Poetry International Poetry International
Poem

Olli Heikkonen

The sun rises

The sun rises, again and again, the sun of Yakutia,
that creaky, rusty globe.
And the ground shakes as the black gold, the green gold
is pumped out of it, as the sturgeon roe is canned
hand over fist, in three shifts
to feed the hungry mouth.
And far from here, far beyond the mountains
in every cast concrete apartment-shaped hole
where cardamom, where freshly ground coffee wafts,
where the fluorescent light buzzes,
where a solarium provides warmth and light,
every inhabitant, every smile stretched by starched collars
gets ready for the working day, audits, exercise
in the afternoon, long wet lunches.

De zon komt op

De zon komt op, steeds weer die Jakoetische zon,
die krakende, roestige kogel.
En de aarde dreunt als het zwarte goud, het groene goud
wordt opgepompt, de kaviaar met beide handen
wordt ingeblikt, de hongerige mond
in drieploegendienst wordt gevoed.
En ver van hier, ver achter de bergen,
ieder in beton gegoten
hol in de vorm van een huis,
waarin de kardemom, waarin de versgemalen koffie geurt,
waarin de neonbuis zoemt, waarin de zonnebank
licht en warmte geeft,
en iedere bewoner, iedere gemaakte glimlach boven
een gesteven kraag
zich voorbereidt op het leven van alledag, de controle van de boekhouding,
de sportieve middagjes, de lange met drank overgoten lunches.

Aurinko nousee, yhä uudestaan Jakutian aurinko,
tuo natiseva, ruosteinen kuula.
Ja tanner tömisee, kun mustaa kultaa, vihreää kultaa
pumpataan, sammenmätiä purkitetaan
kaksin käsin, kolmessa vuorossa
ruokitaan nälkäinen suu.
Ja kaukana täältä, kaukana vuorten takana,
jokainen sementtiin valettu
asunnonmuotoinen kolo,
jossa kardemumma tuoksuu, jossa vastapaahdettu kahvi,
jossa loisteputki sirisee, jossa solarium
antaa valon ja lämmön,
ja jokainen asukki, jokainen tärkättyjen kaulusten
pingoittama hymy
valmistautuu arkeen, tilintarkastuksiin, liikunnallisiin
iltapäiviin, pitkiin ja kosteisiin lounaisiin. 
Close

The sun rises

The sun rises, again and again, the sun of Yakutia,
that creaky, rusty globe.
And the ground shakes as the black gold, the green gold
is pumped out of it, as the sturgeon roe is canned
hand over fist, in three shifts
to feed the hungry mouth.
And far from here, far beyond the mountains
in every cast concrete apartment-shaped hole
where cardamom, where freshly ground coffee wafts,
where the fluorescent light buzzes,
where a solarium provides warmth and light,
every inhabitant, every smile stretched by starched collars
gets ready for the working day, audits, exercise
in the afternoon, long wet lunches.

The sun rises

The sun rises, again and again, the sun of Yakutia,
that creaky, rusty globe.
And the ground shakes as the black gold, the green gold
is pumped out of it, as the sturgeon roe is canned
hand over fist, in three shifts
to feed the hungry mouth.
And far from here, far beyond the mountains
in every cast concrete apartment-shaped hole
where cardamom, where freshly ground coffee wafts,
where the fluorescent light buzzes,
where a solarium provides warmth and light,
every inhabitant, every smile stretched by starched collars
gets ready for the working day, audits, exercise
in the afternoon, long wet lunches.

Sponsors
Gemeente Rotterdam
Nederlands Letterenfonds
Stichting Van Beuningen Peterich-fonds
Prins Bernhard cultuurfonds
Lira fonds
Versopolis
J.E. Jurriaanse
Gefinancierd door de Europese Unie
Elise Mathilde Fonds
Stichting Verzameling van Wijngaarden-Boot
Veerhuis
VDM
Partners
LantarenVenster – Verhalenhuis Belvédère