On the day I die,

or on subsequent days,

whatever will be the new world

to which I will be sent,

I will never stop missing this one,

where for so many years I lived.

Forever I will remember these happy days,

friends, lovers, sincere smiles and kind words,  

born of honest coexistence with my fellow ones.

I will be sure the body that will remain here,

defeated by time and its ills, surely had carried  

a strong spirit with which had been born,

such spirit will last forever and ever.  

I will learn to discard, what will give me even

a certain pleasure, those dark moments left by

unconscious brothers, misfits in their generation,  

who gave me anything and added up to nothing.    

The good memories I will carry far outweigh

the disappointments and displeasures I faced;

these latter, perhaps, to some extent, fruit  

of too much believe, too little misdoubt.

This poem and all others at this blog, authored by Edilson Afonso Ferreira ©

Mornings and afternoons, centuries and seasons,

they are always blowing the dust which settles

in my body, daily corrupting and weakening it.

Age weighs heavily, muscles become thinner,

thoughts flow slowly, hair thins and turns white,

I cannot hide or camouflage the marks  

of the passing years.    

But my spirit has been kept deep inside my soul,

and, quite the contrary, it strengthens, does not

break down, it rejuvenates and rises up.

And so, I am coming to the end of my times,

perhaps I can still represent a little 

of our long-suffering and beloved human race.

The one that fights and does not give up on continuing

to write their history of difficult struggles,

many setbacks, few but valuable achievements

and victories, what serve as an example

and encouragement to those who will come.

This poem and all others at this blog, authored by Edilson Afonso Ferreira ©

Day is done, has finished its performance.

Stilly slides, hides its face from our world.

Has given us a time to be, weave our cloths.

Still carries some untold words and feelings

some of us had not been able to demonstrate.

This poem and all others at this blog, authored by Edilson Afonso Ferreira ©

Maybe because I prefer to be his pupil forever,

sometimes I don’t find myself having thoughts of my own

nor do I adventure to live in a new world,

different of this one you have always given us.

This is a world that enchants and leaves us comfortable,

and, with exceptions we always deplore,  

once we follow what we were taught,

we have had happy times,

bright dawns and superb afternoons.

Not that we are tired, dissatisfied or incredulous,

with the roadmap you have given us since long ago.  

Would it be ill-advised to ask you to touch the hearts

and minds of some of our fellow ones, those adverse

to the good coexistence and human fraternity?

Those who seem to take pleasure in transgressing

and circumventing the laws you and we have enacted?

You know they are always postponing and making unfeasible

the path we have tried to follow, which will lead us, one day,

to the land you promised, where flow abundantly honey

and milk, and evil never finds shelter.

This poem and all others at this blog, authored by Edilson Afonso Ferreira ©

Sharing with friends my poem “Stumbles, Ambushes, and Spells”, today published in the November 2023 issue of the Literary Review 7THCircle Pyrite. Many thanks to the dear editor Keiraj M. Gilles. https://www.7thcirclepyrite.com/post/stumbles-ambushes-and-spells

Sharing with friends my poem “Hope”, just published in the printed Literary Review “WestWard Quarterly”, its Fall 2023 issue. Many thanks to the dear editors Richard Leonard and Shirley Anne Leonard.

Sharing with friends my five poems “A Cherished Dream”, “Pride”, “Fears, Feelings and Wants”, “The Land we will reach” and “Blessed Inheritance”, today published on the Literary Site “Fevers of the Mind”. Many thanks to the dear editor David O” Nan. https://feversofthemind.com/2023/09/18/a-fevers-of-the-mind-poetry-showcase-edilson-afonso-ferreira/