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THE GARDEN GATE offshoot of the GARDEN OF THE FINZI-CONTINI

FERRARA,, ITALY 1943-1944

THE GARDEN GATE

we flew and stumbled
whirling down steps of stone
centuries worn
cascading to the garden gate.
sharp right angles into terror
from one terrace to the other
no earth beneath our feet
it seemed…

madness had taken our soul
fear was pounding in our ears
sweeping us into a vortex of nightmare
each step an eternity
to the garden gate
below...

Il giardino dei Finzi-Contini
[The Garden of the Finzi-Contini]

On a hillside of the Emilia-Romagna
Cascading colors dark
And somber
Ivy deep green
Shrouding Etruscan faces
Screaming
Paralyzed in stone
Sinews black of Cypress trees
Shadows with no breath
Of sunlight
There lay
Protected and alone
The garden of the Finzi-Contini
Italians of the Sephardic kind
Safe and hidden
From the sounds of war
The year nineteen hundred and forty four

The Fires of madness
Reached their garden door
Played in other gardens
So many times before

Empty graves narrow
Deep
Beyond the broken gate
By ancient prayers
Made holy
For progeny to keep
In the garden of the Finzi-Contini
Italians of the Sephardic kind
The year nineteen hundred and forty-four

Editing stage: 

Comments

I can't put my finger on it but perhaps it is the naming of the victims and the perpetrators.

cheers,
Jess
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Yes, you are right.It is about the Finzi-Contnii family, Italian Jews, to whom the Holocouast came ini 1943. Look for the poem THE GARDEN OF THEFINZI-CONTINI.

Apart from its historical content, I wanted to present a study of intense fear which needs no content except for itself.

Thanks, buddy-boy :)

Joe

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