Life Without You
I am invoking my right to remain silent in the face of life,
All of my words have escaped from dictionaries,
There is only one Word that I must say before Angel of Death
is You.
I am a very big book that has been published in your heart’s press,
I place my page numbers on the days under your eyes,
I replace all the words that cause loneliness
with You.
The sky is a student who goes out to the blackboard with his blue uniform,
It listens to the recitations of birds, from your window,
Neither soil nor sea nor stars take chances
from You.
A cherry blossom glides through your hair,
Day light loses its path on your forhead without compass,
Neither the cloves’ nor Adams’ hearts beat
without You.
Adem Özbay
***
5 Times
Human being
is born in the morning.
He grows up,
and becomes great in the noon.
He loves,
and matures in the afternoon
He works hard,
and earns his livelihood in the evening.
He gets tired,
and sleeps his last sleep in the night.
My friend,
Life is
between morning and night,
in the twinkling of an eye,
if you want to leave the best thing behind you,
share your love, goodness and beauty all the time.
Adem Özbay
***
Love’s eye View of the World
Come, my love, let us fly away from here,
Let’s draw a World map with love’s eye view,
The North Pole becomes one of your cheeks,
The South Pole, your other cheek.
Let’s draw the Equator with your lips,
the sea becomes your eyes,
the wind is your hair.
Come, my love, let us fly away from here,
Let’s draw a World map with love’s eye view,
Let’s be a traveller in the love’s parallels and meridians (latitudes and longtitudes)
Adem Özbay
***
You must Go
You must go,
even if there is no one who waits for you,
even if no one greets you at the door with flowers,
you must go,
even if you have neither a way
nor a companion
you must go,
even if you don’t have food in your saddle bag,
even if places where you reach are full of uncertainty,
you must go,
even if you don’t have courage
and fear to go
you must go,
even if someone tells you not to go
or promise of happiness,
if you feel like going
you should go without listening to anyone
go,
find your way
choose your city
listen to your heart
go and sing your own song!
Adem Özbay
***
The Day Comes!
The day comes,
unknown sufferings accumulate in your heart.
The day comes,
Unspoken words gather on your tongue.
The day comes,
immovable burdens lay on your shoulders.
The day comes,
meaningless lines appear on your face.
The day comes,
insufferable pains accumulate in your heart.
Be patient, my heart,
the day comes,
your turn will also come!
Adem Özbay
***
Go Back To Your Heart!
One day when you lose your way,
If everyone becomes silent when you ask, where you are,
If your violets in the window are faded,
If no wind carries your boat to the shore,
If you are weak in the knees,
If you can’t keep hope in your heart,
If you can’t get help from any compass,
If you are suddenly alone in the middle of the road,
If the sun doesn’t keep you warm in the middle of the spring,
If the rain hits your face with loneliness
If the well-brewed tea doesn’t accompany your conversation,
If the seagulls don’t catch the bread you throw,
If flowers turn away from you, when you stretched out your hand,
When you are sad like migratory bird that has lost its way,
When you wilt like an orphan girl,
When your eyes turn red, while you are holding back your tears to avoid crying,
Go back to your heart,
Your heart is your home,
Go back to love,
Your love is your heart.
Adem Özbay
***
DON’T BE AFRAID
When you fall,
you learn
to live, is to struggle.
When you love,
you know
to love, is to overcome loneliness.
When you smile,
you feel
only shared happiness is real.
When you long for someone,
you hear
your heart has a voice.
Don’t be afraid;
to fall for learning,
to love for knowing,
to smile for feeling
to long for for hearing!
The more you fall, the more you love, the more you smile, the more you long for;
you are a man!
Adem Özbay
***
For Example
Give up everything,
But never give up your dreams!
Turn away from everything,
But never turn away from your heart!
Forget about everything,
But never forget your friends!
Burn everything,
But never burn the bridges you’ve crossed!
Go everywhere,
But never get away from yourself!
Adem Özbay
***
I’ve Learned
I’ve learned,
the one who falls down with you is your companion,
not the one who helps you up when you fall down
the one whose path comes to meet yours is your friend
not the one who walks the same path with you
the one who adds smiles to your days is the one who loves you
not the one who says “I love you” but one day forgets you
you, my friend…
don’t let anyone wipe your tears
it’s sweat of the sea in your heart
go beyond your dreams,
but don’t leave someone behind
Even if your’re betrayed thousand times, don’t betray someone even once
Even if you are abandoned a thousand times, do not abandon anyone even once
everyone lives, everyone dies,
don’t squeeze your life between the two dates on your tombstone,
have a certain birth date,
your death extends until eternity
as you are remembered with love, goodness and kindness.
Adem Özbay
***
I Apologize
From everybody whose value I didn’t know and whom I upset,
The ones for whose friendship I couldn’t do anything,
The ones whom I ignored while running madly,
All the flowers I couldn’t smell,
All the breathes I have taken without feeling,
From my heart, kidney, lungs,
Whose value I did not understand without getting sick,
From my eyes,
As I have hindered them from looking at the beauties,
From the dreams I haven’t run after,
The tears I haven’t shed as I am a man,
The things I haven’t run after till the end and have given up,
From every child whose head I couldn’t fondle,
From the cat, dog, tree, stone,
From my mother, father, child
Whom I did not kiss too much
Mostly,
From Layla whom I couldn’t unite with Majnun,
The ones I couldn’t make aware of being a human,
The ones whom I couldn’t back up when they were wronged,
The ones I couldn’t save from hunger, thirst, bullet,
From the ant that was crushed, the branch that was broken,
From the sea to which a stone is thrown to,
The soil which was dug,
From the grave where the children are sleeping,
From life, if I couldn’t make most of it,
From my carotid artery, if I couldn’t love you as you deserve
I apologize.
Adem Özbay
***
You are my Heart
My love,
I’m the tree of this life,
You’re my root.
My love,
I’m the river of this sea,
You’re my oxygen.
My love,
I’m the song of eternity,
You’re my music.
My love,
I’m the bird of liberty,
You’re my sky.
My love,
I’m the most loving of this love,
You’re my heart.
Adem Özbay
***
You can Love Eveything!
You can love a tree, you can love everything,
You can perch upon a beautiful heart like birds,
You can flow where your dream takes you like rivers,
You can reach out to the needy like extending branches.
You can love a star, you can love everything,
You can shine in a beautiful heart like full moon,
You can light up everyone in the dark like a sun,
You can lead to missing people like venus.
You can love a flower, you can love everything
You can love a bird, you can love everything,
You can love a sea, you can love everything,
You can love a human being, you can love everything.
Adem Özbay
***
Transled: Zehra Ulucak