Venice masks

Friday 21 August 2020

From the Forest - Avrom Sutzkever

Of grass and flowers, the substance dissolves
Into drops of dew.
And he who wants can see
The subtle play
Of black and fire, silver and blue.
All around,
Trees sleep, sprawling on the ground,
Their shadows grow high.
The air is cool and soft
As dry
Water.
Silent, calm,
Mute paths kiss.
Here-and-there,
Green glows wink at you.
A nest trembles,
A spring shines.
You see:
Worlds spin on their axes
And dews are mirrors for the cosmos

If someone screamed right now,
All the skies would dissolve
In cosmic panic.
But all is hush. Just shadows
Cast by the spirited nightingale:
Following the star notes, he reveals
His lonely night
And his travail.

Avrom [Abraham] Sutzkever (1913 - 2010) born in Belarus later lived in Israel
Translated by Brenda and Benjamin Harshav
Source: The PIP (Project For Innovative Poetry) Blog

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