The sky is light blue,
The river still there for you,
Horizon with candles waiting for the night,
Presents and tears without a fight.

Colored rainbow sleeps with the vines,
Port ruby, tawny, white can combines.
Lemon yellow or green is a good neighbor,
Drink a port with aroma and flavor…

A celebration and a very special moment at any time,
Drink a glass of port and you will be fine,
Don’t drink any other kind of wine,
Just ours because is divine…

Kindest regards from Douro Valley.
Victor  Marques

Olhar a  água do ribeiro,
Encostado ao sobreiro.
Paisagens feitas de qualquer jeito,
Douro e Tua sem leito.


Muros com primor e mestria,
Encantos teus que nos vicia,
Olivais que lindos sois assim,
Quimera do meu jardim.


Papoilas avermelhadas,
cepas mal tratadas.
Figueiras com figos,
Douro e amigos.



Não existe outro amor,
Douro te adorna com labor,
Os cavalos e rebanhos,
Rabelos dos teus enganos.


Victor Marques

Alto Douro e Trás-os-Montes

Alto Douro e Trás – os-montes,
Terra minha bem portuguesa,
Vinhedos e frescas fontes,
Traduzem sua pureza.

Friorenta no Inverno,
Terra intolerante.
Na Primavera morna,
No verão escaldante.


Horizonte tão belo e tão teu,
Ninguém to rouba, Deus to DEU.
Pôr-do-sol que se deita com vales sonolentos,
Douro, Tua teus encantos.

Vindimadores que colhem cachos maduros,
Azeitonas que dais azeites puros.
Pescadores dos rios Douro e Tua,
Uma saudade que é nossa e sua.

Victor Marques

Naturalista com amor

Escuta o chilrear dos passarinhos,
A beleza de seus ninhos.
Viver em eterna graça,
Na vida tudo passa.

O orvalho da manhã,
O canto da rã…
Amigo em tudo o que faço,
Vida passo a passo.

O cheiro das flores,
Ama teus amores,
O correr dos ribeiros,
Posar junto aos salgueiros.

Todos nus e sem nada,
Magia e bela fada,
Estrelas com seu esplendor,
Naturalista por amor.

Victor Marques

Your a sparkling star
I see from far away
who's shining light left years ago
traveling through the cold of space
reaching me now, unchanged
a ghost of what once was

Diamond in the sky
once a handful of jewels
valuable and precious
that slipped through unsure fingers
splashing into an unforgiving river
swept out to sea

Gone now, from sea to sky
your sparkle forever catches my eye

Of the things I've learned
about light, love, and loss
one thing always stays true,
no matter how right,
never trust the light

Though the sun may rise
giving it's warmth to the earth
it passes swiftly through the sky
and day descends to night

It can not be reasoned to stay
or begged to be true
it's warmth is not honest
it will only fool you

Though I have learned
about darkness, disgust, and desire
I still search for eternal summer,
to have the light,
without fear of night

In those days
I lost myself
in questions of god and ***; I pleaded
guilty
of searching
for truth until
I asked, "What is truth?
Who am I?"

You look impressive on paper.
Though form is temporary while class is forever.
It is no shocker, that you know not the significance of the latter.
You look impressive on paper.

Like a cup of coffee gone cold.
11

lilli, lilli, lilli,
now sacred and independent of mother,

all new
to be caught up in this cycle again?
the doors were many,
the keys were few,

and now you’re here in my arms,
the arms of an uncle’s friend
visiting objectively,
wondering
if some day you’ll wonder
why you’re here
and wondering
what might cause such thoughts to surface
in your pure, unadulterated mind.

let this be our answer.

mother of seventeen
to grow old and fat and unfulfilled
violated the pact she will soon teach you
and later repented and kept you.

father of seventeen
to grow desolate and disconsolate and cold
valued not himself
and will passively teach you to follow suit.
but you must not follow suit.

lilli, when you are of seventeen,
will life be worth living?
or will you hand your own infant to an older poet
who whispers in its ear,
“perhaps if you had never been born?”

Should I let you in,
Should I let love, win?
My whole wide world, is brought to a stop,
Then my heart spins and twirls, when I feel so high atop
Of this world as a mountain, where my dreams are like fountains,
Which pour out these rivers, and chill spines with shivers.

I should let this win,
I will let you in.
I'll jump upon the feeling express,
And race to explain with abrupt finesse,
Just how you do. Just what you do,
to show me that the word is true.

Show me what lies so deep within,
What joins two together to create our kin.
Believe in me with the same trust
Of those whom you love but do not lust,
Just tell me how you feel today,
and promise me it won't go away.

I know that in my heart you will forever stay,
I knew from the start, without any delay,
How you make me love you
Like a well written screenplay,
Or the wheels of cars, on an open freeway.
You make me love you, and I will tell you, someday.

the moon
                 is no longer
                                     a bright
                                                  silver  ­
                                                           sphere
                                                                ­       in the sky
rather a muddy brown circle
                                                  at the bottom of my coffee cup
while stars
                   that used to
                                       dance
                                                  throughout the heavens
instead play behind
                                    the lids
                                                 of my
tired
bloodshot
eyes
       and
            dawns first light brings
                                                     not
                                                      joy,
nor hope,
nor relief
but stings
                 the nerves and
                                           ushers forth

regret

            at a night's lost rest
                                              on edge from minutes
of sleep my
                     weary mind wonders




*why oh why does it have to be finals week?