Poem
Gerda Blees
TOUGHEST GIRL
The toughest girl doesn’t survive.The less they believe in God the meaner
they find him, but in any case up there
things remain pretty quiet when her blood disappears
where she can’t do without, they don’t like to speak of
a fight here but
in any case they lose it.
What remains is cake on her birthday
when the snowdrops come they bring pink
flowers to the grave, they take photos of each other
and think of the quarrels they could have had
if the toughest girl hadn’t left all those empty egg shells behind
that prick the mother in her cheeks and
numb the father’s hands up to his elbows
and teach the sisters to walk the treacherous paths between
cutting and breaking.
And when on unguarded days they look out of the window they see
her
hanging upside down on the climbing frame, shouting ha you can’t
do this can you, before somersaulting and landing on her feet in
the sand.
STOERSTE MEISJE
STOERSTE MEISJE
Het stoerste meisje overleeft het niet.Hoe minder ze in God geloven hoe gemener
ze dat van hem vinden, maar hoe dan ook blijft het
behoorlijk stil daarboven als haar bloed verdwijnt
waar het niet kan ontbreken, ze spreken hier
niet graag van een gevecht maar
hoe dan ook verliezen ze het.
Wat overblijft is taart op haar verjaardag
als de sneeuwklokjes komen brengen ze roze
bloemen naar het graf, ze nemen foto’s van elkaar
en denken aan de ruzie die ze hadden kunnen maken
als het stoerste meisje niet al die lege eierschalen in het huis
had achtergelaten die de moeder in haar wangen prikken en
de handen van de vader tot voorbij de elleboog verlammen
en de zussen de sluipende paden tussen
snijden en breken leren lopen.
En kijken ze op onbewaakte dagen uit het raam dan zien ze haar
daar hangen, ondersteboven aan het klimrek, roepend ha dat
kunnen
jullie niet hè, en ze maakt een salto en daar staat ze, rechtop in het
zand.
© 2018, Gerda Blees
From: Dwaallichten
Publisher: Uitgeverij Podium, Amsterdam
From: Dwaallichten
Publisher: Uitgeverij Podium, Amsterdam
Poems
Poems of Gerda Blees
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TOUGHEST GIRL
The toughest girl doesn’t survive.The less they believe in God the meaner
they find him, but in any case up there
things remain pretty quiet when her blood disappears
where she can’t do without, they don’t like to speak of
a fight here but
in any case they lose it.
What remains is cake on her birthday
when the snowdrops come they bring pink
flowers to the grave, they take photos of each other
and think of the quarrels they could have had
if the toughest girl hadn’t left all those empty egg shells behind
that prick the mother in her cheeks and
numb the father’s hands up to his elbows
and teach the sisters to walk the treacherous paths between
cutting and breaking.
And when on unguarded days they look out of the window they see
her
hanging upside down on the climbing frame, shouting ha you can’t
do this can you, before somersaulting and landing on her feet in
the sand.
From: Dwaallichten
TOUGHEST GIRL
The toughest girl doesn’t survive.The less they believe in God the meaner
they find him, but in any case up there
things remain pretty quiet when her blood disappears
where she can’t do without, they don’t like to speak of
a fight here but
in any case they lose it.
What remains is cake on her birthday
when the snowdrops come they bring pink
flowers to the grave, they take photos of each other
and think of the quarrels they could have had
if the toughest girl hadn’t left all those empty egg shells behind
that prick the mother in her cheeks and
numb the father’s hands up to his elbows
and teach the sisters to walk the treacherous paths between
cutting and breaking.
And when on unguarded days they look out of the window they see
her
hanging upside down on the climbing frame, shouting ha you can’t
do this can you, before somersaulting and landing on her feet in
the sand.
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