IN THOSE DAYS WE LIVED ON SELLING NEWSPAPERS

There were happy days then
when I’d sell them all in a few hours.
Then with a bag full of money
I’d run back to my rented room
with a view of slum balconies and yards
and empty its dirty contents onto my bed
with naked Venus pictured on the blanket.
I’d sit with my legs crossed
and contented, like a robber
whose job had been well done,
drink a carton of cold milk
to soothe my dry throat filled with exhaust fumes
while counting slowly my thirty percent earnings.

U VRIJEME KADA SMO ŽIVJELIOD PRODAVANJA NOVINA

U VRIJEME KADA SMO ŽIVJELIOD PRODAVANJA NOVINA

Nekad je bilo sretnih dana
kada bi sve prodala za nekoliko sati.
Onda bi s vrećicom punom novaca
dotrčala u svoju iznajmljenu sobicu
s pogledom na sirotinjske balkone i dvorišta
i istresla tu prljavu sadržinu na krevet
prekriven dekom na kojoj je slika gole Venere.
Sjela prekriženih nogu,
i zadovoljna, poput pljačkaša koji je upravo obavio
dobar posao,
naginjući karton hladnog mlijeka
u grlo suho od ispušnih plinova
polako brojala svojih trideset posto zarade.