There was all this wine in our veins, there was all this rain.

Maja Herman-Sekulić is an internationally published Serbian-American author of 23 books in Serbian, English German and French; her poems were translated in 25 languages. Of her poetry, Nobel laureate Joseph Brodsky said: “her poetry is of the rarest talent and beauty as she is herself.” Maja is an acclaimed and award nominated poet, novelist, essayist, bilingual scholar, and a translator. Her last book is a novel “Nine Lives of Milena Pavlovic Barillli” published first in Serbia by Barilli Foundation in June 2021.

Most recently she was anointed by the UN World Literary Forum as their ”International Ambassador of Peace” by the Galaxy International Foundation and Academy and the World Literature, India, their “Ambassador of Culture and Good Will”, by Global Literary Society their Administrator and unique “Global Poetry Icon” and the “Icon of Style of Serbia in last 2 centuries.” In last 3 years she was awarded 13 international literary awards in India, Italy, Turkey, US, Russia and Romania, and First Serbian Oscar for popularity. Most recently she won Citta di Galatta – Antioni de Ferraris award for the best poetry book in foreign language that will be awarded in Rome in October 2021. She is also a world traveler and a Princeton Ph.D. in Comparative Literature. She is a member of the American and Serbian PEN, American Academy of Poets, Association of writers of Serbia and Serbian Literary Society. She was schooled and lived all over the world from Europe and USA to the Far East, and now shares her time between New York and Belgrade. Email: maja.hermansekulic@gmail.com

Reason for the Rain

There was all this talk about Boticelli.

There was all this wine in our veins.

There was all this rain.

And all those people coming and going

Through my brain

Dancing on the ferry to another shore

Changes of scenery, of geography

Changes of heart

And there was this wall between words,

Erected with pain.

Will this rain ever stop?

Will the summertime

Open a window

And let the sun shine

From inside

Through my eyes again

After all these years

Of waltzing all alone

All by myself

Amidst the crowds?

***

Notes toward a Ballad

The August sun is intense, I undress

On the beach, sand in my toes

I hold sunrays in my hair.

I take refuge in a café

On the nameless street

Tired of the heat

White wine goes green in my glass

Sun still fire in the sky.

No shade, no break,

His eyes dance on me,

They burn my skin

I accept the figs he gives me

They are too soft.

The coffee is too strong.

And the sun doesn’t give up.

And he does not give up.

And now I lie awake pretending

That he lies awake

And that the whole world is awake

As we were then

In that summer heat

In that café

Without a break.

___________________  

Published under International Cooperation with "Sindh Courier"