In Madison!
And writing?
The Purple Kitchen (for M and K)
Walking into your home, I am struck
by the scent of lavender eminating
from the hanging herbs in the hallway.
In fact, everywhere I turn there is another shrine
to natural growth and change -
the compost by the sink
the sourdough in the fridge
the dying, drying flowers on the kitchen table.
But what comforts me most as I sit
in your purple kitchen is a reminder that
we ferment as well
are pushed through slow change
by some silent force. Along with my coffee
I taste the small spores of love
that reside insistently in your apartment
blessing your vegetables, your words, yourselves.
And wherever they may ask you to go
with their slow but forceful bubbling
they will follow you
sticking to your skin
pushing you forever onwards
towards something new
and beautiful.
(I wrote that just after reading Wild Fermentation by Sandor Ellix Katz, which probably explains its hippy-dippy qualities :-)
In Motion (translated from the Swedish)
A full day is not the best traversed.
The finest day is a day of thirst.
There may be aim and end to our search
But the path we take gives our toil worth.
The best goal is a night-long break
As we light a fire and share our bread in haste.
On ground where we sleep but once
We rest safely, dreaming only of romance.
Wake up! We go! The new day dawns.
Our great adventure has no end.
-Karin Boye
(This is the first poem I've ever translated, from Swedish or any other language. I'm still not happy with it, but it's better than the only English translation I've found online: http://www.karinboye.se/verk/dikter/dikter-mcduff/in-motion.shtml I'm happy to accept tips!)
The Purple Kitchen (for M and K)
Walking into your home, I am struck
by the scent of lavender eminating
from the hanging herbs in the hallway.
In fact, everywhere I turn there is another shrine
to natural growth and change -
the compost by the sink
the sourdough in the fridge
the dying, drying flowers on the kitchen table.
But what comforts me most as I sit
in your purple kitchen is a reminder that
we ferment as well
are pushed through slow change
by some silent force. Along with my coffee
I taste the small spores of love
that reside insistently in your apartment
blessing your vegetables, your words, yourselves.
And wherever they may ask you to go
with their slow but forceful bubbling
they will follow you
sticking to your skin
pushing you forever onwards
towards something new
and beautiful.
(I wrote that just after reading Wild Fermentation by Sandor Ellix Katz, which probably explains its hippy-dippy qualities :-)
In Motion (translated from the Swedish)
A full day is not the best traversed.
The finest day is a day of thirst.
There may be aim and end to our search
But the path we take gives our toil worth.
The best goal is a night-long break
As we light a fire and share our bread in haste.
On ground where we sleep but once
We rest safely, dreaming only of romance.
Wake up! We go! The new day dawns.
Our great adventure has no end.
-Karin Boye
(This is the first poem I've ever translated, from Swedish or any other language. I'm still not happy with it, but it's better than the only English translation I've found online: http://www.karinboye.se/verk/dikter/dikter-mcduff/in-motion.shtml I'm happy to accept tips!)