JOHN KARAJOLI

 

 

1

 

In the lovely land Greece.

In Greece I was taught love and respect

In Greece, I was taught democracy

In Greece I met Olympus,

met Delphi and gazed at the streets of Olympia

With soul and body

I caressed the white marbles

and the Acropolis and the Parthenon

I admired the beauty of Athens

from above on Lycabettus

In Thessaloniki I met the daughter of the north

I followed the footsteps of Alexander the Great

I saw the Star of Vergina

and embraced the White Tower with love.

 

2

 

The wounded dolphin.

Desperately agitated baby dolphin was looking for land to save himself

He reached the shore and called for help melted Come brothers help me please a big predator grabbed me and bit me mercilessly because of a misunderstanding

I was embraced by my land friends with great tenderness

I was glad to get ashore in the end

I just got better

I returned to my home country

In the aquatic blue waters.

 

3

 

When spring knocks on the doors of the East

The color of the sky is gradually changing

The sun's rays greet us

shining on its way up

This is how life smiles at us every morning

Singing birds flirt with me every day

and we welcome them

In their home..... in the east

The birds are replying to us

by tweeting more

With unique musical melodies

Our hearts are filled with hope

Our lives are filled with color

with the dawning

blooming again

The poet of our love for life

And we renew a promise with life

Singing to the tunes of the songs of the East

We enjoy legends

Our mother's east

Looking forward to the distant clouds

And we dream that she will move us

To a far country.....

To the country we always dream of

With more longing and love.

 

***A nostalgic poem dedicated to my wonderful and beloved country, Syria.

 

JOHN KARAJOLI

 

JOHN KARAJOLI: Is a Greek poet, born in Syria on 09/01/1951 in Efrin city, north of Aleppo. His family is of Kurdish origin. He spent his early childhood in the city of Efrin where his father served as e Prefect. His mother, Amina Seicho, was a gifted and charismatic woman, with numerous artistic qualities. His father, Adnan Karajoli, was a writer- lawyer who fought for the rights of the beloved Syrian people. In the spring of 1955 the Karajoli family was relocated to Damascus, where they had previously resided. He had the opportunity to study in beautiful Romania, at the Bucharest Dentistry School and he finished his studies by acquiring the specialty of Orthodontist. After he completed his course of studies, he had the opportunity to visit Greece, after being invited by his Greek fellow students. Since then, 34 years of creative work have passed, delving in the area of orthodontics and literature. He is a founding member of a Greek association for Orthodontic study and research, with an honorary distinction at the 9th Pan-Hellenic orthodontic congress (Athens 2006) He barely felt as a foreigner in Greece. He received the love of the Greek people and he still enjoys it, here in beautiful Thessaloniki, Macedonia. In the summer of 1985, the Muse bestowed her gift on the poet, thus he started writing his first verses. His first poetic collection was published in 2011 under the title “Colors of an Era “, from ALDE publishing. He is a member of the Litterateurs Association of Northern Greece and of the cultural social institution “Amphictyonic League of Hellenism”. He received ‘Honorary Distinction’ at the 4th International Poetic Contest on “Hellenic speech, Light of the World” (Thessaloniki, May 3rd, 2014). He gave a lecture at the 3rd International Amphictyons Congress on : The History of Hellenic-Syrian Culture they took place at the French Institute of Thessaloniki (May 2014) , at the festival : Celebration of Multilingualism on :Language and Communication (Municipality of Thessaloniki, May 30th and 31st 2014) at the “1st Panhellenic Contest –Bequest of Nana Kontou 2010” by the Association of the Smyrnian people of Asia minor in northern Greece , with his poem titled “Smyrna” (Thessaloniki, November 20th 2010). His work under the title “Colours of an Era “was published in the magazine “Critique of Language and Art , positions and views “ (50th issue ,May –July 2015). He became a member of the WIP and Peace Ambassador branch of SYRIA in 2018. He received ‘Honory Distinction -Epiharmos’ at the 5th International Poetic Contest on ‘ Hellenic – Orthodox – Amphictyonia – Thessaloniki , May 2020-He lives in the town of Thessaloniki – Greece.