Poetry International Poetry International
Poem

Ester Naomi Perquin

‘That day I tumbled’

That day I tumbled unsuspectingly into someone else’s life, someone else’s
driving lesson, shopping list, lecture, into someone else’s
hesitations, beginner’s legs at dancing lessons.
 
And nowhere was I lost, I walked countless orphans
to respectable parents and taught a drinking man
to trust that his glass would last,
 
I stormed bruised and battered women out of houses,
shuffled beggars into castles, made a cold mother
kneel in time beside a fallen child,
I was the fallen child.
 
I taught a footballer to believe in God like the bang
of the ball on the crossbar, a blind man to find
everything he lacked without asking,
I was the talent the painter had
to elude his light.
 
Only the totally natural dive
of a skinny, early morning swimmer,
in the outside pool between the trees,
came out extremely forced.
 
Powerless, she floated over the water while I,
losing heart, slid back, in motion again, out of her
shiver, the swimming costume
almost vanished already.

‘Liet me argeloos vallen’

Liet me argeloos vallen die dag in andermans leven, andermans
autorijles, boodschappenlijstjes, college, in andermans
aarzelingen, beginnende benen op dansles.
 
En overal wist ik de weg, ik wandelde talloze wezen
naar propere ouders en leerde een drinkende man
op de duur van zijn glas te vertrouwen,
 
ik stormde bont en blauw geslagen vrouwen huizen uit,
schuifelde bedelaars kastelen in, liet een kille moeder
tijdig knielen bij een kind dat viel,
was het kind dat viel.
 
Ik leerde een voetballer in God te geloven als in de klap
tegen de lat, een blinde alles wat hij miste
zonder vragen terug te vinden, ik was
het talent dat de schilder bezat
aan zijn licht te ontkomen.
 
Alleen het echt vanzelfsprekende te water gaan
van een magere zwemster, ’s ochtends vroeg,
in het buitenbad tussen de bomen,
verliep uiterst krampachtig.
 
Boven het water bleef ze machteloos zweven terwijl ik
teruggleed, opnieuw in beweging, haar huivering
uit, de moed opgegeven, het badpak
al bijna verdwenen.
Close

‘That day I tumbled’

That day I tumbled unsuspectingly into someone else’s life, someone else’s
driving lesson, shopping list, lecture, into someone else’s
hesitations, beginner’s legs at dancing lessons.
 
And nowhere was I lost, I walked countless orphans
to respectable parents and taught a drinking man
to trust that his glass would last,
 
I stormed bruised and battered women out of houses,
shuffled beggars into castles, made a cold mother
kneel in time beside a fallen child,
I was the fallen child.
 
I taught a footballer to believe in God like the bang
of the ball on the crossbar, a blind man to find
everything he lacked without asking,
I was the talent the painter had
to elude his light.
 
Only the totally natural dive
of a skinny, early morning swimmer,
in the outside pool between the trees,
came out extremely forced.
 
Powerless, she floated over the water while I,
losing heart, slid back, in motion again, out of her
shiver, the swimming costume
almost vanished already.

‘That day I tumbled’

That day I tumbled unsuspectingly into someone else’s life, someone else’s
driving lesson, shopping list, lecture, into someone else’s
hesitations, beginner’s legs at dancing lessons.
 
And nowhere was I lost, I walked countless orphans
to respectable parents and taught a drinking man
to trust that his glass would last,
 
I stormed bruised and battered women out of houses,
shuffled beggars into castles, made a cold mother
kneel in time beside a fallen child,
I was the fallen child.
 
I taught a footballer to believe in God like the bang
of the ball on the crossbar, a blind man to find
everything he lacked without asking,
I was the talent the painter had
to elude his light.
 
Only the totally natural dive
of a skinny, early morning swimmer,
in the outside pool between the trees,
came out extremely forced.
 
Powerless, she floated over the water while I,
losing heart, slid back, in motion again, out of her
shiver, the swimming costume
almost vanished already.
Sponsors
Gemeente Rotterdam
Nederlands Letterenfonds
Stichting Van Beuningen Peterich-fonds
Ludo Pieters Gastschrijver Fonds
Lira fonds
Partners
LantarenVenster – Verhalenhuis Belvédère