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Poem

Maryam Hooleh

THAT IS IF YOU ARE IN LOVE

Lizards have fattened    the school 
My wretched ancestors    the stove 
Torn pieces of the calendar thrown in the oven 
Maybe braised meat will make me more of a dog 
      to these ankles of the days I bite

The theatre is taken by the fog
I, by the night
The woman is taken by her husband
I, by wretched immortality 

Speaking is forbidden for the wall
But no one speaks my tongue 
to save me from speaking nonsense

(Perhaps they have committed English to me
Persian to Shakespeare!) 

I sow the wheat 
with little sickles for cells
I sickle your tongues
so you know
it is enough to listen to all I say 
My Zeppelins have given me enough rides
And enough    means a breeze that you don’t know is passing by 

Everything’s like everything else
My grave means your life
And perhaps your grave, my life
To live means to be in love with someone 
and to live with someone else
or else you will be a wandering ghost between shameless houses 
You are neither immune from falling in love
nor from life!
You are simultaneously condemned to two beings
your love 
and the lover who lost you in a card game

يعني عاشق کسي باشي

يعني عاشق کسي باشي


مدرسه را      مارمولک چاق کرده
بخاري را      اجداد بيچاره ي من ؛
تکه هاي تقويم را در تنور بيندازيد
شايد گوشت ِ برشته     سگ ترم کند
                            با پاچه ي روزهايي که مي گيرم

تئاتر را مه گرفته
مرا شب ؛
زن را شوهر گرفته
مرا نکبت ِ جاودانگي ؛

حرف زدن براي ديوارها ممنوع است
اما کسي زبان ِ مرا نمي داند
تا از چرند گفتن نجاتم دهد !

( شايد انگليسي را به من داده اند
فارسي را به شکسپير ! )

گندمي مي کارم
          سلول هايش ، داس هاي کوچک ؛
زبان هايتان را درو مي کنم
         براي آنکه بدانيد
        همين که به حرف هاي من گوش کنيد کافي ست !
بالون هايم به من سواري داده اند به اندازه ي کافي
و کافي يعني بادي که از کنارت مي گذرد       بي آنکه بداني

همه چيز مثل هم است
گور من يعني     زندگي تو
وشايد گور تو    زندگي من ؛
زندگي يعني عاشق کسي باشي
       و با کسي ديگر زندگي کني
       وگرنه روحت ميان خانه هاي بيشرم سرگردان مي شود
نه از عاشق شدن در اماني
نه از زندگي !
تو به دو موجود توأمان محکومي
                          عشقت
                          وعاشقي که تو را در قمار باخته !
Close

THAT IS IF YOU ARE IN LOVE

Lizards have fattened    the school 
My wretched ancestors    the stove 
Torn pieces of the calendar thrown in the oven 
Maybe braised meat will make me more of a dog 
      to these ankles of the days I bite

The theatre is taken by the fog
I, by the night
The woman is taken by her husband
I, by wretched immortality 

Speaking is forbidden for the wall
But no one speaks my tongue 
to save me from speaking nonsense

(Perhaps they have committed English to me
Persian to Shakespeare!) 

I sow the wheat 
with little sickles for cells
I sickle your tongues
so you know
it is enough to listen to all I say 
My Zeppelins have given me enough rides
And enough    means a breeze that you don’t know is passing by 

Everything’s like everything else
My grave means your life
And perhaps your grave, my life
To live means to be in love with someone 
and to live with someone else
or else you will be a wandering ghost between shameless houses 
You are neither immune from falling in love
nor from life!
You are simultaneously condemned to two beings
your love 
and the lover who lost you in a card game

THAT IS IF YOU ARE IN LOVE

Lizards have fattened    the school 
My wretched ancestors    the stove 
Torn pieces of the calendar thrown in the oven 
Maybe braised meat will make me more of a dog 
      to these ankles of the days I bite

The theatre is taken by the fog
I, by the night
The woman is taken by her husband
I, by wretched immortality 

Speaking is forbidden for the wall
But no one speaks my tongue 
to save me from speaking nonsense

(Perhaps they have committed English to me
Persian to Shakespeare!) 

I sow the wheat 
with little sickles for cells
I sickle your tongues
so you know
it is enough to listen to all I say 
My Zeppelins have given me enough rides
And enough    means a breeze that you don’t know is passing by 

Everything’s like everything else
My grave means your life
And perhaps your grave, my life
To live means to be in love with someone 
and to live with someone else
or else you will be a wandering ghost between shameless houses 
You are neither immune from falling in love
nor from life!
You are simultaneously condemned to two beings
your love 
and the lover who lost you in a card game
Sponsors
Gemeente Rotterdam
Nederlands Letterenfonds
Stichting Van Beuningen Peterich-fonds
Ludo Pieters Gastschrijver Fonds
Lira fonds
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