Philo's oPEN Freedom Forum

Comment

Comment by philo ikonya on March 5, 2010 at 9:46am

Winslow,

I commented on your poem straight away.. but the adding jammed and became part of the problems I had had handling new Macs in a school am in for a week.

I felt that you brought home to us what we do not usually really want to touch. I think that your poem is strong in touching our hypocrisy at times when we think that only some people have problems living. I identified with that man, but I will say that guy or gal fully. I also think that we are all not much better because we are able to see more deeply into his or her loneliness.It may be we are just accepting that we perhaps get away in a different way...that might be our bottle which is not really a bottle? I love the second and third verses very much. We cannot really ever know what a person goes through and our efforts as artists to still be there asking questions or capturing the eternity hidden in a split second makes me marvel.

We dont know all of his suffered life
only what I saw of how he strived.
He slept in my car last night again.
Trying to rest his thirst stood
a bulging pocket full of wine.
His frozen breath blew out the candle he tried to light.

When the morning comes the sun does rise
a lot to sweep at least he tries.
There is no ones hand to lend.
An empty chest and curse he should
it is how he spends his time.
An even trade to save a day and to save his lonely night.

Carsten, you take this discussion several notches higher...that misery is not too far away from us anytime. Have you seen how people react when a person they know, a friend or professional colleague commits suicide? I have several times. It is so painful. They say and ask, "but she/he was here talking and working with us...I spoke to him on phone.". another said.. " we were doing some work together.... I knew his wife was not happy... but..." So, I fully agree .. our own comment falls short and we wait for headlines and church services that urge contributions. I am at a kind of finishing school right now where young people are travelling and asking themselves what to do in life... great stage. But there I was sad to be part of a dying tradition! For 86 years here there has always been a bazaar once a year and the community and past pupils come in and raise money for a cause thru lottery. Last night was in fact for Haiti. But this was the last time they will do it because the people who started it have grown old and the younger ones do not want to carry on with it.. only once year? Sure, they will find other ways to give and do... but I looked at the whole set and wondered.. I may have missed a point.. but there seemed to be a clean break. Young ones singing in English about loving and giving in a pop way... older ones in choirs and religiously speaking... well, but how funny that I happen to be here to be part of this...!! And later I will find out if there has been any effort to upload on internet the history of the bazaar and to continue doing something on the net which the young people like. I could anyway just say all this is none of my business am just passing by...but I won´t. It is clear Carsten is speaking about something he practices. It always rings in our words... like it or not...I think that any giving opens our eyes more to all giving if we do not become cowardly due to lack?

Comment by Carsten Trotzkowski on March 4, 2010 at 11:38pm

Hello, old friends (if I may say so about blog friendships that last as long as our's),

Niran is right about Haiti and Chile, yet Billy reminds us that misery is never too far away from where we are, no matter where we go.

And again, this may remind us that it is our duty to help as much as we can - not only when we see the charity claims on TV, but when we sense there is someone who needs us right in our surroundings.

Yet this case includes a strange contradiction - it is so easy see misery far away when the TV brings it to our homes. But to our surprise, we often fail to sense the misery right next to us, because it is not being delivered in colourful pictures with professional comment and a banking target account in the subtitles. We have to step out of our daily routine and build up our own comment. And what's even more difficult, for the people in misery we meet every day, we cannot send cash to a support organisation somewhere, but in fact we have to engage ourselves directly with their individual story of misery, let our life become part of the other's.

Writers and poets like you bring the comment to real life, the comment we need to realise that misery is not simply like that fictional film after the newsflash.

Keep on writing!

:+) Carsten (+:

Comment by Billy Winslow on March 4, 2010 at 9:38pm

A true story

There was a man in the woods off of Eastway drive
and he lived a little different than you and I.
The only thing that loved him was mans best friend.
He lived the best but worst he could
not really living just alive.
He did not pay the rent until the day he died.

I dont know all of his suffered life
only what I saw of how he strived.
He slept in my car last night again.
Trying to rest his thirst stood
a bulging pocket full of wine.
His frozen breath blew out the candle he tried to light.

When the morning comes the sun does rise
a lot to sweep at least he tries.
There is no ones hand to lend.
An empty chest and curse he should
it is how he spends his time.
An even trade to save a day and to save his lonely night.

A life has gone wrong and out of sight
we know he is out of mind.
A broken car to stop the hard cold bitter wind.
He does not test or rehearse the woods
look deep and you will find.
He is there and no one cares but all do wonder why.

Comment by Niran Okewole on March 4, 2010 at 9:29pm

Hi Philo, am sure you are enjoying your trip. Me, I am working on a new volume of poems. A few stories too.

Comment by philo ikonya on March 4, 2010 at 5:45pm

Hei Niran!!

Oh yes, good to see you too!! I do not have a translation of the entire poem but I think it can be found.. will look it up. I love Mistra´ls silent and mysterious deep poetry.. may be cos am very loud? I tried to translate her into my Mother tongue but did not get too far.. i liked the challenge and may follow up later. I seemed to find her relationship with her country and mother very amazing... and now.. how are you? What are you working on? I have three novellas finished and am writing more since am guest writer here too... today am in Stavanger city but always i wake up in Kenya.. and I follow so much of what is going on through the internet and as an activist I have not left.....

Comment by Niran Okewole on March 4, 2010 at 7:28am

Philo and Carsten, Nice to hear from you again. So much has been happening...Haiti...Chile...Is the Mistral poem available in English translation?

Comment by philo ikonya on March 2, 2010 at 1:06am

To all members of Philo's oPEN freedom forum,

My sincere apologies for utter silence. I was crossing borders.. and that took me off some of my activities.. usual ones.. and somehow this was one of them. Please understand and 4give me and let's talk once again.. I am going to make a special effort to visit all my friends.. on the site... just to thank you! Am now a guest writer in Oslo City for the next few months.. I am as you know always in love with Kenya, so this is not easy for me but sometimes it seems some separation can do good! Hope to find you here with that human tone...

Comment by philo ikonya on March 2, 2010 at 1:01am

You see, to answer this, i went to the wrong site.. but am getting better... now. Oh yes, it is true. and then it worries me that sometimes.. if it is faraway from us.. it seems to far off for concern..I know people really moved for Haiti... and am sure we will all try for Chile..but how easy it is to just forget most of the times.. till you turn on some news channel... but anyway, we must also look at the great things.. going on in the world.. are there some by the way? I have been here with the biggest snowfall they have had since 30 years ago! Is this to mark my triumphant entry or what?

Comment by Carsten Trotzkowski on March 2, 2010 at 12:39am

Moin, Philo, good to have you back here. Have they finally brought some Norwegian internet connection to your home?

Thank you for posting a reminder that we are still the lucky ones on this planet.
The distance between joy and sorrow is so small.

:+) Carsten (+:

Comment by philo ikonya on March 2, 2010 at 12:25am

If it possible to move again.. here I am.. for discussions...tonight am thinking of the unhappy events in Haiti and now Santiago and Concepcion.. what!!??

Gabriela Mistral is a Chilean poet who fascinates me.
I re read her lines..

Perdi cordilleras
en donde dormi
perdi huertos de oro
dulces vivir;
Perdi yo las islas
de cana y anil
y las sombras
de ellow me las vi cenir
Y juntas y amantes
hacerse pais!

sense of loss.. so painful. ....

• ‹ Previous
• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• Next ›
• Page