Here are a few extracts from a very interesting book 'LE TON BEAU DE MAROT' the music of language

For the most part Le ton beau tackles the subject of poetry translation (mostly from old French,..I'm sure you would like it Robert!) oh! the author is Douglas R.Hofstadter. He is college of Arts and Sciences Professor of cognitive science at Indiana University in Bloomington..

"I am a romantic who tends to see the power of human creativity as virtually limitless. Indeed,..one of my purposes in drawing together this books sampler of sparkingly diverse translations of one tiny poem was to issue a clear reminder of how subtle and complex the human mind really is."

As I said the book is mostly about translation,...at the end, the author tells how he lost his wife, Carol,...it is obvious how much in love they were,..so perhaps it would be appropiate to post this excerpt here,..it is said that one must vibrate to LOVE to be a poet.

CIAO BELLA...BELLA CIAO

In the first year of our marriage,we had run together quite often,but then Carol had given it up. However in what turned out to be the last year of our marriage, she took up running again with enormous enthusiasm. She used to ask me,in that uncertain way she had, "am I really a runner yet?" What do you think?" And I would tell her that of course she was really a runner, not only a real runner but getting to be a strong runner. Carol,Carol,so full of self doubt,so little reason to be that way....
The two of us used to run together in the early evenings,while the Sun was very low. Carol was surprisingly gung-ho and when the time came,she would come up to my study and get me to go along,even on the muggiest of summer evenings. Sometimes we would go do the hilly loop at the "Y". Other times,we would start off in the alley behind our house and trot side by side for a mile;then,when we hit Bryan Park,we would split up to do the loop in opposite directions. Often,when on the parks far side we zipped by each other like two jets in the sky,I would flash her a smile and yell out, Ciao bella! and she would wink me back a smile and yell, Ciao bello!
And these days,when I'm running that same old Bryan Park loop and I come to that same old spot, every once in a while I'll still softly yell out, Ciao bella!,half hoping to catch that merry wink and to hear her echo my call. I don't know why I do it. I just wish she could hear me. And who-knows - maybe,dashing on in minituare,safely ensconced in the recesses of my faithful heart,she still can. Magari.

E seppellire
lassu in mantagna
O bella ciao,bella ciao,
Bella ciao,ciao,ciao
E seppellire,
lassu in mantagna,
Sotto l'ombra
D'un bel fior.

E le genti
Che passeranno,
O bella ciao,bella ciao,
Bella ciao,ciao,ciao,
E le genti
Che passerano,
Ti diranno,
Che bel fior.

E le genti
Che passerano
Ti diranno,
Che bel fior.

Ti diranno,
Che bel fior.

Ti diranno
Che bel fior.

Hi Galadriel, its nice to be able to welcome another poet, you are in good company, and all my blessings to Mother and Daughter,..that was a lovely poem. Joyce Tyre rings true too!

HELLO Hach winik,...are you by any chance the Third Musketeer?!, that is a lovely Lexipoem,..I agree Mother Nature badly needs us to act,..so THANKS for "putting pen to paper" it's well to get a reminder.

Hi Seamistress,that is a very LOGICAL little poem, I wonder what Sign the writer would have been!?

Love to all
Michael