Happiness: Brief but Good

..."The beach is a place where a man can feel
He's the only soul in the world that's real"...

The Who - Quadrophenia

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I felt very modern – as in Modernism the artistic movement – while spending my weekend in the amazing medieval citadels of the Costa Brava in northern Spain. As I stayed in Begur, a former feudal stronghold, which was finally destroyed by the canons of Napoleon’s army, I was able to reach out to the neighbouring towns of Peratallada, Palau-Sator and Pals.
The mystique of those old towns scattered within the geography of the sinuous Hills of the North transports you to another time and place, where simplicity and endurance were vital. For such reason, the olden towers still gaze upon us with pride; they will still be there when we are long gone…
The marvellous sound of the Middle Sea under my balcony inspired me to write in Spanish, just one time, and dedicate these rhymes to my mother.
They seldom drink tea in such regions, you may replace with garnatxa wine, at your leisure.
I send my special love to faithful Frenchy Bastarrrd, LUX AETERNA and the lovely Pandora.

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El mar,
Mi madre es el mar…

El Mediterráneo lame las rocas
Frente al castillo de Begur.
Escucho su canción,
Como si las sirenas de Ulises
Me llamaran por mi nombre.

Miro las rocas,
Las tenues luces de la bahía…

Las Islas Medas,
De las hijas del Sol,
Inspiran mis versos tardíos
Cuando en menos de dos horas
Saldrá el padre para despejar la Aurora.

He deseado este sol,
Tantas veces para mi madre!
He ansiado
Tantas veces darle el sol!

Este mítico Mar,
Este “Mar Nuestro”,
Mar eterno
que capturó a César
y a los griegos que nos legaron su cultura.

Las olas lamen la bahía
En la que Napoleón probara sus cañones;
Y sin embargo sus logros
No lograron mitigar la piedra
Del antiguo atalaya.

Mi madre es el mar...
Y a sus ojos profundos
Desearía legar por siempre
Las visiones de todos los mares
Surcados por hombres arcanos
Cuyo único testigo es la roca.

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The pictures are my own. Begur Castle at night plus the view of the Med from my apartment.