ZIAEDDIN TORABI - POEMS

Ziaeddin Torabi is an Iranian-American poet living in Sacarmento. He holds a B.A. in English & Literature and an M.A.in Linguistics from Iranian Universities. Tobari has published more than 30 books of poetry, criticisms, reviews, and translations (in Iran).  From 1988 to 1998, he was the head of various literary centers in Tehran Municipal. From 1999 t0 2009, he taught Persian literature at the University of Applied Sciences and Technology in Tehran. He has won many literary awards including the 2010 Iran Annual Book Prize for his poetry collection, Face To Face With Dream. His book was translated into English by Parisa Samady and published by Ad Luman press, Sacramento, 2015. Face To Face With Dream was also nominated for the 35th Annual Northern California Book Award. Some of his poems have appeared in American River Review, Clade Song, Tipton Poetry Journal and Grey sparrow journal.

               Memory

Sitting in a tea-house
drinking a cup of Earl grey tea
to kill the time
in a place where all customers were
house painters
or house builders
Then an old man
entered
ordered a tea
and began to talk
about the eye glasses
that he found in the street
wanted to sale it
All men looked at him
by kind of a smile
After a minute
one man came to him
and asked for a try
Thenhe paid fifty pennies
and bought it
saying that
it was very good
and he could see better than before
It was a great deal
That I will never forget.
               ******

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             Fishing

It was a long time since we had not eaten any fish
so, one day, my son and his friends
decided to go fishing
from the nearby river.

After a few hours 
they returned with some fish
all fresh and fine.

We grilled them and ate them rapidly
with greed
they were very delicious.

I should tell you
next day, they revealed
they could not catch any fish
but since
it was a long time 
we had not eaten any fish
and were waiting for them
to comeback with fresh fish

They had gone to fish market
and bought some fish
fresh and fine.

         *******

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