Poem
Tua Forsström
The City was Sparkling
The city was sparkling at a distance, andI stopped. Everything looked so beautiful,
the street plans and the terraced gardens,
as if water-transparent, and I saw it all
very clearly. I thought about the great cities
with cathedrals, and the small local museums in
the countryside in Sweden, and the meadow-sweet with its
strong fragrance, and I remembered how attached I had been
to the little kitten with the spotted paws who
ran away and how I had missed it.
I turned around and someone was crying, I couldn’t
pay attention to it. The city was made of transparent glass.
I stood there. I saw my pre-eminent love.
Shimmering of pearls. The black swans. Chalcedony.
I tried calling the small kitten. Everything was sparkling.
I hesitated, I knew everything, I would
not come back.
© Translation: 2009, Stina Katchadourian
DE STAD FONKELDE
De stad fonkelde op enige afstand, enik bleef staan. Het was daar zo mooi,
met poorten en straten en terrasvormige tuinen,
doorlicht als van water, ik zag alles
heel duidelijk. Ik dacht aan grote steden
met kathedralen, en streekmusea
op het Zweedse platteland, en de scherpe geur
van moerasspirea, en ik herinnerde me hoe gehecht ik was
aan de kleine poes met zijn gevlekte pootjes die
weggelopen was en hoe ik hem miste.
Ik zag om, iemand huilde, ik kon
er geen acht op slaan. De stad was van doorzichtig glas.
Ik stond daar. Ik zag mijn dominante liefde.
Glinsterend van de parels. De zwarte zwanen. Chalcedon.
Ik lokte de kleine poes. Alles fonkelde.
Ik aarzelde, ik wist alles, ik zou
niet terug komen.
© Vertaling: 2009, Lisette Keustermans en Miriam Van hee
STADEN GLITTRADE
Staden glittrade på avstånd, ochjag stannade. Det var så vackert med
anläggningar och terrasserade trädgårdar,
liksom vattengenomlyst, och jag såg allt
mycket tydligt. Jag tänkte på de stora städerna
med katedraler, och hembygdsmuseerna på
landsorten i Sverige, och älggräset som doftade
så starkt, och jag mindes hur fäst jag hade varit
vid den lilla katten med de fläckiga tassarna som
sprang bort och hur jag hade saknat den.
Jag såg mig om och någon grät, jag kunde
inte beakta det. Staden var av genomskinligt glas.
Jag stod där. Jag såg min dominerande kärlek.
Av pärlor skimrande. De svarta svanarna. Kalcedon.
Jag försökte locka på den lilla katten. Allt glittrade.
Jag tvekade, jag visste allt, jag skulle
inte komma tillbaka.
From: Etter att ha tillbringat en natt bland hästar
Publisher: Söderström Förlags, Helsinki
Publisher: Söderström Förlags, Helsinki
Poems
Poems of Tua Forsström
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The City was Sparkling
The city was sparkling at a distance, andI stopped. Everything looked so beautiful,
the street plans and the terraced gardens,
as if water-transparent, and I saw it all
very clearly. I thought about the great cities
with cathedrals, and the small local museums in
the countryside in Sweden, and the meadow-sweet with its
strong fragrance, and I remembered how attached I had been
to the little kitten with the spotted paws who
ran away and how I had missed it.
I turned around and someone was crying, I couldn’t
pay attention to it. The city was made of transparent glass.
I stood there. I saw my pre-eminent love.
Shimmering of pearls. The black swans. Chalcedony.
I tried calling the small kitten. Everything was sparkling.
I hesitated, I knew everything, I would
not come back.
© 2009, Stina Katchadourian
From: Etter att ha tillbringat en natt bland hästar
From: Etter att ha tillbringat en natt bland hästar
The City was Sparkling
The city was sparkling at a distance, andI stopped. Everything looked so beautiful,
the street plans and the terraced gardens,
as if water-transparent, and I saw it all
very clearly. I thought about the great cities
with cathedrals, and the small local museums in
the countryside in Sweden, and the meadow-sweet with its
strong fragrance, and I remembered how attached I had been
to the little kitten with the spotted paws who
ran away and how I had missed it.
I turned around and someone was crying, I couldn’t
pay attention to it. The city was made of transparent glass.
I stood there. I saw my pre-eminent love.
Shimmering of pearls. The black swans. Chalcedony.
I tried calling the small kitten. Everything was sparkling.
I hesitated, I knew everything, I would
not come back.
© 2009, Stina Katchadourian
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