“Eyes and ears are two.
Lungs and kidneys, too.
I wonder then
why we’re born with one
heart that skips a beat when hay is here,
and beats quickly when you are near.
One heart that cracks when you are far,
lie to me and leave a scar.
I wonder then
why we’re born with one
heart that’s easily broken.
Was I supposed to find you then?
So your heart would make one
plus one is
two
for me
and two for you.”Kamand Kojouri
“O woman,
father says natural is beautiful
so why do you redden your cheeks
and blacken your eyes?
Why do you remove the hair on your legs
and draw them into your brows?
Why do you hold your breath
lest your stomach show
and hold your fart
lest they know
that you’re a human? O woman,
father says natural is beautiful
so why do you straighten your hair
to curl it next
and pretend to orgasm
so they think you enjoyed the sex?
Why do you dumb yourself down
and push up your breasts?
Why do you smile when you’re told to
and love when you don’t want to?
When? When
will you stop, woman?
Father says natural is beautiful
but that is doubtful
for what does father know
he’s only a fellow.”Kamand Kojouri
“Retrospect: the sweetener of life.”
Kamand Kojouri
“Prejudice is an act of violence.”
Kamand Kojouri
“Life is short; love is longer.”
Kamand Kojouri
“I remember our childhood days
when life was easy
and math problems hard.
Mom would help us with our homework
and dad was not at home
but at work.
After our chores,
we’d go to the old fort museum
with clips in our hair and pure joy in our hearts.
You, sister, wore the bangles
that
you, brother, got as a prize from the Dentist.
“Why the bangles?” the Dentist asked,
surprised,
for boys picked the stickers of cars instead.
“They’re for my sisters,” you said.
Mom would treat us to a bottle of Coke,
a few sips each. Then,
we’d buy the sweet smelling bread
from the same white van
and hand in hand,
we’d walk to our small flat
above the restaurant.
I remember our childhood days.
Do you remember them too?”Kamand Kojouri
“All you need to get by in this world is the memory of love”
Kamand Kojouri
“My dear, please be careful.
You no longer live only for yourself.
You live for me as well.”Kamand Kojouri
“Knowing you,
I became mindless.
Having wasted previous wishes,
I’m riddled with regretsFeeling you,
I became hopeless.
Adrift in chasms,
I surrender to a caress.Loving you,
I became love.
My universe became love.
Planets rotate on love’s axes and
apples fall to be near their beloveds.No longer a rationalist, I assert my existence with love.
I love, therefore
I exist,
therefore I
love.”Kamand Kojouri
“I began missing you even before we met.”
Kamand Kojouri
Kamand Kojouri 