Emmanuel Aligizakis

Emmanuel Aligizakis

Manolis (Emmanuel Aligizakis) is a Greek-Canadian poet and author. He was recently appointed an honorary instructor and fellow of the International Arts Academy, and awarded a Master’s for the Arts in Literature. He is recognized for his ability to convey images and thoughts in a rich and evocative way that tugs at something deep within the reader.

Born in the village of Kolibari on the island of Crete in 1947, he moved with his family at a young age to Thessaloniki and then to Athens, where he received his Bachelor of Arts in Political Sciences from the Panteion University of Athens. After graduation, he served in the armed forces for two years and emigrated to Vancouver in 1973, where he worked as an iron worker, train labourer, taxi driver, and stock broker, and studied English Literature at Simon Fraser University.

He has written three novels and numerous collections of poetry, which are steadily being released as published works. His articles, poems and short stories in both Greek and English have appeared in various magazines and newspapers in Canada, United States, Sweden, Hungary, Slovakia, Romania, Australia, and Greece.

He now lives in White Rock, where he spends his time writing, gardening, traveling, and heading Libros Libertad, an unorthodox and independent publishing company which he founded in 2006 with the mission of publishing literary books.

 
The poem below from Emmanuel Aligizakis’ new poetry book “AUTUMN LEAVES” planned to be released by Ekstasis Editions next month.

 
STRANGER

He entered the shadowy bar
a fragile cosmos
filled with passion
hopes and dreams

his life
an ellipse
a contour of totality
a flawless flow of innocence
his heart
an instrument of serenity
a song and rhythm from medieval times
but only freshness in his palms
in his irises
the universe still virginal
reflecting the promise in his eyes

the patrons of the bar recognized
a leader of bygone eras
a writer of ancient books
a collector of genuine relics
none believed in anymore,
an avatar, anointed one
to be revered
the one with the stigmata
and other human scars
engraved in his skin

a few men
turned their envious eyes aside
some of the patrons
closed them in disbelief
they wished he’d never entered their bar
and others
gathered around him
in close proximity
to someone they didn’t understand
in awe of his mere presence

And he talked to them
his words absorbing their pain
his glances uplifting their spirits
but one did not hear or see

when the time came
for the traitor to aim at his heart
with an unerring pistol
the stranger stood tall
as the bullet burned through his flesh
falling slowly
until he lay motionless,
caught in the clutch of circumstance
and the ice cold breath of death
cradled in captivity for awhile
for eternity
for ever
yet never
the circle comes full
and the ancient myth
always recommences
when a certain stranger
enters a fragile cosmos.

 
For other contributions by Emmanuel Aligizakis, please follow the links below:

 
Poetry in this post: © Emmanuel Aligizakis
Published with the permission of Emmanuel Aligizakis