Venice masks

Saturday 24 August 2024

The Gift of Speech - Mariya Avvakumova

The Gift of Speech
You have overcome so many trials . . .
The lot of muteness was so great
that now,
when there’s a chink of light,
there’s no longer any desire to speak –
besides the tongue is leaden.
No words to speak with.
No air to hover in.

Mariya Avvakumova (born 1943) Russia
Translated by Daniel Weissbort
Source: Modern Poetry in Translation New Series No. 20 - 2002

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