Yórgos Houliáras
From: The Other Language (1981)
Theseus
Mythology of Consciousness
It is late now
and that may be why I can't remember;
narrow passages follow rectilinear
galleries and endless corridors
indelible turns
blinding alleys in the dark
I walk without stopping up and down steps
I move in circles repeating
my footsteps' rhythmical sounds
a thick odour follows me constantly
paces ahead of me
clings to me: everywhere I go
I've already been here
I know the place
And somewhere in its cold shiver
anxiety's small caterpillar is stirring
able at any moment to change itself
into the huge dark butterfly
overshadowing with its wings
the childhood hiding places of my life
It is impossible for me to remember
how this ball of yarn found itself in my hands
endlessly unravelling
once, twice, countless times
wherever I pass
always a step ahead of me
everywhere leaving its unbroken continuity
without guiding me
without showing me
what I am doing here
and where I may find myself at the end
Translated by David Mason and Yórgos Houliáras
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