Poetry International Poetry International
Poem

Toon Tellegen

AFTER CAVAFY

The philosophers ran into one another in the street.
It was a whim of fate –
not one of them was missing.

Fundamental questions were not answered that day,
such as: who is happier than who,
and what purpose does happiness serve and what purpose loneliness.

They stood there together for a long time.
They held parasols over one another\'s heads
and decided not to flinch
and even more fervently and even more accurately to long for nothing.
They nodded.
Then they thought of someone – each of them thought of someone else –
and cast down their eyes.

They greeted one another and continued on their way.

OP DE WIJZE VAN KAVAFIS

OP DE WIJZE VAN KAVAFIS

Op straat kwamen de filosofen elkaar tegen.
Het was een speling van het lot –
niet een van hen ontbrak.

Fundamentele vragen werden niet beantwoord, die dag,
zoals: wie is gelukkiger dan wie,
en waartoe dient het geluk en waartoe de eenzaamheid.

Lange tijd stonden ze bij elkaar.
Ze hielden een parasol boven elkaars hoofd
en besloten niet te versagen
en nog vuriger en nog accurater naar niets te verlangen.
Ze knikten.
Toen dachten ze aan iemand – elk dacht aan een ander –
en sloegen hun ogen neer.

Ze groetten elkaar en vervolgden hun weg.
Close

AFTER CAVAFY

The philosophers ran into one another in the street.
It was a whim of fate –
not one of them was missing.

Fundamental questions were not answered that day,
such as: who is happier than who,
and what purpose does happiness serve and what purpose loneliness.

They stood there together for a long time.
They held parasols over one another\'s heads
and decided not to flinch
and even more fervently and even more accurately to long for nothing.
They nodded.
Then they thought of someone – each of them thought of someone else –
and cast down their eyes.

They greeted one another and continued on their way.

AFTER CAVAFY

The philosophers ran into one another in the street.
It was a whim of fate –
not one of them was missing.

Fundamental questions were not answered that day,
such as: who is happier than who,
and what purpose does happiness serve and what purpose loneliness.

They stood there together for a long time.
They held parasols over one another\'s heads
and decided not to flinch
and even more fervently and even more accurately to long for nothing.
They nodded.
Then they thought of someone – each of them thought of someone else –
and cast down their eyes.

They greeted one another and continued on their way.
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