Landmarks guiding me home
Issue #80 of your inbox poetry magazine
Where low clouds
cloak iconic landmarks,
I turn east to go west. Underneath
the city's scents, I smell
the stable.
No matter how far or nearby we travel, coming home is always a joy. Not so long ago, I was driving back home, after a short trip North. The closer I got to home, the harder it became to keep to the applicable speed limits. As the Dutch saying goes, I smelled the stable and could barely hold back from galloping home. Normally, in clear weather, you can see the landmarks. I’m not sure how it is for you, but here, close to Paris, you can see the Sacré Coeur on top of that beautiful hill from far if you come from the North. And of course, from any direction, the towering giant is even easier to spot: the Eiffel Tower with her searchlight sweeping the Ile de France region. This image is so deeply impressed upon my brain, that I can even see them when they are covered by low hanging clouds.
And just before you enter Paris, you come around the UFO also known as Stade de France. We used to have to drive around the north and west side, but these days we pass it on the south side to get onto that final stretch of asphalt before turning onto our “island in the stream”.
I wish that those people who are far away from home by necessity at the moment will be able to return to their beloved landmarks in peace, soon. Meanwhile, we have also started to try and do something to facilitate the new influx of refugees in our communities. Everybody does something, and together we can do this. Make it as comfortable for the refugees as can be in the circumstances. So can you. All small gestures help.
Be strong, stay peaceful.
Read on to find the Something to listen to and Poetry elsewhere sections.
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Something to listen to
Let’s start with something I shared before, the latest episode of our podcast, in which we speak with Italian poet Raffaella:
This week’s poem is also available in the #trpplffct readings series over on Soundcloud, where you can also find other poems published here.
And of course, we have our eclectic playlist to accompany you on your days navigating poetry reading, life and the horrible geopolitical events we are witnessing.
Leave a tip in our tip jar if you liked this issue. Or if you want a better one next time. Either way, we love you. Also if you don’t leave a tip. As long as you enjoy this newsletter.
Poetry elsewhere
A true leader in bringing poetry to new dimensions is my poet-friend Ashwini. He writes beautiful poems and creates NFTs. Amongst many other cool things. This poem is about trust, something we should not forget we need. Especially in these times.
As said before, I love the poetry project Poetry Trapper Keeper, because it is a wonderful commentary on current cultural affairs, excellently written by two very different poets. This time, I’m not sharing a poem, but an issue of their newsletter, that uniquely contains work from both Larissa and Kelly. The title: American teen drama television series created and written by Sam Levinson for HBO.