Poem by Miltos Sachtouris
PRESENTS
Today I put on
the red warm blood
people love me today
a woman smiled at me
a girl gave me a conch
a boy gave me a hammer
today I kneel down onto the sidewalk
I nail the naked legs
of the passersby on the slabs
they’re all teary eyed
yet no one of them is scared
they’ve all stayed in places which I reached
they’re all teary eyed
yet they gaze at the neon signs up high
and the female beggar who sells Easter Bread
on the sky
two men whisper
what’s he doing? Is he nailing our hearts?
Yes, he’s nailing our hearts
for he’s the poet
Manolis 