Poem
Umberto Fiori
[Goodness]
Your accusations, yourreproaches, again.
While I take them apart
as I can, one by one,
quoting facts, names, dates,
while I again count up on my fingers my two,
three, four good points,
and shout my life out in your face
you say nothing: you look at me.
The ears that are red, the veins
swelling in the neck – what
are you looking at? I know, I know that goodness
is not like this.
But doesn’t it rouse your pity
to see how
every day I am here
imitating it?
© Translation: 2009, Alistair Elliot
[Bene]
[Bene]
Le vostre accuse, i vostririmproveri, di nuovo.
Mentre li smonto
come posso, uno a uno,
citando fatti, nomi, date,
mentre riconto sulle dita i miei due,
tre, quattro meriti
e vi abbaio sul muso la mia vita
non dite niente: mi guardate.
Le orecchie rosse, le vene
gonfie sul collo
– cosa guardate? Lo so, lo so che il bene
è diverso.
Ma non vi fa pietà
vedere come
ogni giorno son qua
a fargli il verso?
© 2009, Umberto Fiori
From: Voi
Publisher: Mondadori, Milano
From: Voi
Publisher: Mondadori, Milano
Poems
Poems of Umberto Fiori
Close
[Goodness]
Your accusations, yourreproaches, again.
While I take them apart
as I can, one by one,
quoting facts, names, dates,
while I again count up on my fingers my two,
three, four good points,
and shout my life out in your face
you say nothing: you look at me.
The ears that are red, the veins
swelling in the neck – what
are you looking at? I know, I know that goodness
is not like this.
But doesn’t it rouse your pity
to see how
every day I am here
imitating it?
© 2009, Alistair Elliot
From: Voi
From: Voi
[Goodness]
Your accusations, yourreproaches, again.
While I take them apart
as I can, one by one,
quoting facts, names, dates,
while I again count up on my fingers my two,
three, four good points,
and shout my life out in your face
you say nothing: you look at me.
The ears that are red, the veins
swelling in the neck – what
are you looking at? I know, I know that goodness
is not like this.
But doesn’t it rouse your pity
to see how
every day I am here
imitating it?
© 2009, Alistair Elliot
Sponsors
![Gemeente Rotterdam](/images/logo-GR_Basis_RGB_2021.png)
![Nederlands Letterenfonds](/images/logo-Nederlands-Letterenfonds-logo-RGB.png)
![Stichting Van Beuningen Peterich-fonds](/images/logo-stichting-van-beuningen-peterich-fonds.png)
![Prins Bernhard cultuurfonds](/images/cf_logo-zwart.png)
![Lira fonds](/images/logo-Lira_fond.png)
![Versopolis](/images/sponsors/logo_versopolis.png)
![J.E. Jurriaanse](/images/sponsors/logo_J_E_Jurriaanse_2020.png)
![Gefinancierd door de Europese Unie](/images/sponsors/logo_NL_fundedbyEU.png)
![Elise Mathilde Fonds](/images/sponsors/logo_EliseMathilde.png)
![Stichting Verzameling van Wijngaarden-Boot](/images/sponsors/logo_VanWijngaarden-Boot.png)
![Veerhuis](/images/sponsors/logo_Veerhuis_2.png)
![VDM](/images/sponsors/logo_VDM.png)
Partners
LantarenVenster – Verhalenhuis Belvédère