Not wishing to hide,
inside or out of
the discourse,
but to bring it forth -
proud coach
with a mute protégé.
But words
failed;
he stood alone
empty handed
at the heart of the matter;
a muted sigh in the air.
For a few moments: nothing,
his image still.
still in his own image.
Suddenly
a red apple lay
in the palm of his hand
but his hand
wouldn't respond,
couldn't raise it to his mouth.
He gazed at it
until his mind
had made of it a surrogate,
a perfect
proxy,
weightless
insubstantial
crafted shell
of some Weland.
Slowly he lifted his head,
closed his eyes
and opened them:
A few steps ahead,
on the floor by the radiator,
sat a short-eared owl.
It had hovered
above the crown of his head
without his noticing.
Now he needed only words
to weigh
this fear,
to meet
its steady gaze
and call it to him, silently .
trans. Árni Ibsen and Pétur Knútsson.
Undarleg teikn við kjarna máls
Hann vildi ekki dyljast,
hvorki innan
orðræðunnar né utan,
en leiða hana fram -
stoltur temjari
með málstola skjólstæðing.
En orðin
brugðust;
hann stóð einsamall
án verkfæra
við kjarna málsins;
daufur þytur í lofti.
Nokkur andartök ekkert,
mynd hans kyrr.
Hann kyrr í mynd sinni.
Skyndilega
hvíldi eldrautt epli
í lófa hans
en hann gat ekki lyft
höndinni,
gat ekki borið það að munni sínum.
Hann horfði á það
uns hugur hans
breytti því í eftirmynd sína,
óaðfinnanlega
mótaðan leikmun,
létta,
innihaldsrýra
hagleikssmíð
einhvers völundar.
Hann lyfti höfði ofurhægt.
Lét augun aftur
og lauk þeim upp:
fjær,
á gólfinu við ofninn
sat brandugla.
Hún hafði hringsólað
yfir hvirfli hans
án þess hann yrði hennar var.
Nú skorti aðeins orð
til að meta
þennan ugg,
til að mæta
starandi augnatilliti hennar
og kalla hana hljóðlaust til sín.
Árni Ibsen
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