I Wish I’d Said… Vol. 5
Imagine that this terrific anthology was written expressly for you. Trust that you will find between these covers some variation of the theme “I wish I’d said…” as if it were spoken by your own lips…
Imagination saves us in dark days and the words on these pages will show you an experience that is as universal as it is individual. As you read the English translations of poems in all 11 languages, know that you will find resonance with a voice who knew what you were going through, albeit in a different language or cultural setting.
You will find verses about tight nights, insecure days, and ensuing months of wondering whether our loved ones would live, our children would thrive, our jobs last, our economy emerge… You will find love poems to individuals who rose to the occasion and tributes to the resilience that shone through. You will find stanzas and elegies telling how people helped each other rebuild through the destruction, determined to conquer hardship.
Picture an army of poets rising every day with the express intention of writing verses to comfort you. Imagine them writing in tiny rooms, grand houses, rural classrooms, on taxis on their devices, on plain notebooks beside ordinary beds. Envision hundreds of hands noting with delicate awareness your own powerful reactions to the events of 2021. Visualise each ear sensitively attuned to your own vigorous expression, offering you a robust response in words to see you through the night. See how they capture your experience, bringing comfort and hope for each new morning.
The judges of the AVBOB Poetry Competition observed, yet again, that this powerful river of poems represented voices from every community, young and old. This collection contains a poem by a nine-year-old and an 83-year-old. The supreme efforts of all who entered the fifth AVBOB Poetry Competition in 2021 are found in the top six poems in each language, with three commissioned poems and a selection of Khoi and San poems.
Enjoy the mother-tongue magic from top-level poets in this gorgeous anthology and be inspired to enter the next AVBOB Poetry Competition. The page waits for you and your imagination…
There are two compilers of this anthology.
Johann de Lange made his debut with Akwarelle van die dors (1982) for which he received the Ingrid Jonker Prize. In 2009 he received the Hertzog Prize for Poetry for his volume of poetry, Die algebra van nood. He lives in Cape Town.
Prof Nxalati Charlotte Priscilla Golele was the founding chairperson of the Pan South African Language Board and served the Xitsonga National Language and Research and Development Centre between 2005 and 2008. She is dedicated to the development of African languages and the elevation of their status.
[Naledi, 2022. Formaat: Sagteband, 210 mm x 148 mm / A5. Bladsye: 336. R240.00. ISBN: 9781776172412