Louise Bassini with Goethe on Her Ribs

Tattooed poets featured on the Tattooed Poets Project often come with a long list of publication credits, but occasionally I receive submissions from folks who are not "established," per se. One of our poets today, Louise Bassini, hails from South America, and I wanted to include her work here.

First, this tattoo on her ribs:

Louise explains:

"I had this tattooed by Jeferson Martins (@esperanzatattoo) at Esperanza Tattoo Shop in Porto Alegre (Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil). It's "Wahlverwandtschaften" (Elective Affinities), the title of a book written by my favorite author, Johann Goethe. The way Goethe describes the simplest details shows pure mastership. It had me in love from the first quote and as the title is so meaningful (to me, at least), I decided to have it tattooed."

Louise shared the following poem:

Absolution

I was humiliated by the silence

And above it all

By my complete lack of knowledge

In the required subject

I wish I could swoon or vanish

But I did not

I saw each and every pitiful look

Of those staring at me

I silently found a chair

In that hostile environment

And avoiding the eyes of people

I sat almost breathless

Praying to be unnoticed

And I got smaller

And smaller

Until I was inside myself

Peering into something to distract me

From my own existence

I found a small piece of poetry

On which I hung myself

Trusting that it would soon

Fly me away -

It was comforting

Like finding a tiny diamond

While drowning in the mud.

~ ~ ~

Louise Bassini was born in Porto Alegre (Brazil), in 1988. She has shown interest in poetry since she was 3 years old, developing throughout the years a personal passion for American and European Romantism. Among her influences, she highlights Goethe, William Blake and Edgar Allan Poe. Her interest in literature has brought with it a deep passion for languages, having she also attended intensive classes of Russian at Saint Petersburg State University. You can find her on Wattpad here: https://www.wattpad.com/user/LouiseBassini.

Thanks to Louise for her contribution to the Tattooed Poets Project!

This entry is �2017 Tattoosday. The poem and tattoo are reprinted with the poet's permission.

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