Konstantina Nikolaidi x Manos Gerakinis

Poetry meets perfumery. Konstantina Nikolaidis, inspired by the beauty of flowers, the seasons and their aromas wrote a poem dedicated to perfumery and translated by Maria S. Blana.

Reach out your hand
Knit your fingers with other fingers
Dive into the radiant mother sea
Without any future or past
With just one breath – it’s enough –
and a smile
“Bougainvilleas, Sunflowers, Summer Pansies,
scent yourselves with friendship, love and freedom!”

Do not trap your mind in memory’s web
Bitter-sweet memories, let them go
They shall not endure
and it is your duty not to wither
“Autumn Carnations, Chrysanthemums, Jasmine trees,
scent yourselves with mourning, nostalgia
and the bitterness of a warm drop on the cheek!”

On the trace of your breath, the map of your life
Again and again, exhalations
Don’t miss your very own vein in that handful of vapor
Look at the destination opening up before you
“Camellias, Winter Cyclamen, Alexandrines,
scent yourselves with catharsis, hope and a snow-white wish!”

Spread your arms wide open
Embrace the earth, the sky and the far-beyond
Images and sounds, spaces and times
The spiral of the universe – a pulse
Eternal truth
All that has died has been born
And what was born will rise again
And, with it, so will you
“Azaleas, Spring Violets, Geraniums,
scent yourselves with new offspring, new life!”

04 May 2022