Versindaba kompetisie vir vertaalde gedigte (27)
Maram Al-Massri. Vertaling van Arabies via Engels in Afrikaans. Vert. deur Waldemar Gouws.
Slaap, daardie genadelose tiran
Slaap,
daardie genadelose tiran,
gryp jou weg van my.
Alleen langs jou
tel ek die sterre wat afhang
van jou wimpers
en voel die pols
van my sterwende tyd –
oorskietwoorde in my mond,
en in my vingers
‘n onkeerbare drang.
***
Sleep, that merciless tyrant
Maram al-Massri
Sleep,
that merciless tyrant,
snatches you from me.
Alone beside you
I count the stars suspended from
your eyelashes
and take the pulse
of my dying time –
word scraps in my mouth,
and in my fingers
an unstoppable urge.
Bronverwysing:
Al-Massri, Maram. 2004. A Red Cherry on a White-tiled Floor: Selected Poems. Translated by Khaled Mattawa. Tarset, Northumberland: Bloodaxe Books (p.49).