Adam
Although he lived in paradise,
Adam paced the alleyways
sad and preoccupied,
not knowing what he was missing.
And so God made Eve
from one of Adam’s ribs.
The first man liked the miracle so much
he touched his next rib right away,
his fingers beautifully sparked
by firm breasts and thighs
like the contours of grace notes.
A new Eve rose before him.
She had taken out a small mirror
and was putting lipstick on.
"Oh well," sighed Adam,
and made another one.
And so on and so forth,
whenever the original Eve
turned her back or went
to the market for gold,
incense, and myrrh,
Adam fashioned another mistress
from his intercostal harem.
God noticed this degenerate creation
of Adam’s and concluded
to give him a divine rollicking,
then expelled him from paradise
for surrealism.
Adam paced the alleyways
sad and preoccupied,
not knowing what he was missing.
And so God made Eve
from one of Adam’s ribs.
The first man liked the miracle so much
he touched his next rib right away,
his fingers beautifully sparked
by firm breasts and thighs
like the contours of grace notes.
A new Eve rose before him.
She had taken out a small mirror
and was putting lipstick on.
"Oh well," sighed Adam,
and made another one.
And so on and so forth,
whenever the original Eve
turned her back or went
to the market for gold,
incense, and myrrh,
Adam fashioned another mistress
from his intercostal harem.
God noticed this degenerate creation
of Adam’s and concluded
to give him a divine rollicking,
then expelled him from paradise
for surrealism.
AdamCu toate că se afla în rai,
Adam se plimba pe alei preocupat și trist Pentru că nu știa ce-i lipsește. Atunci Dumnezeu a confecționat-o pe Eva Dintr-o coastă a lui Adam. Și primului om atât de mult i-a plăcut această minune Încât chiar în clipa aceea Și-a pipăit coasta imediat următoare, Simțind-și degetele frumos fulgerate De niște sâni tari și coapse dulci Ca de contururi de note muzicale. O nouă Eva răsărise în fața lui. Tocmai își scosese oglinjoara Și se ruja pe buze. "Asta e viața!" - a oftat Adam Și-a mai creat încă una. Și tot așa, de câte ori Eva oficială Se întorcea cu spatele Sau pleca la piață după aur, smirnă si tămâie Adam scotea la lumină o nouă cadână Din haremul lui intercostal. Dumnezeu a observat Această creație deșănțată a lui Adam L-a chemat la el, l-a sictirit Dumnezeiește Și l-a izgonit din rai Pentru suprarealism. |
Dante
The Divine Comedy, wandering pyramid
slightly tilted towards eternity.
I hear it gliding across the sands
when the moon is out at night,
a millimeter every year, to and fro,
at its own pace.
And inside it
shut in tight as if within himself
sits the Pharao.
He’s embalmed everyone he knew
personally or from hearsay,
forcing his hand as far
as the white stones of antiquity.
So awful being surrounded
by a world of mortals!
Which is why he embalmed them,
not to dwell alone in eternity too.
He stuffed his ark full of everything
that happened on earth.
Nine skies of sin, nine of expectation,
nine of illusion,
all bursting at the seams.
And at the center,
Dante.
He watches the Inferno, Paradise, and Purgatory
and when he gets bored he swaps the signboards around.
The Paradise sign for the Inferno sign
and vice versa
and this over and over
so that the poor saps
can no longer tell where they are.
Dante holds his tongue
until the veins bulge on his forehead,
pushing, from inside, the pyramid,
which moves softly across the sands,
a millimeter every year, to and fro,
at its own pace.
slightly tilted towards eternity.
I hear it gliding across the sands
when the moon is out at night,
a millimeter every year, to and fro,
at its own pace.
And inside it
shut in tight as if within himself
sits the Pharao.
He’s embalmed everyone he knew
personally or from hearsay,
forcing his hand as far
as the white stones of antiquity.
So awful being surrounded
by a world of mortals!
Which is why he embalmed them,
not to dwell alone in eternity too.
He stuffed his ark full of everything
that happened on earth.
Nine skies of sin, nine of expectation,
nine of illusion,
all bursting at the seams.
And at the center,
Dante.
He watches the Inferno, Paradise, and Purgatory
and when he gets bored he swaps the signboards around.
The Paradise sign for the Inferno sign
and vice versa
and this over and over
so that the poor saps
can no longer tell where they are.
Dante holds his tongue
until the veins bulge on his forehead,
pushing, from inside, the pyramid,
which moves softly across the sands,
a millimeter every year, to and fro,
at its own pace.
DanteDivina Comedie, piramidă rătăcitoare,
Ușor inclinată către veșnicie, O aud noaptea când e lună Alunecând încet pe nisip, Un milimetru pe an încolo sau încoace, Fără nici o grabă. Și înăuntru, Închis etanș ca în sine însuși, Stă faraonul. Și-a îmbălsămat singur toți cunoscuții, Pe cei apropiați si pe cei scoși doar din auzite, Vârând mâna Până pe sub pietrele albe ale antichității. E groaznic să ai o lume muritoare în jur! Și el i-a îmbălsămat Pentru a nu rămâne și-n veșnicie tot singur. Tot ce s-a întâmplat pe pământ A îndesat în arca sa. Nouă ceruri de păcate, nouă de așteptare, Nouă de iluzii, Toate pline ochi. Iar în mijlocul lor stă Dante. Privește infernul, purgatoriul și paradisul, Iar când se plictisește, schimbă firmele. Pe cea de la infern o pune în paradis Și invers. Și asta de multe ori la rând, Încât bieții muritori Habar n-au unde se mai află. Și tace Dante de i se umflă vinele tâmplei Împingând din interior piramida Care înaintează încet pe nisip Un milimetru pe an încolo sau încoace, Fără nici o grabă. |
Friends
Let's kill ourselves, I say to my friends,
we communicated so well today,
got so deep,
we’ll never reach
that kind of shared perfection again
and it would be a shame to waste the opportunity.
I think it's most dramatic in the bathroom--
let’s do it like the Romans
who opened their veins
while discussing the essence of love.
Look, I heated the bathwater.
On my count, dear friends: one, two, three...
I was somewhat surprised to find myself alone
in hell. Some perhaps don’t die
so easily, I thought, they have stronger bonds.
They wouldn't have fooled me: a promise is a promise.
But time went on...
It was pretty tough for me in hell,
let me tell you, especially at the beginning
all alone with no one to talk to
but little by little I broke the ice, made friends.
A tightly knit group--
we discussed all sorts of theoretical matters.
We felt so good together
we got as far as suicide.
... And again I found myself alone, in purgatory,
looking for kindred souls--
though the purgatorians were quite suspicious
due to their own uncertain situation
in-between two worlds--
and so I came across a beautiful girl who fell for me,
with whom I shared great moments of joy…
I really wanted to ask her...
But waited this time, having been burnt before,
and let her do it first
killing myself afterwards--
only for her to change her mind
and come back to life.
So here I am now alone in heaven--
nobody’s ever made it this far,
I am the first, the world exists merely as project,
something rather vague,
in God's head--
we’re growing fond of each other lately—
Sadness is rife at all levels,
even he’s feeling a bit down.
I look into his empty eyes and get lost in them.
He roars down the abyss of my deaths.
We communicate together perfectly,
God, I think we have reached perfection,
you first, how about leaving it all in the dark?
we communicated so well today,
got so deep,
we’ll never reach
that kind of shared perfection again
and it would be a shame to waste the opportunity.
I think it's most dramatic in the bathroom--
let’s do it like the Romans
who opened their veins
while discussing the essence of love.
Look, I heated the bathwater.
On my count, dear friends: one, two, three...
I was somewhat surprised to find myself alone
in hell. Some perhaps don’t die
so easily, I thought, they have stronger bonds.
They wouldn't have fooled me: a promise is a promise.
But time went on...
It was pretty tough for me in hell,
let me tell you, especially at the beginning
all alone with no one to talk to
but little by little I broke the ice, made friends.
A tightly knit group--
we discussed all sorts of theoretical matters.
We felt so good together
we got as far as suicide.
... And again I found myself alone, in purgatory,
looking for kindred souls--
though the purgatorians were quite suspicious
due to their own uncertain situation
in-between two worlds--
and so I came across a beautiful girl who fell for me,
with whom I shared great moments of joy…
I really wanted to ask her...
But waited this time, having been burnt before,
and let her do it first
killing myself afterwards--
only for her to change her mind
and come back to life.
So here I am now alone in heaven--
nobody’s ever made it this far,
I am the first, the world exists merely as project,
something rather vague,
in God's head--
we’re growing fond of each other lately—
Sadness is rife at all levels,
even he’s feeling a bit down.
I look into his empty eyes and get lost in them.
He roars down the abyss of my deaths.
We communicate together perfectly,
God, I think we have reached perfection,
you first, how about leaving it all in the dark?
PrieteniHai să ne sinucidem, le spun prietenilor mei,
Azi am comunicat atât de bine, Am fost atât de trişti, Perfecţiunea asta în comun N-o mai atingem noi Şi e păcat să pierdem momentul. Cred că în baie e cel mai tragic, Să facem pe românii cei luminaţi Care îşi deschideau venele, Discutând despre esenţa iubirii. Uite, am încălzit apa. Începem, dragi prieteni, număr eu: unu, doi, trei… În iad am fost oarecum surprins, pomenindu-mă singur, Unii poate mor mai greu, mi-am spus, au mai multe legături. Nu se poate să mă fi păcălit: cuvântul înseamnă ceva, Dar timpul trece… Mi-a fost destul de greu, în iad, vă asigur, Mai ales la început, ştiţi eram singur, N-aveam cu cine să mai schimb o vorbă, Dar încetul cu încetul m-am ataşat, mi-am făcut prieteni. Un cerc extraordinar de sudat, Discutăm tot felul de chestii teoretice. Ne simţeam minunat, Am ajuns chiar până la sinucidere. … Şi iarăşi m-am pomenit singur în purgatoriu, Căutându-mi câteva suflete mai apropiate, Deşi sunt destul de suspicioşi Purgatorienii – cu situaţia lor neclară Între două lumi- O fată mă iubeşte, e foarte frumoasă, Avem clipe de mare extaz – nemaipomenit, fantastic! Şi chiar îmi vine pe limbă să-i spun… Păţit, o las pe ea mai întâi, Eu mă sinucid abia după aceea, Dar fata face ce face şi-nvie- Şi iată-mă singur în rai- Nimeni n-a pătruns niciodată aici, Sunt primul om, lumea există ca proiect, Ceva foarte vag, În capul lui Dumnezeu, Cu care chiar mă împrietenesc de la o vreme. Există tristețe la toate nivelurile, dumnezeu e deznădăjduit, Mă uit în ochii lui goi şi mă pierd în ei. El alunecă vâjâind în prăpăstiile morților mele. Comunicăm de minune, Doamne, cred c-am atins perfecțiunea, Tu mai întâi, Ce-ar fi să lăsăm totul în întuneric. |
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Marin Sorescu was a Romanian poet, playwright, and novelist nominated for the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1992 and 1996. He published over twenty books of poetry.
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Daniel Nemo Carden is a poet, translator, and photographer. His work has appeared in Magma Poetry, RHINO, Full Stop, Off the Coast, and elsewhere.
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