There are multiple types of love in ancient Greek culture. From Philia, or the love between friends, to Philautia, the love and caring we feel for ourselves. In today’s capitalist society, we often neglect that we can love others in more than just a romantic or sexual way. I hope that these following poems, inspired by different ancient Greek words, can remind you that there are multiple ways to love – and they are as unique to us as our fingerprints.
Me and You
Me and you
Sat on 90s vinyl in the summer heat with our
Thighs sticking to the seats and grand ideas for July
Afternoons floating
Merrily through our heads
With rock and roll music pounding through the air.
And then there’s
Me and you
Rainbow Dash & Applejack & Pinkie Pie &
A couple of horror movies through
The nights where
Sticky-sweet secrets spilled over drinks
And we laughed with all our limbs spread
across my basement floor.
And then there’s
Me and you
Making phone calls across provinces
Putting charges on our parents’ phone bills
When we were just barely friends
And when I couldn’t remember a time
We weren’t bigger than life.
And then there’s
Me and you.
And we’re not the same people we were
When we walked across town
Through sand dunes and snow storms.
We’re older now, almost adults
And I miss the me and you
That we once were
I Found You in the Forest Grove
Crawling through the ramble, I spot the object of my desire. A butterfly-woman, painted in the colours of the sun, golden bliss and blinding reds. Limbs sun-kissed and warmed in baths from spring-green clearings. I move towards this statuesque image cautiously. A Deity made with the creation of the Earth itself that I dare not disturb. My heart quivering with Cupid’s arrow, I gaze upon her restful face, this rose-coloured cherub. The heavens glow above me, and I question the truth that the priests grant us from the gods. I believe the truth lies not on Mount Olympus, but on this woman’s lips, and to kiss her would be to find quiet immortality, in this forest grove.
Split
dark water reflection of the night sky
with my limpid eyes posed, staring back at me my mask slips from my nose
revealing rose-gold features
I break the tranquil surface, letting dew flicker
across my fingertips as I roam through the picturesque
midnight lake blood pools over marbles swirls
And forms a dribbling summer
in search of answers brook
that I feel are beyond my reach
questioning the purpose of creation cascading
is not an easy feat down the palace stairs
droplets splatter across silk and velvet
I wonder if the gods see my Hung heavy like fur trees
Humble mortal suffering or
If they are immune to childish woe after winter storms
My hands, crimson-gloved
Yet, unlike the greats, I do not dread reach for the gilded mirror
the answer to my longings A portal to my better self
They do no haunt me like moonlight on
the lake’s calm face i reach for her, this other woman
An enemy to my own soul
Under this cold moon I As i yearn for her
hold my heart in my hands and kiss
It goodnight She destroys my very being
Laying my thoughts to rest A sacrilege to the old gods
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