Lost in translation
I dreamt I swam the waves, a few days ago
Somewhere between my bed sheets and the Atlantic
I was gently rocked
I saw a picture of Luis’ new piano, an upright with history
my paintings on his walls,
the ones that can be seen from the streets
Of cobblestones
My new favorite Portuguese word
Parallel ippipedos!!!
Through the giant picture windows
I spent the summer painting views, flowers & people
Such simple subjects
Which cause such longing in me
I'm still there
(I imagine living in his house as an old lady,
Or running the museum of my past loves
Building a cushion of work and community
And finding a room where nobody asks me to do chores
I suspect they love me
In any language,
Especially the words spoken by the ocean
Translations lost to the waves
And every flavor of food
Eaten at the round table in the kitchen
My gay cousin that my mom wants me to marry
My divorced cousin who thinks he's James Bond,
But who needs his mom to keep him fed.
Miguel& I played modern American hits
Which I would hate in America
on the radio in the cheap euro car
The yellow dragon
Gliding past glorious fields in the haze of sunset
Awkward conversation yielding to jokes
Everything ending with a dip in the ocean,
If the waves cooperate
We can swim
And only once was it calm enough
And we were brave enough to touch the white buoys
Which look yellow when you squint from the shore
Too much beauty to turn into art
They don't need my alchemy
I have confusing dreams today
Where you can go back to the starting point
Start the scene over again
And play out both choices
In whatever language you want
And I love the idea of the modern “SHARING” economy
Which implies all the benefits of socialism
And all the drawbacks of capitalism
We will share everything and have nothing.
I know I should FIGHT for a house of my own
For my own physical things
But I believe the fewer things I have
And the more art that I can give away
Or SELL on a good day
Strengthens my value in this world.
And then I wake up, and like a big girl, I pay my bills
And cry.
