Maria Do Sameiro Barroso

 

Maria Do Sameiro Barroso

 

The Moon Of May

 

The moon of May is an imaginary

garden.

I plant it under the stones every day.

I pick sapphires and lilies

as silk ascends.

In my hands, the vegetable light

of parsley grows

among golden bowls.

My heart is sick.

I hear a strange mazurka.

When the sun goes down,

the town is full of emeralds.

Lisbon is a jewel of mud,

the river is full of corpses,

and salt crystal glimpses

in ancient memories of seafaring

covered with blood and lymph.

 

 

Stages Of Shadow

 

Scars are the canvas of sorrow,

I never forget their stages of shadow,

I never forget their moons of light.

You should never forget the ocean.

Never forget your tears.

You should never forget the sand,

the green waves,

or beloved hands.

Nothing moves unless you cry.

You should never forget the heavy clouds,

the burning skies.

Your heart is sweet, like a tree,

like an almond.

Never turn back your face to your sorrow.

Your early maps are written

on the willows.

 

 

Empty Shells

 

I’m an empty cloth. I only have my words

to sing.

So, I grasp the veins of beauty,

walk through endless corridors,

gather blue wisteria, sunny topazes,

memories of nothing,

I grab your singing dreams.

I taste honey, rose-water,

and empty shells shine in deep valleys,

amongst blue sapphires.

 

I hold memories of water.

The fishermen stay still in the dusk.

True feeling pertains to you.

My true ancestors were crowned

with mist and night.

 

Roses of fog belong to me.

 

MARIA DO SAMEIRO BARROSO

 

MARIA DO SAMEIRO BARROSO (Portugal) is a medical doctor and a multilingual poet, translator, essayist and researcher in Portuguese and German Literature, translations studies and History of Medicine. She has authored over 40 books of poetry, published in Portugal, Brazil, Spain, France, Serbia, Belgium, Albany, USA, and translations and books of essays. Her poems are translated into over twenty languages. She was awarded national and international prizes such as International Prize Pray of Mother Teresa, Literary Club “Gjon Nikkollë Kazazi, Gjakovë, Kosovo (2019); Prix du Concours International de poésie de l'Académie Européene des Sciences, des Arts et des Lettres (AESAL) 2020; 1st Prize "Versos del Pilcomayo” Bolivia (2020).