MARTHA VASKANDIRA

 

 

Love

 

Man don't hit me.

I'm your brother.

We both cried when we were born.

Don't hurt me....

We've all felt the pain.

Don't ruin my laugh.

The joy of life, hold you.

Don't cut my hands.

These will hug you when you fall.

Don't betray me.

You seek a caress in the dark.

Don't mock my life.

 You worked so hard for your life...

 Let me dwell in your tear,

in your laugh

in your dream....

For your humanity to find a home....

Don't fight me.

So that your kindness does not lose the battle.

Don't turn your back on me...

 So that your soul can see through open windows.

The shadow of people

is the opening to the light of the Universe,

it is the hand of God that unites the world

for to bring the miracle of love.

 Don't close the door on love.

Life is an orphan without love...

She, gave birth to us.

 

The Beast

 

What did you give to the poor beggar today?

Installments of souls.

That's what banks take since there is nothing else left to collect.

The Beast awakens.

Its hands suffocate humanity by the head.

The map of globalization is written all over its face.

Mirrors of capitalization shine through its eyes.

Its mouth, the entrance to eternal poverty.

Its feet like claws, a trap, caught us all.

You! Sad governor, your words are only the obituary. In our funerals.

You, poor immigrant, your life is a dream never to come true.

We dance with our naked feet upon the flaming corpse of the world.

Each of us swallowed hot coals so as to burn our desires.

We maimed our nature.

We live in the underworld.

Hades is our governor.

The Beast attacks.   Spits fire., eats lives, throws our dreams away.

Runs through the streets, crushing whatever is left behind.

The child lost its voice.

Left motherless.

Took her for ginnypig. Experiment on her resistance to hunger.

She didn't....

Neither was her child. They will try expired medicine.

They are the children of the Ginny pig.

The Beast devours the sun little by little.

You! Coward passenger! Why don't you fight it?

You leave It rampage your house.

Will you crumble your pride if you burn this whore house to the ground?

Kill the Beast. Save yourself.

The Beast doesn't die when our fear is alive.

 

Translated By Dora Douva

 

MARTHA VASKANDIRA

 

MARTHA VASKANTIRA was born in 02/09/1977 in Greece, in the city of Patras. She studied Philology and Philosophy. She is involved in theater and music. She appeared in letters in the year 1996 with the publication of poems in literary magazines. A total of ten of her books have been published.  Six poetry collections and four fairy tales. Her poems have also been dramatized in performances by theater groups in Athens and Patras. She is a member of the International Society of Greek Writers-Artists (D.E.E.L.), UNESCO of Greece, the Society of Greek Writers (E.E.L.), the Greek Cypriot Cultural Group (E.P.O.K.) as well as representative of the group in the city of Patras. In September 2022, she won first prize for writing the theatrical monologue "Peace and the Child" at the International Peace Cultural Olympiad held in Delphi. In the performance "The children of Greece" which was presented in many cities of Greece and concerns the life and work of the great creators and artists, Mimi Traiforou-Sofias Vembo, the one-act play by Martha Vaskantira entitled "The child and the peace''. The direction is by Vassilis Traiforos and Penelope Chalkia. The monologue was performed by Penelope Halkia. Some of her poems have been translated into English, Spanish, Turkish, Arabic, Hindi. Polish, Albanian, Korean, Italian, Bulgarian, Finnish, Swedish, and   in Norwegian. Her poems are included in Poetry anthologies and Cultural Magazines in several countries abroad. In 2022, the newspaper "Peloponnisos" proposed her to be a candidate for the persons of the year 2022. She was nominated by the writer and poet, Mrs. Eva Lianou Petropoulou (a candidate for the Nobel Peace Prize), for the international award "Dr. Fco Xavier Ramirez Sanchez" and for the "Platinum Eagle award". In January 2025, she was awarded 1st place in poetry, in the Greek category, in the International Literary Competition held in Kazakhstan in poetry and prose, in various languages. The president of the jury was the writer and poet, Mr. Dimitris Kraniotis.