Margaret Alice (The Crystal Age / Pretoria - South Africa)

Poppies, golden explosions of orange-edged
light bought to brighten my patch of grey, this
icy spot in the office - a source of comfort
against the dour sky outside, giving up on
my Dutch legal document

much too empty and cold to fight the inevitable
knowing I cannot win against the dragon of
official agricultural jargon presented by means
of incomprehensible Dutch legal terms

not a single word reminding of the enchantment
Jacques Brel created in his song ‘zondere liefde
warme liefde, waait de wind, de koude wind, over
mijn land, mijn plattenland, zonder de liefde
warme liefde

lacht de duivel, de swarte duivel’ the black devil
is laughing in grating sounds ‘invoermachtiging,
grensinspectiepost, bestemmeling, afgestempeld,
ondertekend, garantieverklaring

veiligheidsvoorwaarden van besmettelijke
aangifteplichtige planten- en dierenpathogenen’
I must study and research the correct use of
these mocking terms,

marching through unending desert of uniform
boredom, marching, marching while my heart
escapes by repeating ‘Ay Marieke, Marieke,
le ciel Flamand de Bruges a Gant, zonder de
liefde Warme liefde…’ full well knowing I am
stuck in a moment without escape,
an eternal moment without grace…

http: //blog.seniorennet.be/oldies_lyrics_scrapbook/arc hief.php? ID=21342
Marieke
Composer(s) : Jacques Brel; Gérard Jouannest
Originally performed by: Jacques Brel (Belgium)
Covered by various other artists