Juma Rifai

Issue #
12
April 26, 2020

جملة واحدة مكررة الشاعر الفلسطيني جمعة الرفاعي ترجمة نزار سرطاوي وفيرونيكا غولس


من الأفض ِل للشاع ِر أن يتهيَّأ لكارث ٍة ستحص ُل بع َد قليل
ذل َكيعنيأنيفكَّربالَّنجاة
و أ ن ي خ ب َر ا ل آ خ ر ي َن ع ن أ ق ص ِر ا ل ُّط ر ِق ل ل خ ر و ِج م ن ا ل َّر ْد م
توق ُع الكارث ِة يعني التفكي ُر بإنقا ِذ ما يمك ُن إنقاذه
أ ن ي ب ن َي س و ر ً ا ح و َل ا ل ح د ي ق ة
وأن يصف َع المو َت بمكبرا ِت الكلام
أن يقو َل للري ِح الهادئ ِة على الشاطئ
استم ّري بالهبوب
وأن يقو َل للنهر
أ ن َت ص د ي ق ي
وماؤ َكقبيلتي
ثميكت ُبعلىورقٍةبيضاَء
جمل ًة واحيد ًة ومك َّررة:
أنا الكارثة؛
ج م ل ٌ ة ي ط ب ع ه ا آ ل ا َف ا ل م ر ا ِ
ويلقي بها في الطرقات
ت ح َت ا ل ق ن ا د ي ِل
ويرمي بها في شبابي ِك غر ِف ال َّنوم
في الغاب ِة
ع ّل غ ز ا ل ا ً أ و و ح ي َد ق ر ٍن
ي و ق ُظ ا ل ك ا ئ ن ا ِت م ن ب ي ا ت ه ا ا ل ِ ّش ت و ّي


A SINGLE, REPEATED SENTENCE

The poet must be prepared for impending
disaster.
This means he has to think of a deliverance,
to lead us all out of the rubble –
foreseeing disaster: How to save what might
be saved?
Build a wall around the garden!
Slap death with loudspeakers!
Urge the quiet beach wind to up and blow,
blow!
Sing to the river: You are my love!
Your water is my tribe;
And, he will write this on a white sheet,
this single repeated sentence:
I AM THE DISASTER.
I am the sentence repeated a thousand times
the sentence littered on the roads
hid under lampposts
sent through the windows of bedrooms
and then, in the forest, the deer, the unicorn,
will awaken creatures from their hibernation.

translated by Nizar Sartawi and Veronica Golos

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