God is the first snow. He is a leaf, a mosquito
God is the first snow. He is a leaf, a mosquito.
He is Benedict burning. He is sleeping Abelard.
He is a speckled stone at the bottom of a lake.
He is steam over milk. He hides in me.
But not in the ears, catching seduction,
not in depth of eyes that have been fed on dirtiness,
not in the dull, hard coffin of the skull,
not in the skipping fledgling in a ribcage nest,
shouting “Love, love!”
He doesn’t dive
in the blood and splash “Catch!”
He is uncatchable for me, in me.
Only two are powerful enough
to cover Him, like a crane
in a magical, fine net of words guiltily left unsaid and movements.
Then He is here – not everywhere –
but in the fingertips and the tips of breasts
with which I softly touch you,
standing barefoot on tiptoes.
Inasmuch as this moment is fired and pure
like a pottery pitcher, like a narrow broom leaf
God breathes in it; He is the cold between the shoulder blades,
sparkle of the sun on the shoulder and imprint of a word unsaid on
dry lips:
the track of an angel. The track of sun on stones.
He is Benedict burning. He is sleeping Abelard.
He is a speckled stone at the bottom of a lake.
He is steam over milk. He hides in me.
But not in the ears, catching seduction,
not in depth of eyes that have been fed on dirtiness,
not in the dull, hard coffin of the skull,
not in the skipping fledgling in a ribcage nest,
shouting “Love, love!”
He doesn’t dive
in the blood and splash “Catch!”
He is uncatchable for me, in me.
Only two are powerful enough
to cover Him, like a crane
in a magical, fine net of words guiltily left unsaid and movements.
Then He is here – not everywhere –
but in the fingertips and the tips of breasts
with which I softly touch you,
standing barefoot on tiptoes.
Inasmuch as this moment is fired and pure
like a pottery pitcher, like a narrow broom leaf
God breathes in it; He is the cold between the shoulder blades,
sparkle of the sun on the shoulder and imprint of a word unsaid on
dry lips:
the track of an angel. The track of sun on stones.
Translated by Richard McKane
Page(s) 239-240
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