The RetroLounge Daily Poem Thread (Mon 6/19/06)

que ferais-je sans ce monde

que ferais-je sans ce monde sans visage sans questions
où être ne dure qu'un instant où chaque instant
verse dans le vide dans l'oubli d'avoir été
sans cette onde où à la fin
corps et ombre ensemble s'engloutissent
que ferais-je sans ce silence gouffre des murmures
haletant furieux vers le secours vers l'amour
sans ce ciel qui s'élève
sur la poussieère de ses lests
que ferais-je je ferais comme hier comme aujourd'hui
regardant par mon hublot si je ne suis pas seul
à errer et à virer loin de toute vie
dans un espace pantin
sans voix parmi les voix
enfermées avec moi

Samuel Beckett

what would I do without this world
(Translated by Beckett himself)

what would I do without this world faceless incurious
where to be lasts but an instant where every instant
spills in the void the ignorance of having been
without this wave where in the end
body and shadow together are engulfed
what would I do without this silence where the murmurs die
the pantings the frenzies towards succour towards love
without this sky that soars
above its ballast dust
what would I do what I did yesterday and the day before
peering out of my deadlight looking for another
wandering like me eddying far from all the living
in a convulsive space
among the voices voiceless
that throng my hiddenness

Samuel Beckett

********************

RL

If you have a request for a certain Poet, post their name in the thread and I will find a poem by them and post it...

if you want to see some of my poetry, see the blog at:
http://www.myspace.com/retropaul

;) :hi:

my Monday postings would be all happy and joyous...

:rofl:

:hi:

RL

run out of poems about sex, though. ;)

Sex and Death, largest topics covered in poetry...

of course, if I did run out of sex poems, you could write me some more...

:D

RL

I wouldn't know anything about that... O8)

:evilgrin:

RL

I suppose. :D

"When the student is ready, the teacher will appear..."

:hi:

RL

Whew.....even though I have a bachelor's degree in French....

It does date from 40 years ago!

I was very happy to see the translation!

Now, this is one interesting poem......

Hard to fathom......

But even so, I liked it....

It's the kind that you can read over and over, and see something new each time....

Thank you....



:loveya: :hug:

:loveya:

RL

I wasn't going to be the first to break in on your tete-a-tete.

Thanks for this poem. I have to be careful when I'm thinking about the void. I think Beckett spent a lot of time thinking about the void.

:hi:

RL

thanks for posting this stunning poem.

idgie

:rofl:

RL