HABIT
At the edge of the table
the man who is toying with
the magnet and filings
no longer hears the ocean
beating the rocks.
From the ceiling
beans are hung to dry
the whitewashed walls
let insects come and go
people passing each other by
would like to get back
in the habit of loving.
SEPARATION
In a shed in the old garden
the separation takes place
amid the rustling of leaves
you have to go far away
to another country
to recover this moment of farewell
leaning on the quiet tree
in the hour of lamplight
just as a child is sent
with no one to confide in
looking for milk in the night.
IN THIS LIGHT
Clearly in this broad daylight you can see
the empty bowl on the table
the background dappled
with the play of shadows
among the passersby
one picks up a pin
under a sky that darkens
though no lights come on.
A lithe body
is filled with silence.
Images from memory
will return with evening.
FARMERS
Some farmers keep on
watching the clouds
looking for clues
some prefer
an easy eloquence
to silence
at the corner
made by a hedge
of many plants
the transparent evenings
wear thin with repetition
on a stage of trestles
someone is making a speech
to others seated at tables
in the open barn
on furrows that shine
to the very ends of the earth.
SURROUNDED WOMAN
People are kept in suspense
by these commotions about a woman
who remains beautiful
as she bends her body
her hair sweeping the red ground
in the last light of festivities.
All those who watch
have memories
but they no longer see
night approaching.
FACE THE ANIMAL
It's not always easy
to face the animal
even if it looks at you
without fear or hate
it does so fixedly
and seems to disdain
the subtle secret it carries
it seems better to feel
the obviousness of the world
that noisily day and night
drills and damages
the silence of the soul.
__________________
translated by Heather McHugh
D'Après Tout
JEAN FOLLAIN
(Princeton 1981)
Jean Follain (29 August 1903 – 10 March 1971) was a French author, poet and corporate lawyer. A car accident took his life.
