R E J E C T I O N

Mediterranean blue eyes,
Sunshine in her hair, like resurgent Phoenix...
My own hands that rebuffed the nude maiden
of Lebanon --
What makes them feel so upright...?

They should have set her bare breast alight,
Infused breath into her coral fingers... yet
With their haughty Armenian hubris,
They merely unbuttoned her garment...

Soaring Mediterranean moment --
Wings of Phoenix roasted by a reborn sun...
Silent words of disdain to a maiden of Lebanon
What makes them sound so proper...?

They should have been a sweet whisper
at her silken ear.
Soft caresses on her satin brow... yet,
With the arrogance of an ultimate oath
They asked her to leave… to forget...

* * *
A mere Mediterranean morning...
And a nagging yearning for the
paternal roof.


Varand
Translated by Tatul Sonentz