Adobo Criollo Sergio Antonio Ortiz Rivera

joined through life's trials... below our eaves chrysanthemums blooming

you are subject to me like a roof is subject to its walls I came to you with my earth damp and intimate collapses 

like a fish out of water, this body of mine hot in the moonlight… I am subject to you the way water is subject to the moon

assault weapons... the autumn moon  red  with carnage

my hand drops below her waist— tremulous and flushed

your young face  my point of departure, the line I follow down almost to regret laying time  on your body, motionless in sleep I'm always happy to wake you, my present late wintery day…  your whining  doesn’t sound like you but like a voice living inside other voices I mold you              but you choose your own dream, then shatter . . . if we only knew the answer I am torn                               between you and your eyes. A monologue: Does one divided by nothing equal infinity?  Published in Aha Anthology, 2012

broken hearts beautiful little children laid to rest fireflies flying brighter than the city lights

exiled from the bedroom I swallow a tear at daybreak my passion in tatters

after a few tequilas we agree to change… hunger moon cherry blossoms… a pocket full of soft stones fireflies brighter than the city lights… family reunion

embracing her cooing son— moonflowers

terminally ill a snowman melts into darkness śmiertelnie chory bałwan wtapia się w mrok Sergio Ortiz San Juan, Stany Zjednoczone Polish International Haiku Competition Commended http://polish.international.competition.haiku.pl/results.php

birthday morning.... I no longer care for this old love of death the cold angel whose ruin I learn to accept

midday nap her eyes are no longer calico where  are the butterflies?  burning summer sun rusted garbage bins recycling plastic   

holding onto a finger— the veteran smiles at his new hand

http://www.theperegrinemuse.com/PoetsInternational/sergio-ortiz/ a few of my tanka have been published at The Peregrine Muse.  I am so happy. Sergio

el Macho Camacho gunned down in his last round of sunshine (for Hector, "El Macho Camacho")

tumbleweed— leaving a trail of blood across the desert fingerprints tracing an affair of the heart Gaza  my sunrise silence  battered by rockets 

tree frogs sing under mountain stars... a dream begins seaweed the strange aroma of sunset chamomile tea I close my eyes to hear  the nightingale Benghazi at dawn... recalling a peaceful dream death poem hummingbirds outside my back porch dawn the chiaroscuro warmth of adobe     wind music a gospel singer reaches for the light moonglow my neighbor’s hand clips the bonsai the voice that was no voice spoke hurricane yellow moon a skylark’s voice over the lake

Three poems up at  Red Poppy Review

Cat’s Cradle   her wrinkled face touched by the sun

Te Deseo fin del verano... tu cuerpo joven transita   sobre mi recuerdo como un huracán en una esquina indiscreta.

XXXIX I swallow the smoke that ascends above our inaugural napkin.  Your discrete stare says, goodbye.

XXXIX I observe you. It is then I know I am alone. My shadow is your shadow and I am resigned.  

XXXVIII I am about to whisper it   when all of a sudden you turn back   and say it...  there is an empty  pillow on the bed.

XXXVI I study him seated by the window where he stands. Light-up the world , I think. You say: the sun is burning and close the pane.

sangra el beso en tus labios de arcilla abrázame fuerte 

I just received notice that I will be honored with a contributor's copy of Clarion at Boston University.  This magazine is very much alive and working. http://www.bu.edu/clarion/14/

  XXXV you stand by a window and sulk             I reassure you there is nothing to worry about your eyes sink to the ground as I walk away

XXXIII crystal clear, your young body in the sunlight still in its dream stage. I stop to pick-up your breath and hear other songs .

eres cristal roto que no estoy dispuesto  a recorrer

Cuerpos trazados en la arena tu y yo dispersos sobre el agua te miro en silencio y recuerdo la playa tus ojos color cielo y tu piel blanca derramada en mi boca

XXXIV a tear descends on daybreak in your benefit forgetfulness and passion remain tattered I swallow the tear in exile

Singularidad Se abre una muralla intangible. Suspenso entre la vacilante soledad queda pasmado un instante de infinita fortuna. Se cae la palabra, singularidad del ser, transformada en conciencia interrogante, máscara , facción, piedra, fuerza del agua, para volver al olvido y dejar de ser. 

XXXI I leave you in the middle of your moment  I return to mine between the two of them, I set aside hope you leave loneliness and I go back to a name

XXX I glance at the mirror time makes us forget I continue a drop of blood reminds me my flesh still exists I stop and wait

XXIX seagulls and waves approach to touch me but they’re not  you

XXVIII I am torn between you and your eyes monologue: that one divided by nothing equals infinity 

XXVII you turn over to make love we embrace 

XXVI After a plea, a  soft scream, I acknowledge the thump of your thighs on my back. We talk in whispers under a low light. It’s different this time , I think.

XXV I stop to pick-up your wasted voice it spilled on my right side you lean forward  in  silence

XXIV I mold you but you chose your own dream you shatter if you only knew the answer.

XXIII your whining  doesn’t sound like you  but like a voice  living inside  other voices 

XXII constrained motionless in your sleep I deposit time on your body always willing to wake-up you are my gift

XXI your young face is the line. I follow it, touch the point of departure when I go down and almost regret it.

Threesome on the trail of broken hearts I found a hibiscus. he said, breathe, and I ran to a town in the middle of the island. a change along the path throws shadows in our eyes. we gather water and stars you lay beside us under a Caribbean sky tonight

Déjà vu Crisp as a bee sting: suddenly I turn and you whisper what I think.

Escorpión Te encontré dormido, Ulises, en un callejón obscuro. Estaban cantando las sirenas . Te has vuelto áspero; me levanto y te dejo solo con tu alucinación.  Scorpion I found you asleep in a dark alley, Ulysses.  The sirens were singing. You became coarse. I stood-up and left you alone with your hallucination.

Penur ia   Besarte para apagar el fuego y  desfilar por tu piel.  Nacer a tus mimos y arrodillarme para seguir inventando tu recuerdo.  Rozar tu espalda con mis labios y trazar el contorno de tu cuerpo con mi lengua para comenzar a saciar esta sed de tenerte. Ahogarme en tu reclamo y no sentir el día llegar.

Descalzo Camino descalzo por la furia de tu aúllo. Regreso dividido entre tu y tu voz.

Disimulo la alegría de verte para no avivar sospechas. Me salta el corazón. Despierto y no eres tú. ¡Abrázame! 

te sigo buscando en el mar los adoquines mojados la telaraña como buscan los ciegos y los niños desaparecidos

Distancia no tiene sentido tu voz ni alumbra la densa bruma de mi corazón tu llegada la soledad es tu ángel tu espada de madera 

Adiós te voy desplazando, cual sombra escondida en mi vena, fingiendo ser frágil. te desfiguras, al punto de quedar irreconocible

Alas Te construyo alas y luego me echo a volar. Busco la razón de mi soledad en tu espejo.

Mío Me miro en el espejo te sueño finjo que eres mío para luego acostarme  bajo una cascada de agua tibia.

XX Leo tu disgusto en otras sombras escucho tu voz en la bruma sacudes las alas eres tu aunque no lo seas.

Me alejo de ti intento la soberbia el coraje, la frustración el descenso   pero no vuelves a mí.

Boyfriend I think about the possibility of our meeting. What would we talk about?  He is slow at giving me details about his life and I don’t understand what that means.  Of course, I do the same, only in my poems do I feel comfortable enough to talk. I’d like to see him smile, brush my arm against his and feel a tingle, listen to him laugh. I’ll probably never go see him, it’s too far, my medication might be difficult to get, and I don’t have the money. He’ll never come here.  But I do wish someday he would get the nerve to start calling me his, boyfriend.

Por Ti Vi tu sangre correr por la boca.  Me enterré en el mar para ahogar la memoria de tu blanca piel sobre mis labios.

Recuerdo tu Cuerpo Desnudo Recuerdo tu sabor a noches de amores, A labios tan solo llenos de pasiones, A brisas calmantes que vienen del mar, A sudor humano que te hace perfecto, A caricias prohibidas todas sin defectos,   Qué forma tan simple de saber amar. Recuerdo tu cuerpo rosando el mío Tus manos ligeras y lentas como si Supieras donde tantear.

Agua Te busco en un abrazo para perdonarte.   Te encuentro en un árbol manso para recordar nuestros mimos.  Te entierro en un arroyo para rozarte al paso, como el agua palpa mi rodilla. Y todo este tiempo eres mi cómplice desnudo en la siesta densa de una hamaca yucateca.

Yo quise ser espiga para alejar al mundo de tu vista. Quise amanecer color de rosa, alborada furtiva de una mariposa azul, con el agua en los labios. Pero tú estabas hecho de mármol y por tus venas corría la mañana   como un caballo blanco sin dueño.

Canción de la Tristeza Repentina Qué tristeza amarilla, estar en tu memoria sin estar contigo. Qué tristeza la mía.

Ballad of the Pocketknife Wake up water boy and rub my aching feet with olive oil. Throw a towel on my decapitated head, decapitated by the salty night air, for loving a boy with a feather on the tip of his tongue, and living with him for a hundred years in a pocketknife. 

Autumn comes with empty seashells in the olive grove, and you waiting for the rain to stop.

Llanto Nieva sobre mi corazón y la tristeza se queda para bailar sobre un sudario luego de que la muerte llega.

Delirio sin pausas ni silencios solo con la muda presencia de mis actos te conquistare así confundí al amor un día deseo con delirio sin goce mas si con mucha angustia 

Nervous You touched yourself as I was looking. I really get nervous when that happens. My rainbows start to disappear. 

Solo Te recuerdo contento de mostrarme tu hombría. Como cuando dos niños juegan a encontrar un arcoíris. 

The Joker I remember you as a joker with a loud voice and jumping gestures. Yet in bed, you were a mellow card searching for your own rainbow.

Expectativa de Arcoíris Te recuerdo ansioso, solo que no sabía por qué.  Debajo de la mesa jugabas con mi rodilla mientras ella sonreía.  Luego cuando te acostaste en mi cama me dio la sensación de que esperabas algo más de mi.  Pensé, un arcoíris menos. 

Coming Apart in a Smile I remember your full body on top of me, A peacock's feather tickling my skin. We weren’t a match, you were just too large. But in the urgent sense, you were perfect. A rainbow had made its home on top of me And I was all smiles. 

XIX Me iría contigo, el calor me ha hecho un cobarde. Fundiría mi piel con la tuya lejos del dolor, cerca de la lluvia del medio día donde nuestros cuerpos se confunden en un abrazo.  Mis lágrimas son reales, tú no lo eres.

XVIII Te despojas de todo tu ropa y te acuestas a mi lado  el calor de tu piel  me despierta.

XVII No es la última vez cuando regresas me siento destruido y feliz.

Como la Muerte Si con este amor eres presenté, ¿donde está la vida? Si me privas de tu verde, amarilleo como la muerte. Si me dejas caer antes de tiempo tardo mas en convertirme en polvo.

XVI I want to smile as before, loving time, even when it nails in me a silent grief.

XVI Quiero sonreír como antes, amando el tiempo, aún cuando clave en mi una pena silenciosa.

Wind and Soul The wind comes from the sea with such vehemence, and its elementary sounds infect the silence of night. Alone in your bed you listen to it insistent on touching the chimes, crying and calling as if lost without anyone. But it is not he who has you sleepless, but another force in which your body is jailed, a carapace that was free breeze and recalls.

I am only the memory of a stone buried among nettles on which the wind escapes its insomnia.

On Borrowed Time I slept in a labyrinth made of milk and honey until by chance, you woke and wore me down with your hands.  I was a boy prisoner among your changing walls. Time, insinuating itself on your body, a cloud of dust. Thus my uncultured grief is new now. New, as if I were the first man that fell with his love from paradise, as when I saw such a sky already conquered by shadows aging my beloved's body.

XV Despierto exánime nunca eres presente siempre duermes no deposito mi piel sobre tu cuerpo. Te digo; ven, y entras como un ruiseñor por la venta.

XIV Si miran nuestra estrella desde otra constelación sabrán que estamos muertos.

XIII Te invito a mi boca,  sonríes y cierras los ojos por un instante.

XII Te deformo.  Al incorporarte de tu sueño estas completo.  Conoces la respuesta.

XI No te escucho.   Parece que existes en otras voces. 

Dedos de Arena y Flor Ofrezco mis dedos sobre hombres mutilados. Mientras mis manos llueven otoños obscenos, arena de las flores para un día decorar mi semblante de muerto.

I was… I was. Ardent column, spring moon. Golden ocean, big eyes. I searched for what I thought; thought, like dawn in languorous dreams, what desire paints on teenage days. I sang, climbed was light one day dragged into the fire. Like the gust of wind that undoes shadows I fell into the black, the insatiable world. I have been.

X No volveré a los lugares que atravesó mi llanto. No, no quiero volver, sino morir aún más, Desclavar una sombra, olvidar-olvidar.

to a future poet i know these men too well they drag their feet to find a chunk of life, anonymous statues, shades of grey, misery, rulers of fog. a spark of the forbidden pleasures shines at the moment of vengeance. its effulgence can destroy their humanity, because I sense in this human seclusion how mine shall be the men to come …

IX Loneliness is a seraph with a stilted dagger. 

VIII Te contienes recoges la palabra y dejas desplomar el silencio. Los números de las páginas nos mantienen desnudos. Ahora yo soy el que abraza al silencio. VIII You contain yourself, pick up the word, and collapse into silence.  The numbers on the pages keep us naked.  Now I'm the one that embraces silence .

VII A los hombres venideros les digo que, me canse de esperar. Mi piel se torn ó  roja como el barro, mis ojos endurecieron y he quedado petrificado. Sueño con las estaciones pasadas, las abejas penetrando mi piel, la dulzura de unos labios, la caricia al amanecer, el aliento en mi línea recta al infinito, un beso prohibido

VI I think about you and compose your tribute, my Ulysses. I think about the Gods that have accompanied you, do you think they might let you return? I’ve been in pain since you left. I go towards you in an echo, an impulse, a gaze a flight, and still you don’t come to greet me.

I seek your sleep in the sea of my solitude.  You are my earth, and populate my new silence with air that does not return.  I pass through your body, young rapist, that lives in the forest dancing for life.  When love dies freedom is born.  I stop to pick-up your sigh wasted on my nipples you close the eyes and plead. Your gaze amazes me.  It remains in my ear, a whisper.  I walk fast.

V Recorrí tu cuerpo de joven sátiro que vivía en la selva danzando por la vida.  Porque cuando el amor muere nace la libertad.

IV Busco tu sueño en el mar de mi soledad. Mi tierra eres tú.  Pueblas mi nuevo silencio con el aire que no vuelve.

III Me desprendo te reclinas y callas absorbo el agua.  El dolor no se equivoca .

II Me detengo a recoger tu caricia derrochada sobre mis pezones cierras los ojos y suplicas.

I Me asombra tu mirada. Se queda en mi oído como un susurro. Piso veloz.  

(from a collection of poems on how to drive a child insane) He was playing the organ, or at least the keyboard made out of cardboard box his stepfather had brought him in place of a real organ. His stepfather forced him to perform on that cardboard box for months.  When the organ finally arrived, it was as if he were insane.  The sounds that came out of that hellish machines were nothing like the sounds he had practiced.

Para Cuando                      He leído los hilos de las telarañas para descubrir como blanquear mis piernas heridas.  He caminado sobre brazas para tirar del corazón a la razón.  Mas nada me ha servido de alivio. Me sigo gastando a solas bajo los puentes de Ámsterdam a la altura de un cuerpo seco. He vivido tantos años que no siento la brisa, solo la resequedad en mi lengua. He sentido tanto temor que ni el cielo me brinda consuelo.  He nadado sin cesar para nunca llegar a mi tiempo justo. Y así sigo, sin justicia, como un mapuche desterrado de la realidad de la tierra madre por carabineros dispuestos a matar.