Poem

Adi Assis

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GENESIS

In the beginning
he created an ear for himself
and didn’t hear.
Created a mouth
and didn’t speak.
Created a pen and tacked it on his ear.
He vomited ink all day long
and then there was evening.
He created a sleeve to wipe
the oozing blue.
Didn’t succeed.
The ink became dark,
and stars emerged.

© Translation: 2015, Adi Assis

בְּרֵאשִׁית

בְּרֵאשִׁית

בְּרֵאשִׁית
בָּרָא לְעַצְמוֹ אֹזֶן
וְלֹא שָׁמַע.
בָּרָא פֶּה
וְלֹא דִּבֵּר.
בָּרָא עֵט וְנָעַץ בָּאֹזֶן.
הֵקִיא דְּיוֹ כָּל הַיּוֹם
וַיְהִי עֶרֶב.
בָּרָא שַׁרְווּל לְנַגֵּב
אֶת הַכָּחֹל הַזָּב.
לֹא הִצְלִיחַ.
כָּהֲתָה הַדְּיוֹ,
צָצוּ בָּהּ כּוֹכָבִים.

© 2009, Adi Assis
From: Haneshek Haham (Firearms)
Publisher: Helicon, 2009

Adi Assis

Adi Assis

Adi Assis, a poet of both social parody and personal pain, earns his living as a computer programmer. Born in Tel Aviv, Assis studied philosophy at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and is a graduate of the Helicon School of Poetry. His second manuscript of verse, Child, was awarded the 2012 ACUM Natan Yonatan Prize and was published in 2013, when he was the recipient of the Teva Prize for his...

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GENESIS

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GENESIS

In the beginning
he created an ear for himself
and didn’t hear.
Created a mouth
and didn’t speak.
Created a pen and tacked it on his ear.
He vomited ink all day long
and then there was evening.
He created a sleeve to wipe
the oozing blue.
Didn’t succeed.
The ink became dark,
and stars emerged.

© 2015, Adi Assis
From: Haneshek Haham (Firearms)

GENESIS

In the beginning
he created an ear for himself
and didn’t hear.
Created a mouth
and didn’t speak.
Created a pen and tacked it on his ear.
He vomited ink all day long
and then there was evening.
He created a sleeve to wipe
the oozing blue.
Didn’t succeed.
The ink became dark,
and stars emerged.

© 2015, Adi Assis

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