Poem
Jan Erik Vold
Wigwam
The warmrock
and the
warm moss, the warm grass, friendly
green, turning
yellow
from
the dry weather
of this year, this summer, the summer
being
the best
time of the year – look at the red
stain of the horizon, the red
edge of the evening sky, all the roads
you wanted
to take and all the roads
never
taken, the roads that you
tried out
and those that remained
up in the
blue, the blue
of the sky, you the invisible Jack
on the invisible
ladder, climbing
invisible roads, untried
and challenging , impassable
roads – as well as white
path roads rolling between white picket
fences
orderly strung
between
grounded
houses, surrounded by gardens
that know
their fences, the path roads
winding in between, leading
into
a night
which
never ends – not a summer’s night
but a
deafening
darkness where not even
speechlessness
is, where nobody is who could be
without
speech, where
no voice
is
that could be
mute – that road, that darkness, the road
flutters
back and forth, back and
forth
in the open space
inverted, the picket fence
unrolled, the road
leading
to the squeak
of the good old
back
yard
gate, a plain Indian waiting, who has
been waiting, who said she’d always be
waiting
by the
entrance
of the tent, with a smile
on her face
and her
head slanted (“we were wondering
whatever
became
of
you”), the ever-present
friendliness of an Indian, the fire
burning, the flames
of the bonfire, the blaze of
those flames, the inner glow
of a pair of
sparkling
eyes – were those eyes brown? were those eyes
blue? all aglow
is what
they were, an almond light
ascending
from
a body of heat, you lady
with
a handle, you lady
with a door, the wigwam
is waiting, the
wigwam is open – that’s where
he’ll
enter, the wigwam
closing
its door
towards the blond twilight
of a summer’s night, one single star
is out, one single
flag
pole
remains, one single bat
flutters
back and forth, back and
forth
in the open space
between the birches, drawing
their
contours
against the glimmering sky, every leaf
greenish black, every
leaf
dead still, you my
wigwam, you
my squaw – soon we’ll be smoking
the peace pipe
of our
bodies together!
© Translation: 1988, Jan Erik Vold
WIGWAM
WIGWAM
Det varmeberget
og den varme måsan, det varme
gresset, det
vennlige
grønne, nesten gult
av all
tørken
i år, i sommer, sommeren
den beste
tiden
vi har – se det røde
i horisonten, det
røde på kvelds
himmelen, veier du ville
ta og veier
du aldri
tok, veier du
prøvde
deg fram på og veier som forble
i det
blå, himmelens
blå, du en usynlig Jacob
på en usynlig
stige, usynlige
veier, uprøvde
lokkende
uframkommelige veier – og hvite
veier mellom hvite
stakitt
ryddig satt opp
mellom de
huser som står
der de står, hager som har bestemt
seg for
sine gjerder, veiene
derimellom, veiene
vekk, ut i en natt
som ingen
ende
har – ingen sommernatt men et
stummende
mørke
der selv ikke
stumheten
fins, der ingen fins
til å være
stumme, ingen stemme
som stum
kan være – dén
veien, dét
mørket, vägen som ingenstans
för – og så veien
tilbake, der Weg
zu
Dir, spiralen
vendt, stakittgjerdene rulla
på plass
igjen, løypa
som fører til hageporten
grindknirken
godlåten
heme, en enkel indianer
som venter, som
ventet, som sa’a hun ville
vente, ved
telt
åpningen hele
tiden, med
dette
smilet
og hodet på skakke (“vi lurte så på
hvor det
ble av
deg”), indianervennligheten
som var der
hele tiden, bålet
på peisen, flammene
fra bålet, ilden inne i de
flammene, glimtet
i et par
funklende øyne – var de
brune? var
de blå? blanke
var de, et mandellys
som steg
fra
kropp
av varme, dame
med
hank i, dame
med dør, wigwamen
venter, wigwamen
står
åpen – dit inn går han, og
wigwamens
teltdør
lukkes
mot sommernattens blonde
skumring, en og annen
stjerne, en og annen
flaggstang
blir
tilbake, en og annen
flaggermus
flakker fra og til, fra
og til
mellom bjørkenes
rom, bjørketrærne som står
opp mot
himmellyset, hvert
blad
så svartgrønt, hvert blad
i ro, du
min
wigwam, du min
squaw – snart
røke
kroppenes
fredspipe sammen!
© 1988, Jan Erik Vold
From: Bllåmann! Blåmann! (CD)
Publisher: Hot Club Records,
From: Bllåmann! Blåmann! (CD)
Publisher: Hot Club Records,
Poems
Poems of Jan Erik Vold
Close
Wigwam
The warmrock
and the
warm moss, the warm grass, friendly
green, turning
yellow
from
the dry weather
of this year, this summer, the summer
being
the best
time of the year – look at the red
stain of the horizon, the red
edge of the evening sky, all the roads
you wanted
to take and all the roads
never
taken, the roads that you
tried out
and those that remained
up in the
blue, the blue
of the sky, you the invisible Jack
on the invisible
ladder, climbing
invisible roads, untried
and challenging , impassable
roads – as well as white
path roads rolling between white picket
fences
orderly strung
between
grounded
houses, surrounded by gardens
that know
their fences, the path roads
winding in between, leading
into
a night
which
never ends – not a summer’s night
but a
deafening
darkness where not even
speechlessness
is, where nobody is who could be
without
speech, where
no voice
is
that could be
mute – that road, that darkness, the road
flutters
back and forth, back and
forth
in the open space
inverted, the picket fence
unrolled, the road
leading
to the squeak
of the good old
back
yard
gate, a plain Indian waiting, who has
been waiting, who said she’d always be
waiting
by the
entrance
of the tent, with a smile
on her face
and her
head slanted (“we were wondering
whatever
became
of
you”), the ever-present
friendliness of an Indian, the fire
burning, the flames
of the bonfire, the blaze of
those flames, the inner glow
of a pair of
sparkling
eyes – were those eyes brown? were those eyes
blue? all aglow
is what
they were, an almond light
ascending
from
a body of heat, you lady
with
a handle, you lady
with a door, the wigwam
is waiting, the
wigwam is open – that’s where
he’ll
enter, the wigwam
closing
its door
towards the blond twilight
of a summer’s night, one single star
is out, one single
flag
pole
remains, one single bat
flutters
back and forth, back and
forth
in the open space
between the birches, drawing
their
contours
against the glimmering sky, every leaf
greenish black, every
leaf
dead still, you my
wigwam, you
my squaw – soon we’ll be smoking
the peace pipe
of our
bodies together!
© 1988, Jan Erik Vold
From: Bllåmann! Blåmann! (CD)
From: Bllåmann! Blåmann! (CD)
Wigwam
The warmrock
and the
warm moss, the warm grass, friendly
green, turning
yellow
from
the dry weather
of this year, this summer, the summer
being
the best
time of the year – look at the red
stain of the horizon, the red
edge of the evening sky, all the roads
you wanted
to take and all the roads
never
taken, the roads that you
tried out
and those that remained
up in the
blue, the blue
of the sky, you the invisible Jack
on the invisible
ladder, climbing
invisible roads, untried
and challenging , impassable
roads – as well as white
path roads rolling between white picket
fences
orderly strung
between
grounded
houses, surrounded by gardens
that know
their fences, the path roads
winding in between, leading
into
a night
which
never ends – not a summer’s night
but a
deafening
darkness where not even
speechlessness
is, where nobody is who could be
without
speech, where
no voice
is
that could be
mute – that road, that darkness, the road
flutters
back and forth, back and
forth
in the open space
inverted, the picket fence
unrolled, the road
leading
to the squeak
of the good old
back
yard
gate, a plain Indian waiting, who has
been waiting, who said she’d always be
waiting
by the
entrance
of the tent, with a smile
on her face
and her
head slanted (“we were wondering
whatever
became
of
you”), the ever-present
friendliness of an Indian, the fire
burning, the flames
of the bonfire, the blaze of
those flames, the inner glow
of a pair of
sparkling
eyes – were those eyes brown? were those eyes
blue? all aglow
is what
they were, an almond light
ascending
from
a body of heat, you lady
with
a handle, you lady
with a door, the wigwam
is waiting, the
wigwam is open – that’s where
he’ll
enter, the wigwam
closing
its door
towards the blond twilight
of a summer’s night, one single star
is out, one single
flag
pole
remains, one single bat
flutters
back and forth, back and
forth
in the open space
between the birches, drawing
their
contours
against the glimmering sky, every leaf
greenish black, every
leaf
dead still, you my
wigwam, you
my squaw – soon we’ll be smoking
the peace pipe
of our
bodies together!
© 1988, Jan Erik Vold
Sponsors
Partners
LantarenVenster – Verhalenhuis Belvédère