The Hand Organ Man
Mommy bathed her girl,
Daddy dried her off,
Grandpa hurried with
a nightie for her,
Grandma smoothed the sheets,
brother fluffed the pad,
Mommy laid her down,
Grandpa tucked her in.
[ Pain ]
Pain, you are the sole proof
that my body exists.
You have made your point;
now cease. But I
will never believe
the body is all
there is to me.
[ Crossing ]
Crossing a meadow of daisies,
pushing the pram along
a jolty path (a tiller
behind the plow),
singing peasant-style,
I pluck a daisy: Look!
From the pram a pair
of wide-open eyes
stare back at me.
[ ever ]
ever so gently
the cradle rocks
a bumblebee naps
inside a rosebud
in a puddle the rain
fell asleep like a drunk
where is she loafing
that daughter of ours
[ Making ]
Making love as much as we wish,
skinny-dippy whenever we feel . . .
How is life, naked kids?
Life teems in every cell!
All alone, as in an Eden,
no laws, as in dreams . . .
I spread my skirt on the grass:
life of mine, come to me.
[ I am ]
I am
a nail
being driven in
while I try
to keep
straight
hoping
the carpenter
will get tired
or the hammer
will break
or the board
will crack and I
will roll
into a cozy nook
and will find you there
my love
my love
[ Remember ]
Remember me the way I am
this very instant: brusque and absent,
with a word beating against my cheek
like a butterfly caught in a curtain.
[ at twenty ]
at twenty
to fuck
at thirty
to love
what will I do at forty?
will look lively
will work
will be prod:
see, straight As!
will hope
to be pardoned
at fifty
[ I got ]
tanned all over
on a nameless island:
not a spot omitted,
not a single defect,
I am all like chocolate,
of fresh-brewed tea
from Sri Lanka, but
for one pale streak
under the wedding band.
[ lots ]
lots of knives
but only one cuts
lots of pens
but only one writes
lots of men
but I love only you
maybe at last you will
sharpen the knives?
——————————————
Vera Pavlova
Album for the Young (and Old)
Knopf 2017
translated from the Russian by Steven Seymour
