Poetry Rules

A few days ago, John and I met Marco Cinque , my poetical brother, for lunch. Marco is not only an incredibly talented poet, he is an amazing photographer and musician. Jack Hirschman considers him Italy's best engaged poet and I thoroughly agree. I was so pleased to have him take pictures of John and me. Right in front of his office on a wall there is a message that says: "La poesia salverà il mondo" (i.e. Poetry Will Save the World). Marco insisted in taking a picture of us there, among others. I am in love with this photo. It tells so much. It means so much to me. I am posting that very picture and a few others Marco took on that day.

I know I lost track of my poetry in the past few months. Sometimes life seems to get in the way and there is very little I can do to stop it from interfering with writing. Summer is always the best season for me to reconnect with myself and to fill my notebooks with a good amount of poems and words. John is a good creative force and so is love. No wonder this August has put me back on track. I have been writing, reading, editing and submitting with renewed vigor. And then there is this beautiful demon named love and its siblings life and art. My tricephalic Muse, for which I am truly grateful. Bernini's Cerberus  

Long-distance relationships require a lot of patience and love. This is what I tell myself every time John flies back to the States. It is hard and I feel pretty much like Demeter who has to let Persephone head back to Hades. Well California is not exactly Hades, but I hope to have conveyed the message. I am ready to keep myself as busy as I can till next summer. It won't be hard this year. I am currently managing Pandemonium (aka as my translation agency) all by myself since the month of September. It is hard and engaging, but a beautiful endeavor as always. I am also resuming my work on the WIPs. And, getting ready for more reading too. I have a pile of TBR books and two brand new additions I bought in the past few days that I simply cannot wait to read: Toni Morrison' s latest novel, God Help the Child , and Patti Smith 's M-Train . And so, John has just left Rome. Jack is in Italy, but not heading to Rome this year. Alas, fall does not tread lightly. Let the winter...