Poetry International Poetry International
Poem

Fernando Denis

"The Temeraire" Burning in the Sea of San Juan de la Ciénaga


The red sail sings on the sea of iron,
It spreads its arms like Christ facing the infinite shore,
Almost in ashes the blue gold with its great mystery.
It almost has the color of the wings of the future in the darkness.
Under the tremor of the soul of the sailor
The amazed moon on the prow is already ashes.
Ashy is the love of the Countess’s portrait
And the song of the dream of the colors suffering
Under human veins.
The sea breathes, scents the borders of a ship
Sinking in the dream.
“The Temeraire” has ripened under the fire,
It no longer feels the rusty waves, but its sails
Hurt it, its colors hurt it,
It is frightened by another light not spread by time.
The wind kneels down like a god wounded in the bow,
And the enraged firmament
Sees the falling of an empire of wood and iron,
Near an improvised town in a valley
Where phantoms
Write on the sand the name
Of an English painter who went mad for love of the sirens.

"El Temerario" ardiendo en el mar de San Juan de la Ciénaga

"El Temerario" ardiendo en el mar de San Juan de la Ciénaga

Canta la roja vela sobre el mar de hierro,
Tiende sus brazos como Cristo frente a la costa infinita.
Ya casi en ceniza el oro azul con su gran misterio.
Ya casi tiene los colores del ala el futuro en las tinieblas.
Bajo el temblor del alma del marino
La luna que se asombra en la proa ya es ceniza.
Ceniciento es el amor del retrato de la condesa
Y el canto del sueño de los colores que sufren
Bajo las venas humanas.
El mar respira, olfatea los bordes de un barco
Que naufraga en el sueño.
“El Temerario” ha madurado bajo el incendio,
Ya no siente las olas herrumbrosas, pero le duele
Su velamen, le duelen sus colores,
Lo espanta otra luz que no es proferida por el tiempo.
El viento se arrodilla como un Dios herido en la proa.
Y el firmamento embravecido
Ve caer un imperio de madera y de hierro.
Junto a un pueblo improvisado un valle
Donde fantasmas
Escriben en la arena el nombre
De un pintor inglés que enloqueció de amor a las sirenas.
Close

"The Temeraire" Burning in the Sea of San Juan de la Ciénaga


The red sail sings on the sea of iron,
It spreads its arms like Christ facing the infinite shore,
Almost in ashes the blue gold with its great mystery.
It almost has the color of the wings of the future in the darkness.
Under the tremor of the soul of the sailor
The amazed moon on the prow is already ashes.
Ashy is the love of the Countess’s portrait
And the song of the dream of the colors suffering
Under human veins.
The sea breathes, scents the borders of a ship
Sinking in the dream.
“The Temeraire” has ripened under the fire,
It no longer feels the rusty waves, but its sails
Hurt it, its colors hurt it,
It is frightened by another light not spread by time.
The wind kneels down like a god wounded in the bow,
And the enraged firmament
Sees the falling of an empire of wood and iron,
Near an improvised town in a valley
Where phantoms
Write on the sand the name
Of an English painter who went mad for love of the sirens.

"The Temeraire" Burning in the Sea of San Juan de la Ciénaga


The red sail sings on the sea of iron,
It spreads its arms like Christ facing the infinite shore,
Almost in ashes the blue gold with its great mystery.
It almost has the color of the wings of the future in the darkness.
Under the tremor of the soul of the sailor
The amazed moon on the prow is already ashes.
Ashy is the love of the Countess’s portrait
And the song of the dream of the colors suffering
Under human veins.
The sea breathes, scents the borders of a ship
Sinking in the dream.
“The Temeraire” has ripened under the fire,
It no longer feels the rusty waves, but its sails
Hurt it, its colors hurt it,
It is frightened by another light not spread by time.
The wind kneels down like a god wounded in the bow,
And the enraged firmament
Sees the falling of an empire of wood and iron,
Near an improvised town in a valley
Where phantoms
Write on the sand the name
Of an English painter who went mad for love of the sirens.
Sponsors
Gemeente Rotterdam
Nederlands Letterenfonds
Stichting Van Beuningen Peterich-fonds
Ludo Pieters Gastschrijver Fonds
Lira fonds
Partners
LantarenVenster – Verhalenhuis Belvédère