A YOUNG MAN, ARTIST OF THE WORD—
IN HIS TWENTY-FOURTH YEAR
Mind, work as best you can.—
He is wasted by a one sided pleasure.
He is in a nerve-wracking situation.
He kisses the beloved face everyday,
his hands touch the most impeccable contours.
He never loved with such passion.
But the beautiful fulfillment of Eros
is missing; that consummation is missing
which both must desire with the same intensity.
(They are not equally given to this sensual pleasure.
Only he is completely overcome.)
So he is wasted, and he is completely tense.
On the other hand he has no job; and this makes it worse.
He manages to borrow small sums of money (sometimes
he almost begs for it) and he barely gets by.
He kisses the beloved lips; takes pleasure still
with that exquisite body, but feels that it only consents.
And then he drinks and smokes; drinks and smokes;
and he drags himself to the cafes all day long,
drags in weariness the ache of that beauty.—
Mind, work do the best you can.
Manolis Aligizakis 