As some of you may remember, I was previously considering getting a tattoo of a quote of something that was important to me, I narrowed it down to something Pablo Neruda, Isabel Allende, or Gabriel Garcia Marquez because they're my all time favorite writers and I can sincerely say have changed my life. Not only have I gone to Chile and seen all of Pablo Neruda's houses, stalked down and met (and got an autograph from) Isabel Allende, but I've allowed their words to sink into my very soul. I also consider an Eels lyrics because to me they're just all time super classic Sydney. They've been my favorite band for years unwaveringly. I only had one CD when I went to Europe and it was the Eels, There are few bands that I could say I've listened to and memorized all of their cd's and enjoyed each song. Every one of their shows have been amazing and many of their lyrics are astonishingly wonderful to me.
So here is a small compilation of poems and one song that I am in the process of considering. I will make bold the quote (s) I'm considering.
Feedback appreciated!
Pablo Neruda - Sonnet XVII
I don't love you as if you were the salt-rose, topaz
or arrow of carnations that propagate fire:
I love you as certain dark things are loved,
secretly, between the shadow and the soul. ( in spanish: secretamente, entre la sombra y el alma. )
I love you as the plant that doesn't bloom and carries
hidden within itself the light of those flowers,
and thanks to your love, darkly in my body
lives the dense fragrance that rises from the earth.
I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where,
I love you simply, without problems or pride:
I love you in this way because I don't know any other way of loving
but this, in which there is no I or you,
so intimate that your hand upon my chest is my hand,
so intimate that when I fall asleep it is your eyes that close.
Pablo Neruda - Come With Me
Come with me, I said, and no one knew
where, or how my pain throbbed,
no carnations or barcaroles for me,
only a wound that love had opened.
I said it again: Come with me, as if I were dying,
and no one saw the moon that bled in my mouth
or the blood that rose into silence.
O Love, now we can forget the star that has such thorns! ( Spanish: Oh amor ahora olvidemos la estrella con espinas!)
That is why, when I heard your voice repeat
Come with me, it was as if you had let loose
the grief, the love, the fury of a cork-trapped wine
that geysers flooding from deep in its vault;
in my mouth I felt the taste of fire again,
of blood and carnations, of rock & scald.
The Eels - The Stars Shine in the Sky Tonight
i can't live in a world that you have left behind
seen a lot, been through too much
but this is where i draw the line
it's not where you're coming from
it's where you're going to
and i just wanna go with you
december is a lonely month
in a year of lonely days
it's hard to tell which way is up
or down or out
or through the haze
people cheat and people lie
while you just watch it all go by
counting days until you die
the stars shine in the sky tonight
like a path beyond the grave
when you wish upon that star
there's two of us you need to save
it's not where you're coming from
it's where you're going to
and i just wanna go with you
I've also decided that I want the tattoo in rather small letters in a font I have yet to pick on my upper back, half on my shoulder blade, more to the side than centered. It's hard to describe the spot but I could easily point it out...
