Athena Farrokhzad
"To think that something so scorned can be made into porcelain"
To think that something so scorned can be made into porcelain
I say to my daughter at the flea market
She looks up from the used puzzle
sees the chipped pack donkey
with dusty gray coat and indignant expression
that I found among the kitchen utensils
In Persian, I explain, there are two words for donkey
which are both an insult
and a third, which is donkey ear, but that means rabbit
I carry the donkey home and set it next to our stove
fill the baskets with cinnamon and turmeric
My daughter sticks a toothpick in its mouth so the hay pokes out
I stroke my friend’s ears and whisper:
It’s you and me, now, gloomy little one
"Dat iets dat men zo bespot in porselein wordt gegoten"
Dat iets dat men zo bespot in porselein wordt gegoten
zeg ik tegen mijn dochter op de rommelmarkt
Ze kijkt op van een tweedehands puzzel
ziet de gehavende pakezel
met stoffige grijze vacht en een verongelijkt gezicht
die ik tussen het keukengerei heb gevonden
In het Perzisch, leg ik uit, zijn er twee woorden voor
ezel, allebei beledigingen
en dan heb je nog een woord en dat is ezelsoor
maar dat betekent konijn
Ik vul de manden met kaneel en kurkuma
en zet de ezel naast het fornuis
Mijn dochter steekt een tandenstoker in zijn bek
zodat er hooi uit hangt
Ik streel de oren van mijn vriend en fluister:
Nu zijn het jij en ik, kleine zwartkijker
From: Een witte suite
Publisher: 2018, Perdu, Amsterdam
"Tänk att något så bespottat kan gjutas i porslin"
Tänk att något så bespottat kan gjutas i porslin
säger jag till min dotter på loppisen
Hon tittar upp från det begagnade pusslet
ser den kantstötta packåsnan
med dammig grå päls och förorättad uppsyn
som jag hittat bland köksgeråden
På persiska, förklarar jag, finns det två ord
för åsna beroende på förolämpning
och ett tredje som är åsneöra
men det betyder kanin
Jag fyller korgarna med kanel och gurkmeja
och ställer åsnan bredvid spisen
Min dotter sticker in en tandpetare i munnen
så att höet hänger ut
Jag stryker min vän över öronen och viskar:
Nu är det du och jag, lilla dysterkvist
Athena Farrokhzad
The work of poet, playwright, translator and literary critic Athena Farrokhzad boils with rage, but it also resonates with concern, as one constantly gives way to the other. She believes that stories are the only legacy that really matters. Family therefore plays a key role in her work, as in her extraordinary collection White Blight, in which a family confronts the past in conversations about ...
"To think that something so scorned can be made into porcelain"
To think that something so scorned can be made into porcelain
I say to my daughter at the flea market
She looks up from the used puzzle
sees the chipped pack donkey
with dusty gray coat and indignant expression
that I found among the kitchen utensils
In Persian, I explain, there are two words for donkey
which are both an insult
and a third, which is donkey ear, but that means rabbit
I carry the donkey home and set it next to our stove
fill the baskets with cinnamon and turmeric
My daughter sticks a toothpick in its mouth so the hay pokes out
I stroke my friend’s ears and whisper:
It’s you and me, now, gloomy little one
"To think that something so scorned can be made into porcelain"
To think that something so scorned can be made into porcelain
I say to my daughter at the flea market
She looks up from the used puzzle
sees the chipped pack donkey
with dusty gray coat and indignant expression
that I found among the kitchen utensils
In Persian, I explain, there are two words for donkey
which are both an insult
and a third, which is donkey ear, but that means rabbit
I carry the donkey home and set it next to our stove
fill the baskets with cinnamon and turmeric
My daughter sticks a toothpick in its mouth so the hay pokes out
I stroke my friend’s ears and whisper:
It’s you and me, now, gloomy little one
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