To Greece on "OXI" Day By: Adham Boghdady

 

From the depths of history

the decision came,

when Metaxas received

the ultimatum.

He was told: "Surrender,"

so the reply came, harsh and sharp,

and history wrote it:

"OXI" (No) is the answer and the appointed time!

A "No" that shook

the earth and the mountains,

a refusal like an earthquake that shattered

the throne of tyranny.

So the people rushed forth, soldiers

and women,

like an unyielding rock in

the face of affliction.

***

Oh, the dawn of the Twenty-Eighth,

your lights have shone,

over beloved Greece,

your secrets are revealed.

Today, O Athens,

the flags are fluttering,

flowers are laid on the Tomb

of the Unknown Soldier,

a salute to souls that never

knew weakness.

To those who irrigated the land of

Epirus and its peaks with their blood,

so that freedom remains

at its highest values.

***

"OXI"

is not a word of pessimism,

but the dignity of a nation

immortal forever.

It is the promise that the soul

will not submit,

and that freedom dwells

in the veins.

Adham Boghdady