Week 33: Mona Høvring "The Little Church Down by the Sea"
Enjoy a weekly poem by authors from Norway, throughout the year.
THE LITTLE CHURCH DOWN BY THE SEA
Remember how we wasted water, girl?
We were careful, our hearts gently rippled
when we imitated goddesses, the clouds melted,
the months ran out of the calendar,
all was mobile and wet.
What were those days reminiscent of?
The nervous corals? That in us which breaks down?
Remember when we knew the names of all the waves
and everything blissful?
We were in the process of growing up, little girl,
we asked for protection for our mothers,
and for common sense.
And later, when we got lost,
it was out of pure obligation.
Translated by John Irons at http://johnirons.blogspot.com
From: The Squirrel and the Rickety Bridge.
See the poem in Norwegian
Poem of the Week
Learn more about the series and see all poems here
