Poetry International Poetry International
Poem

Stefan Hertmans

AT HOME WITH YOU

It doesn’t tick like the clock
but it comes like rain,
sweeping over the keys
which answer you back.

A light hailstorm, sharp
as nails, chimes in
from time to time.

Patience, as you pick up speed,
a swifter rhythm
that calms the heart

and everything – trees grow
through the window, the net curtains
breathing like a beast –
becomes a part of it:

your hands swift as Sept-
ember clouds, tapping
on a black keyboard.

ZOALS JE THUIS TIKT

ZOALS JE THUIS TIKT

Dat het niet aanklinkt
maar er is, als regen,
waaiend over de toetsen
die tegen je spreken.

Lichte hagel, scherp
als nagels, klinkt er nu
en dan in mee.

Geduld, als je op snelheid
komt, een hoger ritme
dat mijn hart kalmeert

en alles – de bomen groeien
door het raam, de glasgordijnen
ademen als een dier –
wordt daarin opgenomen:

je handen, snel als wolken
in september, tikkend
op een zwart klavier.
Close

AT HOME WITH YOU

It doesn’t tick like the clock
but it comes like rain,
sweeping over the keys
which answer you back.

A light hailstorm, sharp
as nails, chimes in
from time to time.

Patience, as you pick up speed,
a swifter rhythm
that calms the heart

and everything – trees grow
through the window, the net curtains
breathing like a beast –
becomes a part of it:

your hands swift as Sept-
ember clouds, tapping
on a black keyboard.

AT HOME WITH YOU

It doesn’t tick like the clock
but it comes like rain,
sweeping over the keys
which answer you back.

A light hailstorm, sharp
as nails, chimes in
from time to time.

Patience, as you pick up speed,
a swifter rhythm
that calms the heart

and everything – trees grow
through the window, the net curtains
breathing like a beast –
becomes a part of it:

your hands swift as Sept-
ember clouds, tapping
on a black keyboard.
Sponsors
Gemeente Rotterdam
Nederlands Letterenfonds
Stichting Van Beuningen Peterich-fonds
Ludo Pieters Gastschrijver Fonds
Lira fonds
Partners
LantarenVenster – Verhalenhuis Belvédère