Obituary

[JTParreira]

Fernando Pessoa died

in the Bairro Alto

he put glasses on the table

for ever, three days

before was still seen to bend

a corner downtown Lisbon

laughs loose, a cough

to bend the body forward.

 

2008

J T Parreira

[Aleksandra]

Nice poem Joao. You express your dedicated poems on very quiet way. I like this one

 

thank you for sharing

 

Aleksandra

[tonyv]

Yes, I, too, like your dedicated poems. The subject of this one is close to home, it seems, and the local references work well. Lisbon and Bairro Alto add to the "flavor" of the poem.

 

I lived among the Portugese for awhile here (most were from Sao Miguel, but my brother-in-law is from Lisboa), and there was a Portugese restaurant where occasionally I would eat, called Beira Alta (which, I think, means "High Ground," though I'm not sure).

 

Obrigado for sharing your work here.

 

Tony

[Frank E Gibbard]

JT, your poem introduced your subject poet to me and I was interested enough to do a little research and he proved to be a fascinating character who died in 1935 I discovered. And had an extraordinary capacity of writing under several aliases with distinctive styles. He has the distinction of being accorded a statue in Lisbon and was featured on a Portuguese note so must have been considered a titan of literature in his home country. Quite an accolade for a poet it seems to me and one up to Portugal for that degree of respect for a writer. Your vignette is spare but makes his last moment on Earth live through these few words JT.

Here is a link to more information about him if anyone wants to read more (Frank)

http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=...oldid=242959002