Poems and antipoems

I’m surrounded by books,
many of which I haven’t looked at in years.

Not even been aware of.
They stand there not making a peep,
even the Long Talking Bad Conditions Blues.

How funny to note books owned
for decades with renewed surprise.

In the case of Nicanor Parra
I remember a conversation with Paula and Eduardo
from earlier this year about the great Chilean poets,
during which I quoted from Violeta Parra’s
Cueca de los poetas:

    Pero el más gallo se llama
    Pablo Neruda
    Huifa ay ay.

...

    Corre que ya te agarra
    Nicanor Parra.

But the shelves I’m looking at
also carry more pedestrian stuff,
like the Dictionary of Legal,
Commercial and Political Terms.

Now that one I’ve touched more
often than the antipoems or
condition blues because I need it
for a living. Even though the poor
thing has been mostly superseded
by online sources as many
of its brothers in shelf.

Today I declare the still life
blues day for printed outdated
dictionaries, poems and antipoems
online and shelved.

– Iself (© 2011)

NaPoWriMo 2011 #2

Written upon inspiration by this (at NaPoWriMo):
"Write a poem that incorporates the titles of three books you have in your house."
The books are:
Nicanor Parra, Poems and Antipoems
Ronald Sukenick*, Long Talking Bad Conditions Blues
Dietl/Moss/Lorenz, Dictionary of Legal, Commercial and Political Terms
Singer, song writer, writer and artist Violeta Para (1917-1967) was Nicanor Parra's sister.

*Ron Sukenick (1932-2004) was one of my teachers at the University of Colorado.

Vicente Huidobro / Kutter

Die Erinnerungen
                           sind es müde geworden, mir zu folgen

                   DER WEG WAR SO LANG

Dieser Wind kam von etlichen Schwingen
Und die Tage vergehen heulend am Horizont

Als junger Kutter
Durchkreuzte ich viele Ungewitter
Bei Seemannsliedern

Alle Möwen
                   gaben mir Federn in die Hände

Hinter dem letzten Berg
                                     stiegen die Monate hinab

Ein posthumer Gesang versperrte uns die Ausfahrt

– Vicente Huidobro (aus “Poemas árticos”, erste Veröffentlichung 1918)

Aus dem Spanischen übersetzt von Johannes Beilharz (© 2010)

Weitere Gedichte von Vicente Huidobro