Los Poemas

 Los Poemas

Xánath Caraza

 

Como parte del Rio Grande Valley International Poetry Festival 2022, conduje un taller de poesía el sábado 30 de abril.  El taller se hizo de manera híbrida con audiencia presencial y en línea. Se unieron al llamado de poesía participantes de Connecticut, Los Ángeles, Nuevo México, Texas, Kansas City y Canadá.  Hoy, queridos lectores de La Bloga, le comparto algunos de los poemas que me hicieron llegar como resultado de este encuentro poético que ha organizado Edward Vidaurre. Ojalá y los disfruten tanto como yo. Que la poesía nos salve.

 

What is Happiness?

by Max Rodríguez and Yarina Ascencio

Happiness is awakefulness.

Happiness is allowing love in; allowing love out

loving so deeply, I fear its loss

the ocean on the shore, the bird in flight

the sun through a cloud, the sound of rain

children laughing

the sound of my wife's satisfaction

my son's skin touching mine

the joy of “yes”; the acceptance of “no”.

Happiness is one breath, my family in sleep.

 

Youthful Oblivion

by Roméo Desmarais III

The little girl layed out

her outfit for the day.

She dressed silently,

independently, gently

singing to herself.

 

Her mother had been

rushing, as busy mothers do.

 

How would they afford

the groceries, and those

bills, long overdue?

 

Her mother had been

worrying, as mothers

too often do, till

 

the tug at her sleeve

jolted her back to a

despairingly sad

realization:

 

she had forgotten her 

daughter’s birthday!

 

She quickly wiped her tears, 

picked up her darling, and

hugged her hard and

deep into her lap. 

 

Then, while stroking her head, 

she said:  “I shall 

gift you, my love, with

exactly how I 

see you:

 

with hopeful 

innocence, unfiltered 

joy, and a

 

shining halo of

pure, woven love!”

 

And so, for the rest of 

that birthday, at least,

 

the little girl carried

light and oblivion on

a single braid of hair.

 

The Single Braid of Hair

By Juliana Aragon Fatula

She opened her eyes to the bright light that illuminated the stage and blinded her and squinted from the pain. Her hair captured the light like the sun at daybreak, like the moon glowed at night. She listened to the applause from the audience. She bowed. She smiled. The curtain fell near her feet, and she stepped to the darkness and screamed silently in her head. The performance brought forth a magic she didn’t know she possessed. She listened for the sound of her heart in her chest, but only heard the cheers from the other side of the curtain. She forced herself to smile, but deep inside her she felt shame. She walked backstage and cried.

 

What is happiness? ¿Qué es la Felicidad?

by Juliana Aragon Fatula

Jammin’

Happiness walked in the door and began dancing. Happiness was skanking and shaking her hips, swaying to the beat, and her dreadlocks were flying smacking everyone near her. She heard the music in rhythm to her heartbeat. She felt light, full of love and peace. She danced her blues away as the music transported her to the islands. She smelled the clean and fresh tropical breeze. She felt the mist of the ocean on her skin, and it made her body vibrate. She heard the monkeys and birds in the trees. The rain fell on her face, and she opened her mouth and swallowed the jungle juice. She danced fast and slow. She moved without thinking and forgot about her heartache. Her body felt electric and alive. She stomped her feet and raised her hands in the air and took a breath inhale, exhale. She closed her eyes and opened them only when the music stopped. Everyone stared at her with their mouths open. She had been singing at the top of her lungs, “I wanna jammit wit you. We jammin. We jammin. I wanna jammit wit you.

 

La dicha al borde de degustar

by Stephen Holland-Wempe

Soñar es la felicidad.

Explorar lo que pueda ser un futuro de tantos.

Voyage through and being with crisp leaves sprouting on spring trees and pristine flowers blooming gold, purple, and burgundy.

Whiff of hot-out-of-the-oven almond blueberry muffins tenderly kneaded with love.

La dicha pronunciada desde los ojos límpidos y al borde de los labios con su sentir hacia la profundidad de mi ser.

Al yacer este sentir en degustar me lleva luz hacia las entrañas.

One mouthful, one blueberry, one strand of hair at a time, savored as droplets of energy, as droplets of enchantment.