Claudia Piccinno, ITALY

NERINA

Nerina rode her bike,
pretending to be in a little hurry.
The shots touched her saddle,
her heart creaked in the trash.
She swallowed messages
and ink many times
in order that the words
were not extracted from her.
She did not like to remember
her fear while running in the barn,
the adrenaline of dissent
shone in her eyes
and euphoria of the revolution
was swinging.
This epitaph Nerina wanted
- I did not do anything special
the strength of emancipation
it must be our habitual courage.-

(This poem is about Italian women who helped partisans to free their country from German soldiers during 2nd World War)


ASPASIA 

As Aspasia with Pericles,
on binary complementary systems,
she aspired to be half of the double
when she realized to be half of nothing.
The study of letters
and her dreams in the drawer
were not enough to stay in the circuit.
Even if she was an infinitesimal particle
of an only feeling,
she was considered without soul and without honor,
disregarding joys and promises.
The "don't leave me" that Pericles screamed at her,
contradicted by calculations and fractions,
was a very bitter gall for her dignity.
Herodotus, Socrates, and Phidias
wanted her,
but Pericles did not oppose the Athenians,
who pointed out to the pillory
the only lady who
would never feel shame
of being true and honest.

(The poet says, she wrote this poem thinking about the old Greek leader Pericle and her partner Aspasia)


CRUCIFIED BY SHOULDERS 

Circular volutes
in the slanders of others
put her by shoulders on a cross.
She died thus,
stoned by lies,
vilified by the women of her team.
Proud her eyes turned to the Eternal,
for all the witches who ended up at the stake,
for all the martyrs of the mediocrity of others.
She denied her smile to those who pointed out at her
wearing the burka of submission.
She left like that,
crucified by shoulders.

(This is a poem about moral injuries and real female killings perpetrated with complicity of jealous women)


Claudia Piccinno (b.1970), a primary school teacher, is the first Italian poetess to be awarded The Stelae of Rosetta, World Literary Prize in Istanbul in November 2016. She was conferred the prestigious “World Icon for Peace” Award by WIP in Ondo city, Nigeria, in April 2017 and the Naji Naaman Literary Prize-2018, LibenoShe has 7 published books to her credit and is the Italian Editor for the international literary magazine Rosetta World Literatura in Turkey and for Atunis Magazine in Albania. She has received awards in major national and international competitions of poetry, including an honourable mention in the Paris 1st Word Literary Prize and a 3rd prize in Lugano, Switzerland, 3rd prize in Albania. She strives to promote poetry based on respect and appreciation of differences. Claudia’s poems have been published in over 100 international anthologies and translated into Arabic, Spanish, Turkish, Serbian, French, Chinese, Hindi, Greek and Polish languages.

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Women, Power & Creativity :: Setu, March 2019