Past Revisited
I have a past that is so mine
and no one else’s.
They have no notion of misdeeds,
even many sins I have perpetrated in it.
Now I know that those grievous faults
surely have been forgotten and forgiven
exclusively and solely by God’s mercy.
My past failures have perfected my life,
helping to forge the man I am nowadays,
one who learned from his mistakes and,
like ancient phoenix,
has been reborn from his ashes.
May I show all my gratitude to this world,
doing all good I can to my fellow ones, yet
forgiving them as I have been forgiven.
My Creed And My Tears
Today I opened my mourning’s season.
I cried for the lack of solidarity and brotherhood,
for the existence, till today, of countries’ borders,
increasing inequalities and suffering among people;
for the estrangement among whites and blacks,
yellows and browns, Christians and Muslims;
for the rich that reach water from golden faucets
and the poor by carrying it in the buckets;
for the wine and salmon’s tables of the mansions
and the yesterday’s bread passing from hand to hand;
for the security of the politicians for the coming years
and the fear of common people for tomorrow;
for the dreams of the righteous that have not come true
and the audacity of the insolent who are not intimidated;
for my lack of faith that everything is on our Lord’s hands
and in His extreme love for us.
My tears have washed my body and eased my soul.
When I die, no need to cry more.
I have already cried for what matters, at least for me.
Published in Red Wolf Journal, November 16, 2016.
Mr. Ferreira is a Brazilian poet who writes in English rather than Portuguese. Recent works have appeared in Red Wolf Journal, Right Hand Pointing, Creative Talents Unleashed (Featured Writer)), Indiana Voice Journal, The Lake, Whispers, Dead Snakes, Algebra of Owls, The Bees are Dead, Spirit Fire Review, The Basil O’Flaherty (Featured Poet), among many others. Ferreira lives in a small town (Formiga-MG), with wife, three sons and a granddaughter and is trying to release his first poetry book in 2017, with about 70 poems. He began to write at age 66 (seven years ago), after retirement as a Bank Manager.