Monday, August 24, 2009

Cousin Angelo's garden

ISOLA                                                                            
   
                          Di te amore m'attrista,                                                                                 
mia terra, se oscuri profumi                                                 
perde la sera d'aranci,                                                         
o d'oleandri sereno,                                                           
cammina con rose il torrente                                               
che quasi n'e' tocca la foce.                                                
Ma se torno a tue rive                                                         
e dolce voce al canto                                                           
chiama da strada timorosa                                                  
non so se infanzia o amore,                                                  
desio d'altri cieli mi volge,                                                   
e mi nascondo nelle perdute cose.                                       
Salvatore Quasimodo                                                        
Sicilian Writer
Nobel Prize for Literature, 1959
ISLAND
Love of you saddens me,
my earth, if evening sheds
dark perfumes of orange trees,
or oleanders, if -serene-
the torrent flows with roses
that almost reach its esturary.
But if I return to your shores
and, in song, a soft voice calls,
fearful, from the road -
I know not whether childhood or love,
longing for other skies turns me,
and I hide in the forgotten things.
Translated by Allen Mandelbaum

10 comments:

  1. Your photos of these flowers are really outstanding!!! My favorite is the pink rose.

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  2. Beautiful writing and very beautiful flowers. Most enjoyable.

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  3. Hi Maria, Truly magnificent photos and pretty words. Our dog is a wire-haired miniature Dachshund. She is a light reddish gold but is 8 years old and is turning kinda silvery blonde. If you love cats, it is not too hard to adjust a dog to one. You have to gradually introduce them, keep them separated at first and let them sniff under a door to get used to one another. I have always had cats but never a dog. Harriet belonged to my Mother who passed away one year ago. She and the two younger cats have a good time playing. Thanks for your visit. You sure have some lovely photos on your blog.

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  4. Hi Mildred, thank you for the nice comments.
    Also thank you for the information about Harriet and the cats. The suggestions are great and they will come handy when I bring a cat into the house. My Koko is a little spoiled, ok. a lot spoiled, but I think that given time she will adjust.
    So sorry about your mom. I know that it is very difficult to lose a mom, mine passed away five years ago.
    Thank you for your visit and the help.

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  5. So beautiful, Maria! I especially like the peek past the oleander toward the mountains, but those two rose photos that are all petals feel like I could fall into them.

    Is that wisteria at the bottom? The more I saw your photos, the more I was feeling the climate of Librizzi must surely be near to ours - the flora is quite the same. Indeed - we're 29N, and Librizzi is 38N. That's close enough to be near the same gardening zone! With the added maritime influence, it all makes sense.

    A lovely entry.

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  6. Good morning Shore, very happy to find you here this morning. My visits to Texas have been brief, only as part of two tours of New Mexico, Arizona, etc.. But from what I remember, I would say yes, the climate is similar and the flora is the same. I remember loving the cacti in Texas and feeling that I was in familiar territory. I was sad that the prickly pear fruit wasn't ripe and ready for eating.
    The roses grow so beautifully in the Sicilian climate! How about in your area? Here in VA they are hard to grow because of the humidity and the diseases that they acquire due to the fungus that grows on them. Yes, there are lots of people in this area who grow them nicely but I no longer have the patience to constantly fuss with them.
    Thank you for creating the vision of falling in those fragrant enfolding petals. Oblivion, nirvana, happiness.

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  7. Hi Maria..
    I love reading your poetic words..
    while sharing your photos!
    lovely indeed!

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  8. Good morning Lou. Thank you for the lovely note.

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