances
distinguish ourselves

And when I take care
to *** silent and to ****
not sputtering
leave the light out

and have *** carefully slow
I am the only one on the toilet
in my bed and the bath
who spies on me
Covid-19 Lockdown

Song “Space Oddity” by David Bowie (1969, album “David Bowie”)

Collection “BloodTrunk"
Zywa Jul 2022
They are old, they laugh

at us men: the childhood friends --


still flirting like girls.
"Gelijken" ("Equals", 2003, Mustafa Stitou)

Collection "Loves Tricks Gains Pains in the 0s and 10s"
579 · Jul 2023
[ Disabled people ]
Zywa Jul 2023
Disabled people

evolve, as human beings --


they become braver.
Novel "The Good Apprentice" (1985, Iris Murdoch), chapter 2, part 6

Collection "Unspoken"
578 · Jul 2023
[ If I could gull, I ]
Zywa Jul 2023
If I could gull, I

would comfortably eat fish --


near the herring stall.
Column "Meeuw" ("Gull", Georgina Verbaan, in NRC, June 17th, 2017)

Collection "No wonder"
578 · Aug 2021
[ The purgatory ]
Zywa Aug 2021
The purgatory:

suffering with a prospect --


of complete Goodness!
"Nuns and Soldiers" (1980, Iris Murdoch) --- Collection "Thinkles Lusionless"
578 · Apr 2021
[ Between the words, I ]
Zywa Apr 2021
Between the words, I

write my anxiety: white –


that doesn't disappear.
“De geschiedenis van mijn seksualiteit” (“The story of my sexuality”, 2021, Sofia Lakmaker)

Collection "VacantVoid"
577 · Aug 2023
[ On expectations ]
Zywa Aug 2023
On expectations,

the bar is set so high that --


I pass under it.
Column "Gewoon uitzitten" ("Just sit it out", 2023, Ellen Deckwitz)

Collection "Death on Cast"
577 · Jul 2023
[ To keep her and me ]
Zywa Jul 2023
To keep her and me

from being alone, I put --


an arm around her.
Novel "De laatste kans - De geschiedenis van een liefde" ("The last chance - The history of a love", 1960, Simon Vestdijk), chapter 1-1

Collection "Inmost [2]"
576 · Jun 2021
[ Before the sunrise ]
Zywa Jun 2021
Before the sunrise:

the gloaming greenish notlight –


of the dark blue sky.
“O verde do céu azul antes do sol ir a nascer” (“The green of the blue sky before the sun is being born”, 1919, Alberto Caeiro [Fernando Pessoa] )

Collection "Appearances"
576 · Apr 2021
But
Zywa Apr 2021
But
In the tearoom, we pretend
to be good friends – in turn
we bounceball our days

If only I could make contact
but with words, it doesn't work
Our hands are close together

We gaze outside
it can't be explained
although we understand

And that already comes too close
For CW #1

Collection "The migration"
575 · Jul 2022
[ I certainly would ]
Zywa Jul 2022
I certainly would

do anything for love, but --


I just don't do it.
"I'd do anything for love (but I won't do that)" (1993, Jim Steinman) - sung by Meat Loaf

Collection "Loves Tricks Gains Pains in the 80s and 90s"
574 · Jun 2022
[ We are in danger ]
Zywa Jun 2022
We are in danger,

yet we rather behave deaf --


Blasting lights. On. Off.
'108 Sound Rebellion' (Elisabeth Hubmann [Hall 1994], Giulio Tosti [Roma], Adrian Foster [Lethbridge 1982] and Michele del Prete [Venezia]), for organs and electronics
Parts 'Creation'/'Nature'/'Birds'/'Human'/'Machine'/ 'Disturbance'/'ALARM'/'Chaos'/'Aftermath'

Collection 'org anp ark' #220
574 · Aug 2023
[ The rich, exhausted ]
Zywa Aug 2023
The rich, exhausted

from all the deprivations --


of their agenda.
"The Queen of the Tambourine" (1991, Jane Gardam), § late January and March 10th (1990)

Collection "Rasping ants"
574 · Feb 2022
[ I penetrate her ]
Zywa Feb 2022
I penetrate her,

digging for her promises --


my soul roves about.
Immigrant
"Genker liefde" ("Genk love", 2017, Mustafa Kör)

Collection "Truder"
572 · Sep 2021
For girls and for peace
Zywa Sep 2021
The song, that girl, touches me
time and time again, although I don't want to
think often of her

That girl without hair comb
without dress, just only a number
on her hand

and Antonis who carries someone else's burden

For whom do I carry the burden
of their lives, why
is their life also mine?

It just has to be for you
neighbour, for you, refugee
for girls and for peace
The Ballad of Mauthausen (1963, Iakovos Kambanellis; 1965, music Mikis Theodorakis; 1966, performed by Maria Farantouri)

Collection "BloodTrunk"
572 · Jun 2024
[ The highest ruler ]
Zywa Jun 2024
The highest ruler,

the self, is hungry, in need --


of beauty and love.
Novel "The Enchantress of Florence" (2008, Salman Rushdie), part 1, chapter 2

Collection "Low gear"
572 · Sep 2022
[ Memories, I had ]
Zywa Sep 2022
Memories, I had

few, in my youth, yet I thought --


they were worth nothing.
"Grand Hotel Europa" (2018, Ilja Leonard Pfeijffer)

Collection "Palace of the Night"
572 · May 2022
[ With a gentle urge ]
Zywa May 2022
With a gentle urge

the drums of love are beating --


open all my doors.
"TGTT" ("Too Good to Title", 1968, Duke Ellington, album "Second Sacred Concert"), performed by Steven Kamperman (clarinet), Berry van Berkum (*****), Dion Nijland (double bass), Joost Buis (trombone) and Ruben Drent (trumpet) on May 14th, 2022 in the Organpark

Collection "org anp ark" #206
572 · Oct 2022
[ I saw 'Les amants' ]
Zywa Oct 2022
I saw 'Les amants'

and then I walked home, longing --


to love as they did.
Memoires "Het verkoolde alfabet" (Memoirs "The carbonised alphabet", 1992, Paul de Wispelaere)

Collection "Loves Tricks Gains Pains in the 80s and 90s"
570 · Jun 2022
The barbarians have come
Zywa Jun 2022
The barbarians have come
and they keep coming
century after century

We are polite, we give
them high titles
They give us their laws

in a nice speech
with eloquent words
about civilisation in our wilderness

that we nota bene no longer
need to live like savages
no longer in the wilderness

The barbarians have come
and they keep coming
century after century obedient

to the right and the interests
that threaten them with the strong arm
the hard hand, and a ripped out tongue
#14 "Periménontas tous Barbárous" ("Waiting for the Barbarians" (1904, Konstantínos Kaváfis)

The Iroquois are the league of the five tribes (nations) Mohawk, Oneida, Onanondaga, Cayuga and Seneca; this league is called Kaianerekowa = Great Law of Peace

In the council of the league are speakers (sachem) those who bring the position of their group and try to convince the others to agree with it (the Aztecs named these speakers 'tlatoani', with Moctezuma as huey-tlatoami [supreme speaker]); it is honorable to be a speaker, but there is no power attached to it, so that the settlers wrongly treated the speakers as 'chief'

Collection "The drama"
570 · Apr 2022
[ In your sleep I reach ]
Zywa Apr 2022
In your sleep I reach

for you and I nestle you --


entirely in me.
For Dory dK

Collection "Eyes lips chest and belly"
568 · Nov 2023
[ When I can't handle ]
Zywa Nov 2023
When I can't handle

it anymore, I am saved --


by hours of boredom.
Novel "Munya" (name: "Wish/Desire/ What is longed for permanently even though it is very difficult to get", 2008, Abdelkader Benali), chapter Morocco

Collection "VacantVoid"
568 · Sep 2022
[ I'm melancholy ]
Zywa Sep 2022
I'm melancholy,

though not for what has been, but --


for what should have been.
"Weggaan. En terugkomen" ("Leaving. And coming back", 1979, Herman de Coninck)

Collection "Shortages"
567 · Mar 2023
[ I know what she needs ]
Zywa Mar 2023
I know what she needs,

she's inconsolable, so --


I don't console her.
Dead son to his mother
"De zoon" - I ("The son" - I, 2002, Hester Knibbe)

Collection "Stream"
Zywa May 2022
There are lots of stones

in my own cemetery --


heavy on my thoughts.
The weight of your own past

Collection "BloodTrunk"
566 · Apr 2023
[ I can be a saint ]
Zywa Apr 2023
I can be a saint

in helping people, I should --


try that out to know.
Novel "The time of the angels" (1966, Iris Murdoch), § 8

Collection "Unspoken"
566 · Feb 2023
[ Father is buried ]
Zywa Feb 2023
Father is buried,

there is more light now, the sky --


is so much wider.
"Het Bureau - Het A.P. Beerta-Instituut" ("The Office - The A.P. Beerta-Institute", 1998, Han Voskuil), page 45

Collection "Not too bad [1974-1989]"
566 · Jun 2024
[ In the beautiful ]
Zywa Jun 2024
In the beautiful

merging of lovers, love turns --


out to be self-love.
Novel "Victory City" [Vijayanagar >> Bisnaga] (2023, Salman Rushdie), part 3: Glory, chapter 15

Collection "Low gear"
Zywa Nov 2021
The air roars and shakes:

Move, move! I hide myself, half --


behind the window.
Collection "NightWatch"
Zywa Apr 2023
Oh, these good old days...

how elusively little --


is left of them now.
"Het Bureau - Afgang" ("The Office - Failure", 2000, Han Voskuil), page 112, Maarten Koning at the Stamp Market (near Dam Square) - 1983

Collection "Not too bad [1974-1989]"
564 · Jun 2021
[ Naivety with ]
Zywa Jun 2021
Naivety with

large lots of lead in a barn –


that makes a goldmine!
#139 – “Heer Bommel en de loodhervormer” (#139 – “Sir Bumble and the lead-reformer”, 1972, Marten Toonder)

Collection "Bearer Toonder"
564 · Jan 2024
[ Between star and night ]
Zywa Jan 2024
Between star and night,

between black skin and white skin --


our fire is burning.
Poem "Yúya Karrabúra" ("Fire is Burning", 2015, Alice Eather)

Collection "SoulSenseSun"
563 · Aug 2023
[ Educational ]
Zywa Aug 2023
Educational

books are given to children --


who are our teachers.
"The Queen of the Tambourine" (1991, Jane Gardam), § March 10th (1990)

Collection "On the fly"
563 · May 2021
[ This is our good life ]
Zywa May 2021
This is our good life:

a whole lot of food has been –


cast before the pigs.
“Cien años de soledad” (“One Hundred Years of Solitude”, 1967, Gabriel García Márquez)

Collection "After the festivities"
Zywa Jun 2022
Dad makes clouds, makes them

hover, I am protected --


against the sun's rays.
"de wolkenverzamelaar" ("the cloud collector", 1998, Ilja Leonard Pfeijffer)

Collection "Palace of the Night"
562 · Feb 2022
The bull
Zywa Feb 2022
His black eye looks back
to me, we are alone
in the meadow, in the roadside

I hold my breath
everything becomes lighter
around the black

Meadow and road the world
empty and we eye
and beating heart

Heavy and firmly
my legs all four
in the ground

Strength crackles
around the electric barbed wire
in my insides
For Maria Godschalk #158

Collection "Lilith's Powers" #67
561 · Sep 2023
[ The poets return ]
Zywa Sep 2023
The poets return

through the former slave gate, with --


liberated words.
"La Caravane de la Poésie" in 1999 - Poet Thierno Seydou Sall speaks in Kaolack about the slave gate of Gorëe (island off Dakar, Sénégal), the "door of no return" ("porte sans retour")

Tale "A Change of tongue" (2003, Antjie Krog)

Collection "Over"
561 · Jul 2022
[ The walnut tree falls ]
Zywa Jul 2022
The walnut tree falls

slowly, horribly, it groans --


sadly in my ear.
"De boom N" ("Tree N", 1994, Peter Verhelst)

Collection "After the festivities"
560 · Jul 2023
[ Just ask anyone ]
Zywa Jul 2023
Just ask anyone

for a story and you'll get --


their complete life course.
Novel "The PowerBook" (2000, Jeanette Winterson), chapter "spitalfields"

Collection "Specialities"
560 · Jun 2022
So, goodbye then
Zywa Jun 2022
There is no good ending
The sun goes down
without colouring heaven

No birds, no music
I don't even cry
just say: so, goodbye then

It sounds so easy
but I look away and wait
until it's over

When did you slip away from me?
When did we stop talking
about what we don't understand

and gradually didn't know
about each other anymore
not each other's anymore?
Album "Watertown" (1970, Jake Holmes, sung by Frank Sinatra): "Goodbye (She Quietly Says)" and "The Train"

Collection "Reaching out"
560 · Jun 2024
[ A sorcerer doesn't ]
Zywa Jun 2024
A sorcerer doesn't

need a wand or other stuff --


Words are sufficient.
Novel "The Enchantress of Florence" (2008, Salman Rushdie), part 1, chapter 5

Collection "Low gear"
560 · Apr 2019
[ Above my sadness ]
Zywa Apr 2019
Above my sadness,

swallows are swiftly winging –


in the laughing winds.
"Donna Donna" (1960, Joan Baez)
Zywa Oct 2023
Miss Pinch holds the word

Women like a mouse away --


from her, by its tail.
Novel "Lighthousekeeping" (2004, Jeanette Winterson), chapter Great Exhibition [AD 1851]

Collection "Low gear"
Zywa Aug 2024
For the guests there are

flowers, and hidden in them:


fleas waiting to strike.
Play "[Acastos -] Above the gods", a Platonic dialogue (1986, Iris Murdoch)

Collection "Unspoken"
559 · Mar 3
[ He sings about me ]
Zywa Mar 3
He sings about me,

about my desperation --


Everyone hears it.
Song "Killing me softly with his song" (1972, Lori Lieberman and Norman Gimbel, music Charles Fox), sung in 1973 by Roberta Flack (album "Killing me softly with his song")

Collection "Finethreads"
559 · Oct 2021
[ The sun sets faster ]
Zywa Oct 2021
The sun sets faster,

so the days become shorter --


More time for the moon.
Collection "Moons"
559 · Dec 2023
[ I was well prepared ]
Zywa Dec 2023
I was well prepared,

but when you came, it melted --


in my happiness.
Poem "I thought the Train would never come" (1878, Emily Dickinson)

Collection "Love Mind and Death"
558 · Mar 2022
[ I am weightless, rocked ]
Zywa Mar 2022
I am weightless, rocked,

embedded in the warm moon --


of your body curve.
For Dory dK

Collection "Eyes lips chest and belly"
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