04 May 2003

Here is the poem I mentioned earlier:

ODE TO A TROUBLED ISLE

O troubled isle of Aphrodite,
Thy verdant beauty has become
For others a supreme delight,
But not for thee, for enmity
Has come between surrounding lands
That vie each with the other one
For favour from thy bounteous hands.

O fabled isle of goddess' birth,
Where classic temples proudly stand
And mythic heroes walk the earth;
'Tis from the sea she came to be,
As told with all the poet's charm,
To bring the joys of love that man
Might live in peace and do no harm.

O ancient isle of copper's fame,
How much of history hast thou seen:
Of foreign kings who often came
To taste thy fruit but stayed to root
Their restless hearts within thy soil
And give their children what has been
A legacy of tears and toil.

O blessed isle of Barnabas,
Apostles trod upon thy shores,
Which saw the martyrs' blood, alas,
That spilt with pain, but not in vain,
To keep the faith delivered once
From persecution's cruel force
And fast against its bold affronts.

O lovely isle of fruitful vine,
Would that thou wert elsewhere placed:
A thousand miles away would thine
Abundant fields their produce yield
To satisfy thy people's want,
Who never more would have to taste
The turmoil of the old Levant.

O thou, my father's native isle,
Thy very heart is rent in twain
And subject to severest trial,
For on this day are cast away
Thy people from their pastures green
And left to gather what remain
Of brighter days that once have been.

O troubled isle of Aphrodite,
Thy verdant beauty has become
For others a supreme delight,
But not for thee; for Amity,
Who once among thy people dwelt,
Has fled before the tyrants' gun
But yet shall make her presence felt.

David T. Koyzis


Perhaps the last three and a half lines will prove to be prophetic. The poem can also be found here.

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