Immanuel Mifsud
A poem before you sleep
Since, when I look at you, it’s not you I see
I see a whole swarm of butterflies
flying together without a destination;
I see a long stretch of sand embrace the sea;
I see the wind which has finally begun to love me:
cities I visited and the streets I roamed:
the flowers waking one by one.
And now a long river full of the colour
of petals which have once more come to life.
Since when I look at you it’s not you I see
I see every thing reborn in a new form.
Tell me: where are the butterflies fleeing to?
Which sandy beach, which sea will welcome them?
Which wind will embrace them so they can fly
towards cities gathered in streets both wide and narrow?
What flowers will they sip?
Because when I
cast my eyes upon you, it’s not you I see.
I see a poem as wide as the horizon;
I see a poem I never dreamt of;
a poem hanging like a necklace
before my face gazing at you and wondering
at the speed with which you fly towards the sea
of roads without end or corners
where the blossoms of hope and waiting dwell.
Now let us turn the light off and go to sleep
Look, these are fresh sheets which have been laid.
Translated by Maria Grech Ganado
Page(s) 162
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