Pompeii and Troy

Author: Jerónimo Alayón

Translation: Robert Hutchinson

I have arrived here
to the edge of the world
just to see this unanimous light.
 
Below
at my feet
remain the dark depths
that one day I conjured,
that everyday I conjured.
 
I am not a hero
or perhaps… I am 
(my battles are so silent to the world!
how good to be this tiny button of light!),
but in me Pompeii and Troy together met.
Pompeii: axe of destiny
Troy: axe of mankind
Who cares which axe when the soul cries out in pain!

Destiny is an axe that I fear.
To men… no: with them, I always get along.
I am an athlete of the light … undefeated!

And I look at my soul…
that poor branch ripped and chopped, 
in love with the light, laughter and fire
despite all the axes.
 
And I look at my hands, 
exhausted, almost dead, almost broken.
Open, open, even more open, 
as if they had not yet bled enough, 
in love with love.
I am an athlete of the light… undefeated!
 
And the depths… now I see them without bitterness.
What an effort, God, to smile
with the world held tight between the lips
like a kiss between two constellations.

What an effort, God, to not smile from the lips, 
but to smile from the soul…
a smile more determined than death.

What an effort, God, to not die before dying,
to smile with light on the lips.
 
And now I come calmly here,
to the edge of the world
just to see this unanimous light
that I felt in me… and felt in you.
I am an athlete of the light… undefeated!

Pompeii and Troy?
Yes… now they rest in the light, like smiles… harmless….


Caracas, December 24, 2011.

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