Cyprus-Forum.com

[Me Ed]

It's tough when both sides think they're in the right and neither side is willing to be the first to offer the olive branch.

Silenus,

you are 100% correct, but in recent years the RoC is the only side that has actually made any gestures of goodwill towards the other.

There are numerous examples of this (granted there should be more) but the Turks and some TCs only dismiss it as GC propaganda.

[lola-tulip]

Both cannot be right.

By Greek tradition, the youngest should make the first move.

In this case, it is up to the newly created "Turkish" faction of Cyprus to bow out.

[Silenus]

you mean like a "respect your elders" kind of thing?? can it be distilled into a Greek saying I might know? I must admit I've not heard of this one...

[Silenus]

I mean on the other hand, you could argue that the RoC, being more established and having the benefit of an inheritance of thousands of years of Hellenic culture and wisdom over the barbarian turks, who've got bugger all, might - metaphorically speaking - be the bigger person about it. The impasse has gone on for long enough...but there's no doubt in anyone's mind it could go on for a fuck of a lot longer.

[lola-tulip]

I paraphrase, but, we might undo ourselves by impatience.

[denizaksulu]

To Yolcu,

This poem by Nikos Gatsos describes how I feel for Cyprus.



ΕΜΕΙΣ ΠΟΥ ΜΕΙΝΑΜΕ

Ἐμεις ποὺ μείναμε στὸ χῶμα τὸ σκληρὸ
γιὰ τοὺς νέκρους θ᾿ ἀνάψουμε λιβάνι
κι ὅταν χαθεῖ μακριὰ τὸ καραβάνι
τοῦ Χάρου τοῦ μεγάλου πεχλιβάνη
στὴ μνήμη τους θὰ στήσουμε χορό.

Ἐμεῖς ποὺ μείναμε θὰ τρῶμε τὸ πρωὶ
μιὰ φέτα ἀπὸ τοῦ ἥλιου τὸ καρβέλι
μέλι χρυσὸ σ᾿ ἀτρύγητο κουβέλι
καὶ δίχως πιὰ τοῦ φόβου τὸ τριβέλι
μπροστὰ θὰ προχωρᾶμε στὴ ζωή.

Ἐμεῖς ποὺ μείναμε θὰ βγοῦμε μιὰ βραδιὰ
στὴν ἐρεμιὰ νὰ σπείρουμε χορτάρι
καὶ πρὶν γιὰ πάντα ἡ νύχτα νὰ μᾶς πάρει
θὰ κάνουμε τὴ γῆ προσκυνητάρι
καὶ κούνια γιὰ τ᾿ ἀγέννητα παιδιά.



We Who Are Left

We who are left on this stony land
Will burn bitter incense for the dead
And when Charon the wrestler, new prey found
Has packed up his caravan and left
We'll dance in their memory.

We who have survived will breakfast
On a slice from the loaf of the sun
Golden honey from honeycombs
And with no more gnawing fear
We'll steer our life forward on its way.

We who have survived will go out one evening
To sow grass in the bare lands
And before night takes us down forever
We will make this land a shrine
And a cradle for children yet unborn.

Thank you Tulip. When was this poem written? It is a good poem and I can relate to it.
Is or was Gatsos Cypriot or mainland Greek?

[Daniella]

thank you lola, this poem is beautiful

[Yolcu]

May a Peaceful future have no sides.

Our hearts need to be large enough to forgive and bring everyone together.

I am convinced that when the leaders of the world understand Cyprus, they will be able to come to grips with the rest of human tragedy that is playing itself out all over the world right at this moment as we all debate our intellectual analysis of the past.

The size of a good heart needs to include the ones who we believe have failed us.

[Silenus]

In the current round of negotiations, which side was the first to suggest sitting down to talk? They could be thought to have made the first move, right? So wouldn't it be the other side (whoever it may be) whose turn it is to now make some kind of concession, meet them half way? Or is it just too far gone, and the discussions just window-dressing?

[lola-tulip]

Heartbroken Cyprus, with more to lose, has always been ready to sit down and talk. But, big, powerful turkey still calls the shots of when to join or leave the table. If Liberation were offered: there is much catching up for the two communities; on all that they have missed from their estrangement. Maybe to last a few centuries, again, before unresolved "past" issues resurface.




For Deniz - I have not been able to find out when this poem/song was written because it is from my anthology which does not lend itself to such deterministic matters Gatsos published most of his poems in the 30s and 40s but I do not have these original works. According to the Internet, he wrote songs in the second part of his life and this poem was recorded in 1974 in a discography.