Winds of Change/Vientos de Cambio
bilingual poems by Tomás Gayton
Published by Poetic Matrix Press
ISBN 0-9714003-6-9
Available at Amazon.com
Description
The Book
When Tomás first approached me for an opinion on a Spanish translation of
some of his poems, neither one of us ever imagined how our creativity would flourish.
From revising a few poems in Spanish, two artists rediscovered their passion for
the written word and the richness of both the Spanish and English languages. This
is due in great part to the fact that Tomás' poetry shows his passion for
the discovery of nature, love, life, and especially social justice.
— S. L. Pedregal
Cuando Tomás me pidió que leyera una traducción al castellano
de algunos de sus poemas para darle mi opinión, ninguno de los dos pudo imaginar
que esto despertaréa nuestra creatividad con tal fuerza. El simple hecho
de revisar unos cuantos poemas en castellano logró que dos escritores redescubrieran
su pasión por la palabra escrita y la riqueza de tanto el castellano como
el inglés. Esto se debe en gran parte al hecho de que la poeséa de
Tomás muestra la pasión que siente el poeta al descubrir la naturaleza,
el amor, la vida y en especial la justicia social.
— S. L. Pedregal
Tomás Gayton
Tomás was born and raised in Seattle, Washington, the grandson of African
American pioneers. He began writing verse soon after graduating with a Juris Doctor
from the University of Washington. Tomás is also a Civil Rights attorney,
social activist, world traveler, teacher and lecturer. His poetry is his life in
verse. Vientos de Cambio - Winds of Change, a bilingual volume of poems, is Tomás'
fifth book. His other works of poetry and prose are: Yazoo City Blues; Two Races
One Face with John Peterson; Dark Symphony in Duet with the late Sarah Fabio and
Time of the Poet.
He has been featured at the La Jolla Museum of Contemporary Art; D.G. Wills, La
Jolla; Le Musée D'Art Moderne in Paris, France; the Elliot Bay Book Co. in
Seattle; Dizzy's jazz club in San Diego; Bukowski's in Vancouver BC; la Union Nacional
de Escritores y Artistas de Cuba (UNEAC) in Havana; Off Moroka in Cape Town, South
Africa; La Noche in Lima, Peru; Museo de Plaza Maria Poledo, in the Dominican Republic.
Reviews
From Winds of Change/Vientos de Cambio:
|
The Frontier
|
La Frontera
|
Mexican music
played by street musicians
on a piece of pavement
in Tijuana—
The street a stage
for an animated brown sprite
with a stub for an arm
in a tattered red dress
she dances
in rouge shadows
to the rhythm of marimba
drum and catgut lace—
I feed the kitty
walk to Tijuana Tilly's
where birds trill
in sidewalk trees
on Avenida Revolution
in front of Jai Alai
i sit transfixed by dusk
as the adobe town kneels
before pastel stucco hills—
Her hungry eyes rivet on mine
breaking the spell of sunset
as a shiny black boot
chases her away
gringo turistas
and Mexican millionaires
listen to disco
sip margaritas—
She walks the streets
alone lurking
in doorways and alleys—
She seldom sleeps
surviving
on la Frontera
|
Música mexicana
tocada por los músicos ambulantes
sobre el pavimento
en Tijuana—
La calle un escenario
para una animada duende morena
su brazo un muñón
en un harapiento vestido rojo
baila
en sombras rojizas
al ritmo de la marimba
los tambores y las cuerdas de tripa—
Hecho dinero en la cajita
camino hasta Tijuana Tilly's
donde los pájaros trinan
en los árboles de las aceras
de la Avenida Revolución
frente al Palacio Jai Alai
me siento, paralizado por el anochecer
mientras la ciudad de adobe se arrodilla
ante colinas de pastel estuco—
Sus hambrientos ojos se clavan en los mios rompiendo el hechizo
del ocaso del sol
a la vez una lustrada bota negra
la ahuyenta
turistas gringos
y millonarios mexicanos
escuchan disco
y beben margaritas—
Ella camina las calles
sola asechando
en portales
y callejones—
Ella casi nunca duerme
sobreviviendo en la Frontera
|
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