Yes, these are graves,
life that end­ed in certainty.

Deep in the ground rel­a­tives and companions
among the roots per­me­at­ing everywhere.
Marl pow­der, red black and good soil.
The dust.

It is the flame of olive oil
resem­bling hun­dred years’ old light,
in met­al can­dle lanterns.

Mar­ble stone with ara­bic numerals,
cyril­lic letters.

Bindweed, dan­de­lion
and house­leek, the cac­tus of our climate…

Aster flow­ers and oth­er species
var­i­ous colours of petals, the scentes…

Cross­words made of names, sur­names and years
sil­ver and gold­en lichen cov­er the inscriptions.

The gar­den;
ever-flick­er­ing flame in an oil lamp…
the news­pa­per under it,
world news,
from which time and eternity…

where sen­a­tor’s death is of same relevance
as RED HAVEN peaches
or JOHN DEERE com­pa­ny’s crum­pled ad.
 

 

Trans­lat­ed by Ivana Maksić

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