An untitled poem by the French poet, linguist, essayist and translator Henri Meschonnic, “As your face spoke,” from Dédicaces proverbes, Gallimard, 1972. Translated by Don Boes and Gabriella Bedetti. The original follows the English translation.
As your face spoke
through your whole body
language could say what it wants
the ear the torso the eyes are limited
they do not know the unspeakable
if some of your words are crushed in the net
the wound still too fresh to heal this time to return
yet your body has made its way to me
we don't go back the way we came
when one can't walk the other is at full strength
we don't wait when we're together
we're not alone if I know you like I do
separated we come together to invite the future.
Comme parlait ton visage
par tout le corps
le langage pouvait dire ce qu’il voulait
l’oreille la taille les yeux avaient raison à pleines mains
ils ne connaissent pas l’indicible
si une part de tes mots est prise au filet écrasé
la blessure trop fraîche encore pour achever ce temps pour revenir
pourtant ta chair a fait mon chemin
on ne retourne pas sur notre chemin
quand l’un ne peut pas marcher l’autre a toutes les mains pour guérir
on n’attend pas quand on est ensemble
on n’est pas seul si on te connaît comme moi
séparés c’est pour rassembler l’avenir.
About the Author
Henri Meschonnic (1932-2009) is best known worldwide for his translations of the Old Testament and the 710-page Critique du rythme: Anthropologie historique du langage. He has published nineteen poetry collections, winning the Max Jacob International Poetry Prize, the Mallarmé Prize, the Jean Arp Francophone Literature Prize, and the Guillevic-Ville de Saint-Malo Grand Prize for Poetry.
About the Translators
Don Boes lives in Lexington, Kentucky. His first book, The Eighth Continent, was chosen by A. R. Ammons as the recipient of the Samuel Morse Poetry Prize and published by Northeastern University Press. Other publications include Railroad Crossing and Good Luck with That.
Gabriella Bedetti has translations of Henri Meschonnic’s essays and other works in New Literary History, Critical Inquiry, and Diacritics. She and Don Boes have translations of his poems in Puerto del Sol, World Literature Today, and forthcoming in Southern Review.
