
THE POEM
Tell me another story…
Tell me
Of liquid nights
And hands stretched out
Towards the fire…
I will look at your wrinkles
One by one
In the furrows on your brow
My heart will calm down.
Tell me another story…
Tell me
Near this fire
Of long journeys
Across immense deserts
Of crossings and monsters
Of heroes
Tell me of the land…
Its secret.
When the night
Sweetens your eyes
More lively is the flame when mirrored
In them
Slowly
In your soul and in mine
The fire will burn
And the lighted heart
Will be like the thorn bush
It will not be consumed…
Then I will be ready to enter
The secret of fire…
And of life
(Translation by Susan Perry)
From: Il segreto del Fuoco (1990)
© Bastogi Editrice, Foggia
Grottaglie (Brindisi). Fantiano quarry. Photo by Nicola Amato

