A MAN

A man's mother is very sick
He goes out to find a doctor
He's crying
In the street he sees his wife in the company of another man
They're holding hands
He follows a few steps behind them
From tree to tree
He's crying
Now he meets a friend from his youth
It's years since we've seen each other!
They go on to a bar
They talk, laugh
The man goes out to the patio for a piss
He sees a young girl
It's night
She's washing dishes
The man goes over to her
He takes her by the waist
They waltz
They go out into the street together
They laugh
There's an accident
The girl's lost consciousness
The man goes to telephone
He's crying
He comes to a house with lights on
He asks for a telephone
Somebody knows him
Hey stay and have something to eat
No
Where's the telephone
Have something to eat, hey eat something
Then go
He sits down to eat
He drinks like a condemned man
He laughs
They get him to recite something
He recites it
He ends up sleeping under a desk

translated by W.S. Merwin

traducido por W.S.Merwin

 

en: Antipoems: New and Selected (edited by David Unger), New York, New Directions, 1985.

SISIB - Facultad de Filosofía y Humanidades - Universidad de Chile