Antoine Cassar

мальтийский

Antoine Cassar

английский

Ċomb

Jixirfu minn taħt il-mejda, isorru
ftit ħwejjeġ, ftit larinġiet żejda, iġorru
lit-tifel bl-ors imħanxar fil-wejda, imorru
lejn l-għalqa għall-kenn ta’ ġol-bejta, ikorru
bil-frak tal-ħġieġ ħiereġ imħeġġeġ
mit-tifqigħa tal-moskea mejta.

Tixref minn ġod-daħna tajjar, tidwi
ħemdet żewġha wara l-istar, miksi
bit-trab qed jirtab u jiħdar, jikwi
demm binha fuq ksieħ il-liżar, li lanqas jibki
ma jiflaħ, la fommu ma jiftaħ
fil-kuritur ifur tal-isptar.

X’ħela ta’ ħin, x’ħela ta’ ħajja
x’ħela ta’ ħniena bla sliema titlajja,
mill-beraħ tas-sema, mill-wesgħa tal-bajja
bombi taċ-ċomb minn ġo tombla ġarrajja,
battalja battala bla tpattija tissajja:
duħħan ġo duħħan, tbajja’ fuq tbajja’.

© Antoine Cassar
Аудиопроизводство: Literaturwerkstatt Berlin 2009

Lead

They come out from under the table, gather

a few clothes, a few extra oranges, carry

their boy with the headless bear in his hand, leave

toward the shelter of their hut in the field, are wounded

by the burning fragments of glass

exploded from the dead mosque.


She comes out of the cotton-like smoke, her

husband’s silence echoing behind her veil, covered

in dust turning soft and green, the blood

of her son burns on the cold of the sheet,

with no strength to cry, nor to open his mouth

in the overflowing corridor of the hospital.


Such a waste of time, such a waste of life

such a waste of pity relentlessly postponed,

from the open skies, from the breadth of the bay

bombs of lead from a long-threaded lottery,

a futile battle where revenge awaits not:

smoke in smoke, stains upon stains.

Translated from the Maltese by Antoine Cassar.