World Literature:
Francisco Brines
(Spain)
The Farewell (Poem)
There it already stands, around the corner, old age,
like a leafless tree. Let's hold
for a moment, here, under the sky,
that gives a golden veil to the palm trees
and puts your hand on my shoulder.
Let's breathe the light that darkens
and lengthens distances: a deceit,
which is the mercy of a god. He gilds
the hard farewell of your life.
You will have to return, and again you will have
to make your way through the so-loved world;
my love and my silence goes along with you.
But it still waits for the night:
when the first star appears above,
we will say goodbye, and I will go, alone.
Translation: Stanley Barkan
Translation: Germain Droogenbroodt
